Since the surrounding pages are full of
paeans to Mongolia, let’s pick up this
journey on Day 10, when we fly from Ulaanbaatar
to Siberia’s metropolis, Irkutsk.
Our Siberian stay is centered around Lake Baikal, so let’s unfurl a few superlatives. “A primordial deep lake of diamantine clarity,” as Peter Matthiessen wrote in Baikal: Sacred Lake of Siberia, it is, among other things, the world’s oldest lake, the deepest (5750 feet at its lowest, with an additional four miles of sediment above the bedrock; the great Baikal Rift, by far the deepest depression on the planet, is seven times as deep as the Grand Canyon), and the most voluminous (holding an astounding 17 percent of the world’s fresh water; if all the world’s rivers were to drain into an empty Baikal, it would take a year to fill). In short, it’s unquestionably the most interesting (100,000 freshwater seals, called nerpa, inhabit its northern waters, in the middle of a vast continent!) and surely the most hugely beautiful lake in the solar system (and one still quite pristine, despite media rumors; the Russians are united in protest against any sullying of their national gem).
After a good look at Irkutsk, we make the short drive to Listvyanka, a cottagey little town set on the southern end of the lake. We boat across Baikal and drive to the city of Ulan Ude, a redoubt of Mongolian culture. Our exploration of Buryatia, as this area is called, includes a visit to a village inhabited by Old Believers, Amishlike folk who split from the Russian Orthodox church 350 years ago. (For anyone who wishes to continue their explorations to Tuva, Day 15 will be a Saturday, perfect for the once-weekly flight from Irkutsk to Kyzyl.)
Our Siberian stay is centered around Lake Baikal, so let’s unfurl a few superlatives. “A primordial deep lake of diamantine clarity,” as Peter Matthiessen wrote in Baikal: Sacred Lake of Siberia, it is, among other things, the world’s oldest lake, the deepest (5750 feet at its lowest, with an additional four miles of sediment above the bedrock; the great Baikal Rift, by far the deepest depression on the planet, is seven times as deep as the Grand Canyon), and the most voluminous (holding an astounding 17 percent of the world’s fresh water; if all the world’s rivers were to drain into an empty Baikal, it would take a year to fill). In short, it’s unquestionably the most interesting (100,000 freshwater seals, called nerpa, inhabit its northern waters, in the middle of a vast continent!) and surely the most hugely beautiful lake in the solar system (and one still quite pristine, despite media rumors; the Russians are united in protest against any sullying of their national gem).
After a good look at Irkutsk, we make the short drive to Listvyanka, a cottagey little town set on the southern end of the lake. We boat across Baikal and drive to the city of Ulan Ude, a redoubt of Mongolian culture. Our exploration of Buryatia, as this area is called, includes a visit to a village inhabited by Old Believers, Amishlike folk who split from the Russian Orthodox church 350 years ago. (For anyone who wishes to continue their explorations to Tuva, Day 15 will be a Saturday, perfect for the once-weekly flight from Irkutsk to Kyzyl.)
Days 1 & 2: USA to Seoul •
Day 3: fly to Ulaanbaatar •
Day 4: sightseeing in Ulaanbaatar •
Day 5: drive to Karakorum •
Day 6: Karakorum and Erdene Zhuu Monastery •
Day 7: Orkhon Waterfall •
Day 8: Khong Khan •
Day 9: drive back to Ulaanbaatar •
Day 10: fly to Irkutsk •
Day 11: Irkutsk and Listvyanka sightseeing •
Day 12: boat across Lake Baikal, drive to Ulan Ude •
Day 13: Ulan Ude and environs •
Day 14: visit Old Believer village, overnight train back to Urkutsk •
Day 15: fly to Ulaanbaatar or Moscow •
Day 16: return to USA.
Mongolia and Siberia
Trip Details
2008 Departures:
16 days
Activity Type:
Touring
Trip Price:From $5495
- August 2 - August 17
16 daysActivity Type:
Touring
Trip Price:
From $5495
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