Permafrost represents 26% of terrestrial soil ecosystems; yet its biology, essentially microbiology, remains relatively unexplored. The permafrost environment is considered extreme because indigenous microorganisms must survive prolonged exposure to subzero temperatures and background radiation for geological time scales in a habitat with low water activity and extremely low rates of nutrient and metabolite transfer. Mammoth Mountain is an outcrop of relict permafrost, extending for 12 km along the left bank of the Aldan River, 300 km from its confluence with the Lena River. Microbiological examination revealed that the sample is characterized by a limited number of cultivated forms of microorganisms.