THE UNKNOWN: The Dyatlov Pass Tragedy — Part 2: The Cold Truth
Weeks after the Dyatlov group’s final journal entries, search teams reached the site. The scene didn’t line up with a simple hiking accident: a tent sliced from the inside, barefoot tracks in the snow, and bodies found under injuries and circumstances no single theory could fully explain.
In Part 2 of THE UNKNOWN: The Dyatlov Pass Tragedy, we break down the search, the recoveries, the injuries, and the theories — from avalanche to military involvement — and examine why none of them fully explain what happened on that mountain.
TW: This episode contains discussion of death, hypothermia, trauma, and graphic forensic details. Listener discretion is advised.
Episode Source Material
Official Reports & Investigative Files
Sverdlovsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office. Criminal Case No. 659: Investigative Files on the Dyatlov Group Deaths. Sverdlovsk Oblast, 1959. Translated and hosted on DyatlovPass.com.Accessed August 2025. https://dyatlovpass.com/.
Maslennikov, Evgeniy. Search & Rescue Leadership Notes and Field Reports (February–March 1959). Translated and hosted on DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Tempalov, Vladimir. Initial Investigator Reports and Memos (1959). Sverdlovsk Oblast Internal Affairs. Translated and digitized by DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Autopsy Documents & Forensic Materials
Vozrozhdenny, Boris. Autopsy Reports for All Nine Dyatlov Group Members. Sverdlovsk Forensic Bureau, 1959. Translated and hosted on DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Sverdlovsk Forensic Bureau. Forensic Examinations, Clothing Damage Analyses, and Medical Conclusions. 1959. Translated and digitized by DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Diaries, Logs & Journal Entries
Dyatlov, Igor. Personal Diary (January–February 1959). Scans and translations on DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Kolmogorova, Zinaida. Personal Diary (January–February 1959). Scans and translations on DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Group Diary (“The Collective Journal”). Expedition Log Entries (January–February 1959). Translated and hosted by DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Photo Archives
DyatlovPass.com. “Dyatlov Expedition Photo Archive: Film Roll Scans and Analysis.” Accessed August 2025. https://dyatlovpass.com/.
DyatlovPass.com. “The Final Photos: February 1959 Film Frames & ‘Unknown’ Kodachrome Image.” Accessed August 2025.
Witness Statements & Testimonies
DyatlovPass.com. “Witness Testimonies: Mansi Residents, Searchers, Students, Guides, and Military Personnel.” Translated archival statements (1959). Accessed August 2025.
Kurakov, A., Bakhmuta, R., Atmanaki, A., and others. Transcribed 1959 Witness Depositions. Soviet investigative archive. Translated on DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Modern Analysis Theories & Scientific Reports
DyatlovPass.com. “Case Theories: Avalanche, Katabatic Winds, Paradoxical Undressing, Infrasound, Military Testing, and Other Proposed Explanations.” Accessed August 2025.
Gaume, Johan, and Alexander Puzrin. “Mechanics of Snow Slab Avalanches and Their Possible Application to the Dyatlov Pass Incident.” Nature (2021).
DyatlovPass.com. Forum Contributors. “Expert Commentary and Forensic Debate Threads (2010–2025).” Accessed August 2025.
Books Used & Contextual Reference
Eichar, Donnie. Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident. Chronicle Books, 2013.
Aleksei Rakitin. 1079: The Overrated Case of Dyatlov Pass. Self-published. Excerpts referenced via DyatlovPass.com. Accessed August 2025.
Documentaries, Videos & Secondary Media
Discovery Channel. Russian Yeti: The Killer Lives. 2014.
CBS News / 48 Hours. “What Happened at Dyatlov Pass?” Broadcast segments (2013–2020).
DyatlovPass.com. YouTube Channel. Archival discussions and case breakdowns. Accessed August 2025.
Online Articles & Websites
DyatlovPass.com.“Main Archive Index.” Accessed August 2025. https://dyatlovpass.com/.
DyatlovPass.com.“Case Files, Maps, Timelines.” Accessed August 2025.
