Our first morning on Lake Baikal I woke up early and went for a run in the opposite direction of our walk from the day before. Living in flat Oxford has killed my hill running ability but it was a beautiful run overlooking the lake and with the exception of the crowing roosters and barking dogs it was quiet and serene. Our breakfast was homemade oatmeal, Russian pancakes (I’m going to miss those), cheese, bread, and tea. I’m pretty sure we drank them out of their tea throughout the course of the few days we stayed at the guest house. In the morning we hired a boat to take us across the lake. First the boat took us in the direction of the railway to see the first railway tunnel a few miles down the shore. Then we turned back the other way and went across the Angara River to the town of Listvianka. It felt amazing to just stretch out on the boat and enjoy the sunshine, the clear blue water, and the nice crisp breeze. Just what we needed to get the train out of our system!
When we arrived in Listvianka we started at a small market. The main “attraction” of the market was rows and rows of dried and smoked fish. Also available were veggies, fruits, and a rice dish called “polaf” (sort of a Russian paella). The market also had souvenirs, mostly polished stones and jewelry featuring them. Several of the stones, including a really pretty purple stone called Charoite, are only found in or around Lake Baikal.
We then walked along the coast for a ways before stopping to have a picnic lunch on the shores of the lake. This picnic was packed for us by Natalia and included several sandwiches, a hardboiled egg, and veggies; I washed it down with a Russian beer called 3 Bears.
After lunch we continued walking along the coast to what we referred to as the “Crazy Man Museum.” A local artist collects scrap metal, run down cars, and old motorbikes and uses those to make sculptures which he displays in his yard. It was a fun little eclectic collection that featured tons of sculptures including a Knight on a horse, a team of firefighters, a massive spider, and a little boy, girl, and their dog.
Our next stop along the coast was the Lake Baikal Museum and Aquarium. Our intention was to stay for about a half hour and catch the next ferry back to Port Biakal but as we were walking through the museum a little old lady who worked there asked us if we had a guide. We pointed Masha out to her and Masha was then lectured by this lady and asked why she wasn’t telling us information about the lake and the museum. She then decided it was her role to inform us as to everything that is in the museum and give us a tour. Needless to say we didn’t make it to the ferry on time...
While we weren’t expecting this guided tour, I guess you could say we learned a lot and it was pretty interesting. Here are some of the things we learned:
Lake Baikal facts
--637 km long
--41 km across at narrowest
--60 km to other side from where we were
--456m above sea level
--1600m deep
--350 rivers flowing in, 1 river flowing out
--Highly seismic with about 3 measurable earthquakes a day and a big earthquake every 50 years or so
Fish facts (this lady knew a lot about fish)
--All the fish in the lake are known as “white salmons” because they have white flesh but red/orange eggs
--They spawn in rivers and each species uses a different river; This is part of the way the fish are classified
--The two most common fish are omul and whitefish; To tell the difference between omul and whitefish you just need to look at their profile: the omul has a lower jaw, whereas the whitefish doesn’t
Seal facts
--Lake Baikal is home to a unique breed of freshwater seals
--Seal population is 100,000
--Lake officials try to keep the population around 100,000 by issuing hunting licenses (half the number they want to decrease population by)
--Seal fur is used for the bottom of skis because it allows them to move one way but not the other
--Seals can live to the age of 70
As I mentioned earlier, we missed the ferry and had to wait almost two hours for the next one. The wait wasn’t unbearable though because we just sat out on the lake in the sun. When we got back a dinner of “polaf” was waiting for us. This mixture of rice, chicken, lamb, veggies, and spices was absolutely amazing.
After dinner we got to experience a “bana” or Russian sauna. Many Russian houses have them and there is a traditional way to use the bana. You start in the hot room where you pour hot water on yourself. You then go into an even hotter room and sit. If the temperature in that room drops below 40C then you pour hot water onto the coals to release more steam and bring up the temperature. After about 10 minutes go outside for a bit and then return to the hottest room where you start a process called “beating.” In this you lie on your stomach and someone takes a small branch of birch leaves that has been soaking in hot water and beats your back, starting at feet and working way up. Beating sounds really harsh but because the birch has been soaking it is actually pretty soft and isn’t a very harsh feeling at all. After the beating you go back outside and immediately pour cold water on yourself as a shock to the system. You can then repeat this as many times as you want. I really don’t like saunas (don’t like sweating in general, don’t know why I’m an athlete) so I only did it once but it was a pretty cool experience nonetheless. The long day out in the sun really tired us out and so it was a quiet night after that, enjoying the last night of sleep in a bed for another few nights.
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