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Lake Baikal Village Stays
This is a great way to see real life in Siberia. We offer stays in some of the small villages which border Lake Baikal, notably Listvyanka, Port Baikal, Bolshie Koty and others. Accommodation will be in traditional Siberian wooden houses. These are mostly built around the Chimney-Stove. Please note that these are real Siberian villages, and not a "fake version" for tourists. This means that the toilet will be a shed at the bottom of the garden - usually not a plumbed toilet either! Mostly the houses do not have modern plumbing - there will be some water indoors to wash your hands etc, but it is not piped water. In traditional villages water is still collected from the well. However, you will have a chance to get ultra-clean, by having a wonderful Siberian Sauna - included on all our village-stay trips - with complete instructions! Yes, you can even have the birch-leaves if you want! (by the way - there's no whipping involved :-) it's just a gentle rustling of the aromatic leaves over your body).
(NB - we have one village family who have a "soviet" apartment - with wc etc - if preferred)
On all of our 2-3 day Village Stays, we include some (locally-guided) walking to great vantage-points for views over Lake Baikal, and a visit to the Limnological Museum to see some exhibits, and a short video-film, about the unique wildlife of the area. And of course, we take you to the Lakeside village by car - and return you to Irkutsk Station and see-you off safely on the next stage of your Trans-Siberian Adventure.
Siberian Trekking for Softies
We offer a great short trek which almost anyone could do - it has no major inclines, all you carry is your own daypack (our Guide carries the gear for your 1 night under canvas) and enjoy the fantastic scenery, the Siberian Taiga Forest. We utilise local suburban train services from Irkutsk, to plop you right into the undisturbed peace of the Baikal National Park without the strain of actually having to (ehem) walk there, and Sasha Medvedev's cleverly-designed route takes in some Forest walking, and a long section along the Lake shores, before you take the train back into Irkutsk from another station in a different location. The whole thing is wrapped-around with Family Stay accommodation in Irkutsk before and after the Trek, and you can leave your big luggage there meantime. All led by our experienced Forest Guides - who help prepare the (included) food along the way.
Serious Siberian Trekking
But for those of you who like a challenge, we can offer a slightly longer Lakeside Trek, which takes in the Skripper Rocks, some forest trekking, and you get as far as Bolshie Koty. This too uses public transport to escape Irkutsk's suburbs quickly, and you are soon out in the forest. There are two overnight stays under canvas, and on this one, we expect you to help in carrying the gear too. The return to Irkutsk is via the hydrofoil service, up the Angara River. There are nights in Irkutsk (in a Family Stay) before and after the Trek, and you can leave your luggage there. Our expert Guides are with you every step of the way - although we leave you to explore the city centre of Irkutsk on your own.
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