Lake Baikal, Siberia on Qantas and Siberian Airlines (S7)

[RooFlyer]

Some autumn colours (mainly larch)

 

[tgh]

Surprisingly good roads for the middle of nowhere , perhaps some cold war roubles were spent in the area

 

[RooFlyer]

Yes, I commented on this to my guide, thinking of the annual freeze/ thaw process.

A big stretch out to Lake Baikal was only sealed a couple of years ago. The road out west was also in very good nick, but did not seem to have much heavy truck traffic.

But the highway from Irkutsk to Slyudvanka is the main artery to Mongolia and is heavily trucked and was still pretty good.

 

[trooper]

Apparently yes. Baikal dive and ice dive to name just two sites.

The lake water is renowned for its clarity. And being an ancient, isolated lake, there are all sorts of weird beasties there.

Renowned for its temperature too isn't it?

 

[RooFlyer]

Of course it freezes at a 'warmer' temperature than the sea, being fresh water ...

Now for some better shots of the traditional Siberian wooden houses. As mentioned up-thread, it was difficult to get good shots of them, as they tended to be built right on the footpath, with wires, traffic, trees and satellite dishes in the way. Plus it was hard to shoot straight at the houses from close range, as often there would be someone in the room i was looking at!

These are in no particular order, but mostly Irkutsk to start with.

 

[RooFlyer]

The only one I saw that was vaguely done up ...

 

[RooFlyer]

Olkohn Island, Lake Baikal







Tunka Valley

 

[rginoz]

Great trip report, RooFlyer. Terrific photos, and very informative text. In April 2013, I flew QF to HKG, then S7 to Vladivostok, then travelled on the Trans Siberian Railway to Moscow, with two-day stopovers in Irkutsk, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk. S7 was very basic in Economy, and the hotels along the way were variable. But the food was good, even on the train. Some spectacular scenery, but Baikal was frozen and the weather was grey and snowing as the train went past it. Thank you again for bringing back the memories.

 

[RooFlyer]

In April 2013, I flew QF to HKG, then S7 to Vladivostok, then travelled on the Trans Siberian Railway to Moscow, with two-day stopovers in Irkutsk, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk.

What's Novosibirsk like? I think its a relatively new city; is there much to do and see around it? Thinking of doing a stopover there next time.

 

[rginoz]

We stopped in Novosibirsk as a place to break the train journey, rather for any local attractions. In mid-April, it was dry and dusty, caused by the remains of the grit placed on the roads in winter. Walking was difficult, with poor footpaths, cars and SUVs parked haphazardly, lots of traffic and so much dust in the air.

 

[Happy Dude]

Yeah it's an industrial city. We went to the ballet there in the excellent theatre. I recall being struck by the young age of the crowd and how old I felt. It's close to Tomsk which was a highlight.

 

[Ansett]

Mrs Ansett comes from Novosibirsk and yes it can be industrial however the parks and culture can more than make up for that, for those into trains there is a great museum, some great forests and walks and a great zoo. There is a lot to do in Novosibirsk if you know where to look.

Novosibirsk has a large scientific population and university. It also has some very specialized nuclear research along with medical research facilities.

Also recommend going to Central Park and then going to see a church in the middle of a road that was once said to be the central spot in Russia.

Novosibirsk center is served by an efficient and cheap Metro there is also a great walk along the river front with a small theme park.

Best time would be from Mid July through to Mid end August with temperatures up to 35 degrees and sunny.

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