Lake Baikal - is a lake in Eastern Siberia, the maximum depth is more than 1600 metres, the length of Lake Baikal is 636 km, the width is from 25 to 80 km. There is the Olkhon island near the northwest shore of lake Baikal. Olkhon is the heart of ancient stories and historical legendaries.
There are points on geographical maps and the Earth's globe you can easily find, find at first sight. These are estuaries of great rivers, capes of continents, archipelagoes which are permanent landmarks on the Earth. One of these well-defined points is Listvyanka settlement. It is easy to explain the location of the settlement near the source of the Angara River, the only river flowing from Lake Baikal, to any foreigner.
In serious documents and scientific literature this municipal unit of the Irkutsky District is commonly named Listvenichnoe urban-type settlement, but people lovingly call it Listvyanka, you can see the same name on the sign with settlement name when you enter the settlement.
Attentive traveler and tourist are always taken aback by simplicity and accuracy of geographical names given by pioneers of Siberia. All people know a larch-tree (Russian word “Listvennitsa”), an ancient, nearly epibiotic and beautiful coniferous tree which grows on rock, windy slopes and loses its leaves in the fall. It is a very valuable tree good for log construction, poles of Baikal piers and getting firm from water and time! This tree gave this place the name.
A lot of things are associated with this ancient settlement of Russians on Lake Baikal. All researches from pioneers to great Siberian highways are mentioned Listvyanka.
History of Listvyanka passed through rise and fall times. Here proud-hearted, independent temper, mother wit, domesticity and materiality of Siberians were appeared.
First you can see when you enter the Listvyanka settlement is “Istok Angary (The Head of Angara River)” meteorological station, then, beyond the turn-out, is a branch of the Limnological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Here is the famous Baikal Museum visited by ten thousands of tourists from different countries every year.
Participants of scientific expeditions take fancy to picturesque lowland of the Kamenushka River where the building of the museum is located for their staging posts. Not far from this place there is the Chersky Rock named after famous researcher of Lake Baikal, geologist Ivan Dmitrieich Chersky. There is a scenic viewpoint pavilion on the top of the rock, you can get there by asphalt lacet path. You can see almost all the southern part of Lake Baikal from this sight: white ridge crests of Hamar-Daban Mountains; the Head of the Angara River and the Shaman Rock ; the Baikal Port, docks, access communications ; to the right- the Angara River to the Irkutsk Reservoir, beyond “Mayak” hotel- the Listvyanka Pier, dockyard; above them-the white telescope of the Baikal Observatory. This is very beautiful and majestic view of many Baikal routes.
Modern Listvyanka is a rather small urban-type settlement extending for 5 km along the shore of Lake Baikal. There are Listvyanka Hotels, some food stores and stalls, restaurants and cafes.
There is the private Baikal zoo on the territory of V.P. Dunaev house estate where bears, foxes sables and some other representatives of Baikal Fauna and Siberia live.
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There are points on geographical maps and the Earth's globe you can easily find, find at first sight. These are estuaries of great rivers, capes of continents, archipelagoes which are permanent landmarks on the Earth. One of these well-defined points is Listvyanka settlement. It is easy to explain the location of the settlement near the source of the Angara River, the only river flowing from Lake Baikal, to any foreigner.
For more details in English, please, add comments and we'll try to answer as soon as possible.
