Travel by train to the largest lakes of Russia

The fact that there are a lot of places in Russia that are unique in their beauty is not a secret. Seas, ocean and beautiful lakes are all constantly explored and visited by thousands of travelers from all over the world.

The majestic and unique lakes that deserve special attention include several of the hundreds, namely:

• Baikal, with an area of 31,722 km of water, with a registered depth of 1,187 meters;
• Lake Ladoga - area: 17,700 km, depth - 46.9 m;
• Onega Lake - area: 9,700 km, depth up to 120 m;
• Taimyr - area 4560 km², depth up to 2.8m;
• Khanka- an area of 4070 km² and a depth of up to 10.6 m.

The Caspian Sea - lake, having a coastline with the territory of Russia, can also be considered one of the tourist routes, but quite difficult. Mozero (sea + lake), named in memory of the "Kaspiev" tribe, who lived on the shores of a reservoir with an area of 371,000 km, at a depth of up to 1020 meters, is located in the western part of Kazakhstan, and it is almost impossible to get to the reservoir by train. The Caspian Sea, whose territory is divided by the countries of Central Asia, is considered a neutral territory.

The Caspian Sea is located at a distance of 20 km from the Kazakh city of Atyrau, which has a railway connection with Russian cities. So, planning a visit to the Caspian Sea requires careful preparation.

Baikal is an extremely popular route among travelers who try to visit the famous lake at any time of the year. The oldest lake in the world, 25 million years old, Baikal fascinates from the first minutes with the unearthly landscapes of its expanses, the purest fresh water in Europe, stunning wildlife that has not yet been desecrated by industrial technologies. Baikal is considered the world's largest reservoir of fresh water, the volume of which exceeds even the sea.

The size of Lake Baikal is so huge that an island the size of New York, located in the water area, is not surprising. However, the population of Olkhon Island is not as numerous as in New York, about 150,000 indigenous people live permanently on the island, the majority of Buryats. The village of Khuzhir became the tourist center of tourism on the island. It should be noted that the peak of the tourist season falls in the summer months, but at other times the island is not empty, because Olkhon is considered one of the five global poles of shamanic energy.

The positive energy of Olkhon helped people with different faiths to live peacefully side by side. The clock tower, wooden Orthodox churches look organically against the background of shamanic stones located in the center of the island. The old churches, built exclusively of wood, surprisingly resemble similar structures of the XVI century, located in Kizhi, on Lake Onega, and built, apparently, even earlier.

Recently, electricity has been installed in the village of Khuzhir, but still half of the population does not know how to use it. And in general, the locals are not distorted by civilization: several camp sites, several grocery stores, a small school, a hospital and a library - that's the whole list of achievements of civilization. The addition is the Museum of Local Lore and the village council.

For tourists and travelers, Olkhon became a portal to the past, where life was closely connected with nature.

It became possible to reach Baikal by train with the help of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The train has been moving along the Baikal coastline for quite a long time, and travelers have enough time to enjoy the incomparable views of the majestic lake.

For those who want to understand the beauty of Lake Baikal in more detail, there is an opportunity to use the 5-day railway route "Okolobaikalsky Express". The route starts in Irkutsk, and the tourist program provides an in-depth study of all the known features of Lake Baikal.

Lake Ladoga

The largest lake in Europe, Lake Ladoga is second in area only to the unique Baikal. The water surface of the lake is so huge by European standards that it exceeds the area of some EU countries.

The lake is not freshwater, but it cannot be called salty either. The salinity of Lake Ladoga is measured at 0.06 ppm, at a time when this indicator in ocean water is equal to 31-33 ppm.

The only river that flows out of the lake is the Neva, the river on the banks of which St. Petersburg is built. The size of Lake Ladoga allows cruise ships and ferries to walk on it.

If you paid attention to the level of water pollution, then Lake Ladoga is on the verge of an ecological catastrophe.

Active hostilities during the Second World War, constant water pollution by waste from more than 600 enterprises, remnants of the effects of tests of bacteriological, radiation and chemical weapons - all these factors affect the ecology of the lake. Thanks to the "Road of Life" laid on the ice of Lake Ladoga, more than 1.3 million civilians were evacuated from Leningrad besieged by the Nazis, thousands of tons of food were delivered to the starving city.

Ladoga was and remains an attractive tourist route. Despite the fact that there are only 62 sunny days on average per year in that area, tens of thousands of travelers are trying to visit Lake Ladoga. And there are enough sights worthy of attention here.

As a huge lake, Ladoga has many islands with a total area of more than 445 km, the most famous of which are Riekkalansaari, the largest (with an area of 55.3 km), and Valaam, with an area of 28 km. According to legend, the Valaam rocks were blessed by the Apostle Andrew the First-Called, and the monastery on the island became a legendary place. A subspecies of the mammal family, Ladoga ringed seals, listed in the Red Book of Russia, very rare animals, the number of which does not exceed 5000 individuals, are worthy of the attention of tourists and travelers.

Fans of extreme sports on the coast of Lake Ladoga expect regular rally races "Ladoga Trophy", a route length of 1.2 thousand kilometers. Tourist cruise liners, with proven routes of tourist preferences, will allow you to get acquainted with all the famous sights. And this is the Korela Fortress Museum, Mount Paaso, the Shlisselburg fortress "Oreshek", numerous monuments and city parks.

The short distance from St. Petersburg to the Ladoga coast (47 kilometers), allows you to easily move by train from the city to the lake.

Lake Onega, which is often called the younger brother of Lake Ladoga, is located in a mysterious and mysterious region - Karelia. The lake, which is half the size of Ladoga, was formed as a result of the retreat of the last glaciers. The fact that Karelia did not become an industrial region allowed Onega Lake to keep its water relatively clean. It is considered very high-quality and much better than Ladoga.

The name of the lake is interpreted in different ways, sometimes the reservoir is called "smoky lake", there is a variant of "noisy lake", some believe that the name comes from one of the 50 rivers flowing into the Onega. Each of the options has the right to exist. Smoky, that is, in constant fogs, Onega can be called not without reason - fogs in those parts are a familiar phenomenon. The noise from thousands of birds nesting on 1500 islands of the lake, apparently, really influenced the name of Onega. As for the rivers, only one river flows out of Lake Onega - the Svir, which slowly carries its waters to Ladoga.

In ancient times, when glaciers were retreating, granite blocks that stretched behind the ice, like a knife cut through the coast of Lake Onega, forming numerous bays and coves. The shallow depth (up to 30 meters) does not allow to establish navigation on the reservoir, but there are no obstacles for a small fleet of tourists.

Mysterious petroglyphs found on the rocks of Onega became a sensation that opened another page in the history of mankind. Images of things familiar to ancient people, animals, scenes of everyday life, are mixed with images of mysterious lines and circles. The discovery of prehistoric murals has prompted thousands of tourists to join the active search for ancient images. The mysterious culture of the Karelo-Finns has become the subject of research.

The northern edge, the edge of forests, rocks and swamps has become a welcome object for travelers and researchers to visit.

The flow of tourists does not decrease throughout the year, because Karelia is magnificent at any time of the year. A pleasant addition to the tourist trip will be a visit to the "Karelian Zoo", located in the valley, between the forests and Lake Yanisyarvi. The second name of the zoo - "ZOO GREENPARK" is explained by the fact that the animals are not kept in cages, but move freely around the aviary fields. The location of the zoo is so successful that an artificially created object is perceived as a natural phenomenon.

One of the reasons to visit Lake Onega is accessibility. Onega station is located on the territory of the Southern Industrial Zone of the city of Petrozavodsk. Railway communication is established with all regions, so you can get to Lake Onega from almost all cities.

Taimyr

Perhaps the most desperate travelers can visit the distant Taimyr Peninsula and explore the features of the lake of the same name.

Lake Taimyr is located far beyond the Arctic Circle, at the foot of the Birranga Mountains, in places where there is practically no permanent population. The area of the lake is 4560 km, which makes it one of the five largest freshwater reservoirs in Russia. At a shallow depth (up to 3 meters), the lake freezes completely quite regularly, and the water becomes crystal clear at the same time. At the same time, several species of fish live in the lake.

The peculiarities of the tundra do not allow you to lay railway tracks to Taimyr, so you can take a train to Krasnoyarsk, and then transfer to a plane. Frankly speaking, not everyone can afford to visit Taimyr, so the vast majority of foreign tourists visiting this protected area of Russia. Extreme travelers can expect a unique northern lights, a reindeer herders' festival, an ice museum, a collection of ancient mammoth tusks, a dog sledding trip - Taimyr has something to impress. And most importantly, you can see musk oxen, incredible animals that can only be seen in five places in the world.

When deciding on a trip to Taimyr, you need to take into account that the lake is located in the Arctic and subarctic climate zone, which has its own characteristics. Therefore, consultation with experts regarding the time of travel and the selection of equipment will not be superfluous.

Hanka

Lake Khanka, with an area of 4070 km ² and a depth of up to 10.6 m, undoubtedly deserves the attention of tourists. The lake in the Far East, on the border of Russia and China, has a rather strange name, which is associated either with opium preparations, or with the local name of moonshine.

More than 20 small rivers flow into the Khanka, and only one flows out - the Sungach, which in turn becomes a tributary of the Usuri River.

Travelers will definitely be interested in numerous colonies of water birds and rare species of fish that are listed in the Red Book. Among them are Amur sturgeon, Kaluga, black amur, black Amur bream, Soldatov's catfish, aukha (Chinese perch) and killer whale. Some fish can be heard about for the first time, but they live in the waters of Lake Khanka.

At the beginning of summer, strong winds blow along the lake, and it is at this time that competitions among windsurfers are held. It is such entertainment that active tourists like.

It should not be forgotten that the Russian-Chinese Khankai Reserve is located in the border zone, and staying in it requires having a special pass.

Getting to a remote lake is not difficult, the Trans-Siberian Express will take travelers to Vladivostok, and from there you can get to Ussuriysk by train. The journey is not close, but fascinating and interesting.

Each person's travel preferences are individual. But it is not necessary to check the measure of your endurance, starting with extreme routes (to Taimyr, for example).

Start your routes from more developed destinations, gradually complicating the journey. This will help you acquire a lot of useful skills and identify your weaknesses.