Excursions in Southern Baikal and Buryatia

Meeting at the railway station.

(Excursion to any of the two museums to choose from)

1 option.

Excursion to the Local History Museum of the Locomotive Depot (exhibition of Baikal antiquities). The only museum on the shores of Lake Baikal, which tells about the origin of Baikal; about the history of the appearance and life of people on the shores of Lake Baikal; about archaeological finds, ancient burials, rock paintings and much more; about the history of the construction of the Circum-Baikal Railway (1899-1904), during which there are more than 500 architectural structures made of marble.

Option 2.

Excursion to the Museum of Minerals (Museum – Zhigalov’s estate) the 3rd museum in Russia in terms of the number and variety of exhibits, known in many countries of the world. More than 11,000 minerals from all over the world are on display in the museum.

The only railway station in the world made of white and pink marble.

After an interesting journey into the world of minerals and a visit to a souvenir shop, we set off on a short sightseeing tour of Slyudyanka. Here, the only railway station in the world made of white and pink marble is of great interest. The Slyudyanskoe marble deposit is another real treasure of these places. Its reserves are at least 100 million tons (with an annual production of 1.5 million tons). Interestingly, Slyudyansky marble is multi-colored, and in addition to blue-blue calcite marble, it can be pink, yellow, snow-white, etc.

In the footsteps of ancient miners.

After visiting the station and the church, you will go to the most picturesque places of Khamar-Daban, to one of the adits of the former mountain mine Verninsky. The history of this place, including its name, will be told to you by our guide. Brief inspection of the gallery. We will see large calcite veins with transparent crystals of fine diopside, small crystals of phlogopite and other minerals. In the lower horizons, giant blue apatites with well-preserved pyramidal heads reach 2 meters in long axis and up to 0.5 meters in diameter.

Lunch at the “Golden Yurt” in the menu of Buryat cuisine.

Hiking along the Shaman cape.

Shaman Cape is a part of a spur of the Khamar-Daban mountain range, which flows into the depths of Lake Baikal for 500 meters. Shaman cape symbolizes the beginning of Baikal. Here, in 1986, Polish exiles B. Dybowski and I. Godlevsky, engaged in the study of Baikal, made a notch on the rocks, marking the water level in Baikal. In 1986, there was the highest level in the 19th century (now this serif is above the water). The cape is composed of white and pink marble, the Buryats believe that spirits guarding this place live in such places. Therefore, the Shaman cape (along with the Shaman stone at the source of the Angara and the Shaman rock on Olkhon) has always been a place of religious rites. On the western side, Shamansky Cape washes the Kultuk Bay (Evenki name) translated into Russian – corner, dead end, under the arm. And indeed, from the tip of Shamansky Cape, the bay looks like under the arm of Lake Baikal. The village of Kultuk is located on the shore of the bay, and here the south wind is born, bringing rain, with the same name Kultuk.

Moving to Baikalsk. Accommodation. Dinner.

AUTO-WALKING EXCURSION TO THE WARM LAKES / BORDER OF BURYATIA /

Route: Baikalsk – Warm lakes – Baikalsk.

Number of days: 1 light day.

Total length (round trip) 80 km.

Duration – 8 hours.

In the dense taiga forest, at the foot of the picturesque mountains of Khamar-Daban, there are three lakes – Emerald, Dead (radon) and Skazka. Nearby flows the Snezhnaya River, one of the major tributaries of Lake Baikal. The beauty of these places is truly mesmerizing: snow-capped mountain peaks, among which the impeccably even pyramid of Mount Monomakh’s Cap stands out, a dense mixed forest with mighty, 5-6 girth relic poplars, rich vegetation (botanists note here up to 40 unique endemics), taiga berry bushes (lingonberries, blueberries, blueberries, currants, etc.), perch, pike, carp are found in the lakes, grayling, lenok and taimen are found in Snezhnaya. In a word, nature itself took care to create all the conditions for people to relax here. Scientists have long called the nature surrounding the Warm Lakes cold subtropics – it is known that the severe frosts of the Ice Age bypassed these places. Since the Cenozoic era, some of its relic representatives, flora and fauna have been preserved here, which during an excursion to the Warm Lakes you can see, touch and, of course, take pictures with them.

We leave for these wonderful lands right after breakfast. After driving about 45 km along the road, we stop at the parking lot. The program of this day includes small walks to each of the three Warm lakes – Emerald, Fairy Tale and Warm (it is also called Dead, due to the low content of radon in the water). There is a barely noticeable path leading to the flat, rocky peak of Mount Monomakh’s Hat. From here, from the top, the distant expanses of the southern Baikal region open up, as if in the palm of your hand you can see the majestic and unique nature of Siberia that has survived to this day in its integrity.

Bathing in the warm healing water of the Warm Lakes is one of the old traditions of all travelers in these beautiful places. Here, for a fee, you can rent boats and catamarans.

After such an active holiday, a picnic in nature, on the banks of a mountain river, the real highlight of which will be hot smoked omul, cooked in your presence according to old Siberian recipes, will be another no less joyful episode of this day. Here you will try delicious tea with local herbs.

The day ends traditionally with a return to Baikalsk and dinner at the hotel.

ETHNO-EXCURSION IN BURYATIA.

Route: Baikalsk – Tunkinskaya valley – Eastern Sayans – Arshan resort – Zhemchug resort – Baikalsk.

The number of days is 1 light day.

Total length (round trip) 364 km.

Duration 12 hours.

After breakfast, we suggest you go on a car trip to the famous Arshan mineral springs. Our path lies in one of the reserved corners of Buryatia, located in the foothills of the Eastern Sayan Mountains – the Tunka Valley. Snow-capped mountain peaks, wide valleys with dense forests at their foot have long attracted travelers. Along the federal highway towards the resort village of Arshan, there are many Buryat villages, where even today people live their old way of life, preserving the customs and traditions of their ancestors. Their main occupation is animal husbandry, cattle and horse breeding. Both those and other representatives of the animal world give the surrounding landscapes a special picturesqueness.

Buddhism and shamanism are the oldest religions on this earth. During our journey we will make several stops near the most characteristic objects of these religions. For example, near the sacred suburgan (stupa) located on the border of the Irkutsk region and the Republic of Buryatia, and in the village. Arshan, we will definitely visit the small Buddhist temple “Bodhidharma”.

The beauty of the resort village of Arshan is not inferior to the strength of the therapeutic effect of its mineral waters. Here, at the foot of the high Tunkinsky bald mountains, it has long been customary to relax and improve one’s health. The alpine climate of Arshan is distinguished by a large number of sunny days (much more than in Kislovodsk, for example), pine and cedar forests abundantly ionize the air, and the pristine beauty of mountains and waterfalls fills the heart with joy and happiness. Numerous mineral waters of Arshan, different in composition and temperature, have long been used to treat the digestive system, blood circulation, musculoskeletal system and other diseases. In a word, the miraculous power of Arshan waters has long passed the test of time, and we invite you to verify their life-giving power.

You can freely taste Arshan water in different sources, and pour the most liked into bottles and other containers to take a particle of this natural power with you. meters, the waterfall is located half a ra kilometers from the Arshan resort .. By the way, it is known that visiting waterfalls has a healing effect on a person: the amazing beauty of the falling water makes you forget about your troubles and illnesses, and the resulting effect of hydroaeroionization fills us with life-giving force. Climbing even higher, you can see dense thickets of lingonberries and blueberries, as well as sagaan-dali herbs (Adams’ rhododendron), the leaves of which have unique medicinal properties.

Lunch on this day will also be traditionally Buryat: a festive meat dish buuza (a bit like the well-known manti), other dishes of the national Buryat cuisine made from organic meat. After lunch, we invite you to take a walk along the rows of the local Mongolian market, where you can buy a variety of souvenirs, medicinal herbs (the famous sagan-daily, golden root and others), knitted products made from yak and camel wool (products of Mongolian craftsmen). Then visit the local Buddhist temple “Bodhidharma” and admire the beauty of the landscapes spread around.

Literally 37 km from Arshan, there is another unique place that we will definitely visit – the hot springs of the village of Zhemchug (Vyshka). The Zhemchug water, spouting from underground, has no analogues in the world, it combines methane and carbonic thermal waters, with a small amount of hydrogen sulfide and radon. There are two pools on the territory of Zhemchug thermal springs. In one methane water temperature is 36 degrees, in the other with carbonic, silicic, chloride-hydrocarbonate, magnesium-sodium water – 55 degrees (bathing in the springs for an additional fee).

picturesque coast of the Irkut, enjoying the Siberian landscapes or ride horses and camels. The resort has a water park. The day ends with a return to Baikalsk and a late dinner.

TALTSY. LISTVYANKA. MUSEUM OF FLORA AND FAUNA OF BAIKAL.

Breakfast. Transfer to Irkutsk (150 km).

The road to Irkutsk runs along the contour of the Primorsky Range, along the federal highway M53, which connects the center of Russia with Siberia and the Far East. Travel time 2.5 hours.

Departure to the Baikal tract. After driving several tens of kilometers along the famous Baikal tract, you will make an excursion to the open-air ethnographic museum “Taltsy” – a unique collection of monuments of history and architecture of the peoples of Eastern Siberia of the 17th – 20th centuries (located on the 47th kilometer of the Baikal tract). Among the various architectural complexes of the museum are Evenk camps, a cascade of three water mills, a Siberian peasant’s estate of the 19th century, and similar historical relics collected by scientists in the most remote places of Siberia. Rows of traditional Baikal souvenirs for all tastes and budgets will delight you with the multi-color products of talented local craftsmen.

Lunch at the “Traktir” (a small cafe, stylized antique).

After a walking tour of Taltsy, we will visit the famous Baikal Limnological Museum, where we will definitely see a grandiose aquarium exposition. Here, in 11 huge aquariums, in addition to the famous Baikal endemic – seals, there are unique species of Baikal fish, crustaceans, mollusks and sponges. Those who wish will make a “dive” in a pseudo-bathyscaphe, which authentically imitates the descent to a kilometer-long Baikal depth.

Moving to the old Siberian village on the shores of Lake Baikal – Listvyanka, located 65 kilometers from Irkutsk. A trip to Listvyanka also includes an overview of the most beautiful source of the Angara and the famous Shaman-stone, which played a tragic role in the life of the great playwright Alexander Vampilov. Visiting souvenir shops, fish market.

Return to Baikalsk. Late dinner.

CABLE CAR TO THE TOP OF KHAMAR-DABAN. WATER WALK. GARNET BEACH.

Breakfast.

Ascent by cable car to the observation deck “Vysota 900” on Mount Sobolinaya, from where a stunning view of the southern coast of Lake Baikal opens. Chair lift of the Baikal ski resort “Mount Sobolinaya” (“Sobolinaya” in facts and figures: 12 certified slopes over 15 km long, 8 lifts, including a suspended chairlift, the average daytime temperature in winter is -10-15 ° С, the highest mark is 1004 m ). From here, from a bird’s eye view, a stunning panoramic view of the southern basin of Baikal opens.

Visiting the swimming pool (sports complex building).

Boat trip around Baikal on a boat.

Excursion to the “Pomegranate Beach”.

There, far from civilization, we will sunbathe on the sand and pebble beach, and accordingly, swim in Baikal, which will give a unique feeling of peace and unity with the nature of the sacred sea. It is important that this place is located far from the large settlements of the Southern Baikal region. The coastline of the “Pomegranate Beach” there forms a rather large bay, on the shore of which you can find beautiful multi-colored pebbles of various shapes and colors: quartz, feldspar, garnet, apatite, amazonite and others.

Farewell bonfire and lunch on the shore of Lake Baikal. Free time.

Transfer to the railway station Slyudyanka.