Lake Baikal. Russia photo, video

Lake Baikal is the pearl of Russia. This is the cleanest, largest and deepest lake on our planet. The maximum depth of Baikal reaches 1642 meters. It contains 20% of the world's reserves of all fresh water. Its water surface lies at an altitude of 456 meters above sea level, and the deepest point is at an altitude of 1186 meters below sea level. 336 large and small rivers and streams flow into Baikal, and only one flows out - the Angara.

Lake Baikal. Russia on Google Maps.

Sorry, the map is temporarily unavailable Sorry, the map is temporarily unavailable

Lake Baikal. Photo.

To the question: “How was Baikal formed?” Scientists answer differently. Some argue that these are the waters of huge glaciers, having melted, gathered in one place. Others suggest that water came out of huge cracks in the earth after a series of earthquakes. But, in any case, Baikal is the oldest, largest, deepest and cleanest lake on earth. The formation of the Baikal depression began about 30 million years ago and has not ended to this day. Where is the bottom of Baikal located? According to some reports, this sacred lake has no bottom at all and is in contact with underground lava in the bowels of the earth. On the coast of Lake Baikal there are many places that are famous for witchcraft and magic, there is also a lot of evidence of its healing power.

Baikal in summer. Video.

Winter on Baikal. Video.

What is Lake Baikal? Where is? Surely many travelers asked this question, trying to refresh their school knowledge. Baikal is considered the largest. It is the largest fresh water reservoir on the planet. By age, depth and reserves drinking water he just has no competition.
So Baikal! There are legends about it as about a formidable and angry lake. The well-known reservoir is awarded with different epithets: “the blue eye of Siberia”, “the sacred gift of nature”, “the world source of drinking water”.

Baikal. Where is the lake?

The lake is located in the south of Eastern Siberia. This is on the border and Buryatia on the Asian continent. Now remember where Lake Baikal is? A photo of the famous lake will help everyone imagine the Siberian beauty of the reservoir. Scientists have recorded the area of ​​the water surface of Lake Baikal - 31,722 square kilometers. This figure can be equated to the area of ​​Belgium or the Netherlands. The width of the mysterious reservoir reaches 79 kilometers. The length of Baikal is 620 kilometers. From a bird's eye view, the lake looks like a giant crescent. Baikal is deepest lake. According to research data, its maximum depth is 1642 meters.

No one can exactly answer the question of where the name Baikal itself came from. Much has been devoted to this topic. scientific works and literary publications. But not a single scientist was able to provide peremptory evidence in relation to at least one theoretical conjecture.

Where Baikal is located, beliefs and legends live. In the past, the peoples living near Lake Baikal called the lake in their own way: “big reservoir” or “rich water”. If we take into account the age of the reservoir, then, according to research data, Baikal was formed more than 20 million years ago.

usually lakes ice age live for about 15 thousand years, and then gradually disappear from the face of the earth. However, Baikal does not show any signs of aging. According to research recent years, geophysicists have suggested that Baikal may well be a nascent ocean.

Miscellaneous

The Baikal pit is recognized as the cleanest storage of drinking water on the planet. The lake is incredibly clean and rich in oxygen. Connoisseurs believe that this water is close to distilled water in its properties. Earlier Baikal water was used for treatment. There is a huge variety of living forms in Lake Baikal. This is a fish: the famous omul, whitefish, perch and salmon family. Which of the animal world can still be found in the area where the lake is located. Baikal?

Baikal seals and noisy gulls live on the coast. Sometimes there are brown bears that came out of the forests. Scientists count about 847 species of representatives of the animal world and approximately 133 species of various plants in the nature of Baikal.

Thanks to this diversity, an increasing number of tourists flock to this amazing place to inhale a breath of fresh Baikal oxygen. Every year there is an intensive development of infrastructure on Lake Baikal. This encourages everyone who has been here to visit the proposed recreation area many times.

Where to stay on Baikal? Various hotels, sanatoriums, tour operators are provided to the attention of vacationers. All conditions are created so that the traveler can improve his physical and spiritual health. For many years, the thermal and mud springs of Goryachinsky, Zmeevoy, Khakusy have been famous for their healing properties.

All these natural sources are a great help to a person in the treatment of blood circulation, nervous system And skin diseases. The most popular spring is the Snake Bay. Despite the lack of amenities, the number of people coming here is constantly growing.

Baikal is able to tear a person away from the usual civilization, amaze with landscapes and fill with life-giving energy! Of course, having come to Baikal once, it is impossible to study the entire local culture. To begin with, use the services of guides or plan excursions in advance.

Think about what you will travel on: a bicycle, a car or an ATV? And if you are an excellent rider, then a horse is an excellent companion for such journeys. If the question arises about what time of the year is the cheapest time to relax on Lake Baikal, then you should go in September. It was during this period that prices for sanatoriums and services of tour operators were significantly reduced.

Baikal. Where is the place that can cause excitement among the male part of the population? This is a fishing area! Such entertainment delights all fans of an exciting activity. On the territory of Lake Baikal there is a great opportunity to let everyone show their fishing skills. The most popular places for this are the Chivyrkuisky Bay, the Small Sea, the Proval Bay and Lake Baikal itself.

In these water areas there is indeed an abundance of fish, but catching it is not an easy task. Some tourists even have to resort to the services of instructors. But that's okay!

It is worth practicing - and you will be with a catch! Most likely, friends, looking at a photo on this topic, will ask: "Where are you?" After a little silence, you will probably give a proud answer: "How where? Lake Baikal!"

Winter fishing has its advantages. It is no less exciting than in the warm season: fewer people, therefore - peace and a sense of freedom.

Rest on the famous Lake Baikal is quite diverse. If you dream of swimming, summer fishing and other entertainment in the hot season, then it is better to go on vacation in July-August. At the beginning of summer, it is still cold on Lake Baikal, and the water is not warm enough. And in the northern part of the reservoir there are even floating ice floes. The end of August can overshadow the pastime of travelers with gusty winds. Water during this period is mixed, and its temperature drops. But for those travelers looking for solitude in nature, autumn is a great time of the year. local coastal vegetation dyed in bright colors, forcing the tourist to keep this beauty in the photo.

Where to relax on Baikal?

If you know what you expect from this trip, it will be easier to decide on a vacation spot. For those who prefer the thick of the masses, the roar of various music and the roar of jet skis, the western coast of Olkhon Island, Peschanaya Bay, the coast of the Small Sea, the coast from the village of Baikalskoye to the city of Severobaikalsk, the Circum-Baikal Railway are suitable.

Cruise along the Circum-Baikal railway- a win-win interesting holiday. Usually the tour lasts 2 days by train. During this trip, the guide will tell travelers about the famous places of Lake Baikal. There are short stops at interesting places. Therefore, you can contemplate nature in these parts to your heart's content.

The places where Baikal is located offer everyone the comfort of tourist bases and sanatoriums of Southern Baikal (Utulik, Elektra, Angara and others). This should save the vacationer from questions about where to live on Baikal. Small Sea is a bit secluded, and accommodation here is possible in a yurt at affordable rates. Olkhon Island is located in an inaccessible place. It can only be reached on foot or by boat. This is a great recreation area for those who are tired of the hustle and bustle of the city.

You can diversify your pastime on the deepest reservoir by taking part in a cruise on a boat or yacht. This way you can visit the wild shores of Lake Baikal. Group excursion routes are known. They are notable for the fact that vacationers can visit the most unusual corners of the Baikal region.

If the tourist has a desire to use the rest for the purpose of recovery physical health, then he can resort to the services of hot springs in the north of the lake. Active travelers will enjoy hiking and horse riding, as well as exciting rafting on mountain rivers. lovers winter holiday can organize walks on the Baikal ice skating rink, ride snowmobiles or dog sleds. For fans of skiing from December to May, the tourist base "Mount Sobolinaya" is actively operating.

Rest on Baikal as a savage

On Baikal? And How? Recreation as a savage is the most freedom-loving. For those who love adventure, Lake Baikal is a real find! by the most suitable place Peschanaya Bay is considered to be such a pastime. Only here a real tourist feels an absolute separation from civilization - there is no connection, no roads.

Only private yachts and the motor ship "Barguzin" go here, departing from the pier of Irkutsk. Small houses or tents are provided for vacationers. This island has pristine nature. It is so alluring that it literally bewitches tourists, forcing them to return here again and again.

At the service of savage travelers is a tourist center that can offer interesting excursions. Where to relax on Baikal as a savage? The magnificent island of Olkhon is ready to receive a wanderer! It can charm every person with the harmony of its forests and steppes. Olkhon is an unforgettable fishing trip and a lot of positive emotions.

mysterious rock

This island is interesting as a place for shamans. There are opinions that there is a tomb of Genghis Khan. Some locals still worship spirits today. Old-timers can tell travelers a lot about the mysterious Shaman Rock.

It is the highlight of Lake Baikal. Researchers of this area claim that in ancient times the Buryats brought a huge number of sacrifices to the rock. There are many legends on this subject. One of them says that on Cape Shaman-Rocks lives Ezhin - the owner of the island. Until now, local residents treat this place with due respect.

Among the tourists there are few daredevils who are ready to approach the Shaman Mountain. According to legend, this place is endowed with a special energy power. The photographs leave as a memory for travelers the drawings of shaman tambourines carved on the rock by ancient people. Unfortunately, these images are partly destroyed due to the intervention of the human hand in an attempt to quarry the marble.

Sights of Irkutsk

In those places where Lake Baikal is located, the city of Irkutsk is the most unexplored and underestimated tourist destination in the world. Many Russians have vague ideas about this place of rest. It's a pity!

Foreign tourists visit Irkutsk sights with unconcealed interest. After all, this is a storehouse of natural and man-made works. Connoisseurs of architecture visit the Exaltation of the Cross Church with pleasure.

After all, its structure is unique: the fences of the temple and the crosses are made according to the old model of blacksmithing. Another famous attraction of Irkutsk is the Taltsy architectural and ethnographic museum. It is located in the open air and keeps real masterpieces of architecture!

Tourists who come here can become witnesses Orthodox holidays: in winter - Christmas and Maslenitsa, in summer - Trinity. IN winter time For years, residents of Irkutsk have been building snowy towns, riding down ice slides on cow skins! Agree that this forgotten vacation can bring real pleasure to every traveler.

After such festivities, you can heartily enjoy hot dishes of native Russian cuisine: hot pancakes, meat goulash, Siberian dumplings! Along with this, everyone can taste Japanese and Chinese dishes in cafes, bars and restaurants at reasonable prices.

extreme vacation

So, you have come to Baikal! Where is the place that will give a drive to the traveler? What else will conquer this famous territory of a vacationer? Baikal is able to provide the traveler with an extreme type of recreation that can cause him a special surge of emotions and adrenaline. This is especially facilitated by dynamic rafting along the mountain rivers of the territory of Baikal. Such water trips are notable for the fact that after such a trip there is no longer any tourist who is indifferent to this type of recreation.

It is worth at least once to see the wild nature of the Siberian taiga, rafting along stormy river with a group of friends. Memories of the euphoria of such a trip will accompany many years. So, let's remember that mountain rivers originate in the upper reaches of the mountain. River layers of water from there rush down - to the plateaus and plains. Due to sudden changes in altitude, the speed of the flow of mountain rivers is from 25 to 30 kilometers per hour. The number of obstacles encountered on the path of the current (rocks, waterfalls) determine the complexity category of water rafting.

The first category includes calm water, the sixth - obstacles with waterfalls and rapids reaching up to 15 meters. Tourists can conquer such mountain rivers on rafts. This is the most popular ship for such an extreme type of recreation. It is an inflatable boat. Its bottom contains holes for draining water that has got inside the boat.

The raft differs from ordinary inflatable boats in that its design is reinforced with a strong shell, special fastenings for travelers' legs and two-layer balloons. The raft is used when passing water obstacles of 1-5 categories of difficulty.

To get more acute emotions when passing the river rapids, tourists use a catamaran. These are two inflatable balloons made of very durable material, which are interconnected by an aluminum partition. The catamaran on the water is well stable and gives a stronger feeling than a raft.

To control a catamaran, more precise actions are needed. It usually accommodates 2-4 people. On such a device, it is possible to pass water obstacles from 1 to 6 categories of complexity.

If you wonder where to visit Baikal, then you should make a trip to the top of Mount Munku - Sardyk. Such a trip can be unforgettable, as this place is considered the highest point in Eastern Siberia. Tourists who have reached the snow-white peak will have stunning views of the lakes frozen under the ice. At this moment, it will seem simply incredible! Best time to enjoy such beauty - April and May.

Tourists who have been to Baikal more than once note that, most likely, this trip will change a beginner. The mystery of this Siberian place is able to touch the thin spiritual strings of a person, awakening in him a sense of novelty and harmony.

Baikal has an elongated crescent shape. His extreme points lie between 51°29" (st. Murino) and 55°46" (mouth of the Kichera River) northern latitude and between 103°44" (Kultuk station) and 109°51" (Dagar Bay) east longitude.

The shortest line passing through the area of ​​the lake and connecting the most remote points of its shores, i.e. the length of the lake, equal to 636 km, the largest width of Baikal, equal to 79.4 km, is located between Ust-Barguzin and Onguren; the smallest, different 25 km, is located opposite the delta of the river. Selengi.

The area from which rivers currently collect water and bring it into Baikal, or its so-called catchment area, is 557,000 square meters. km *) . It is distributed in relation to the area of ​​the lake itself very unevenly (see the map of the basin). Along the entire western shore, the border of this area runs just a few kilometers from the lake shore. It is limited almost everywhere by the watershed of the mountains visible from the lake.

*) According to Yu.M. Shokalsky, the basin of Lake Baikal reaches 582,570 sq. km. - Approx. ed.

The basin of the Lena River approaches this watershed along the entire length of northern Baikal, and the Lena itself originates 7 km from the shore of Lake Baikal near Cape Pokoiniki. The catchment area of ​​Baikal to the south and southwest of the lake towards the Selenga River basin is most widespread. The basin of this river, equal to 464,940 sq. km, is 83.4% of the total catchment area of ​​Lake Baikal. The next largest basin is the Barguzin River, whose basin is 20,025 sq. km and is 3.5% of the total catchment area of ​​Lake Baikal. The share of all other tributaries of Baikal accounts for a catchment area of ​​72,035 sq. km, equal to 13.1% of the total catchment area of ​​the lake.

Lake Baikal itself is located in a narrow basin, bordered by mountain ranges, spurs of the Sayan, cut in a number of places by relatively narrow valleys, along which its tributaries flow into the lake.

In the south, along its eastern shores, snow-covered peaks of the Khamar-Daban ridge stretch almost all year round with the highest heights up to 2000 m above sea level. This is exactly the chain of mountains that is visible to anyone traveling along the shores of Lake Baikal by rail. These mountains are especially clearly visible on the stretch between st. Baikal and st. Kultuk. The Pribaikalsky Range adjoins the western shores of southern Baikal. Its height almost along its entire length from Kultuk to the Small Sea does not exceed 1300-1200 m above sea level, but these mountains stand on the very shore of Lake Baikal.

Starting from the Small Sea and up to the northernmost tip of the western shores of Lake Baikal, the Baikal mountain range stretches, gradually rising to the north from Cape Rytoy to Cape Kotelnikovsky. In this area, Mount Karpinsky reaches its highest height of 2176 m, Mount Sinya - 2168 m, etc. Almost the entire length of the peaks of the Baikal Range is covered with snow that does not melt even in the middle of summer, and in many places traces of glaciers descending from them until recently are visible.

This ridge is crossed by a series of deeply incised valleys along which mountain streams stretch. In terms of their picturesqueness, the eastern shores of the northern part of the lake are one of the most remarkable places on Baikal. To the eastern shores, starting from the Chivyrkuisky Bay and up to the northernmost tip of the lake, another ridge approaches - the Barguzinsky, reaching a considerable height - up to 2700 m. This ridge, however, is located at some distance from the shores, and relatively low foothills adjoin directly to the latter, in some places forming picturesque cliffs, and on the predominant part of the coast, gently descending to the waters of the lake.

The interval of the eastern shore of the lake between the Selenga and the Barguzin Bay is bordered by the Ulan-Burgasy ridge, which has a height of 1400-1500 m near Baikal.

The most pronounced bend of the coastline of Lake Baikal is the Svyatoy Nos peninsula, located between the two largest bays on Baikal - Barguzinsky and Chivyrkuisky.

This peninsula in the form of a massive block of stone, reaching a height of 1684 m, rises above Baikal, falling to the water with steep rocky cliffs. However, towards the mainland, it falls more gently and then passes into a narrow and swampy isthmus, merging with a vast lowland adjacent to the river valley. Barguzin. There is no doubt that until recently the Svyatoy Nos Peninsula was an island, and the waters of the Chivyrkuisky and Barguzinsky bays formed one vast strait, subsequently filled with drifts from the river. Barguzin.

Baikal has 19 permanent islands, the largest of them is Olkhon. It has a length of 71.7 km and an area of ​​729.4 sq. km. Olkhon Island, - separated from the continent by a strait less than a kilometer wide, called "Olkhon Gates", elongated in a northeasterly direction, is a mountain range, with the highest point - Mount Izhimey, reaching a height of 1300 m and abruptly breaking off to the east shore. The northern part of the island is wooded, while the southern part is completely devoid of tree vegetation and is covered with meadows with traces of steppe vegetation that was once, apparently, widespread here.

The shores of Olkhon facing the Small Sea are subjected to very strong destruction by the surf. Interesting both in its position and in its picturesqueness is the group of the Ushkany Islands, located opposite the Svyatoy Nos peninsula in the middle part of the lake. This group consists of four islands, of which Big Ushkany Island has an area of ​​9.41 sq. km, and the remaining three islands (Thin, Round and Long) do not exceed half square kilometer. The large Ushkany Island reaches a height of 150 m, while the small ones are only a few meters above the average water level of Lake Baikal. All of them are rocky, with banks composed mainly of limestone and covered with dense forest. These islands are greatly destroyed and, as it were, cut off by the surf.

The time is not far off when the small Ushkany Islands will disappear under the surface of the waters of Lake Baikal.

The remaining islands on Baikal are all located near its shores, four of them are in the Chivyrkuisky Bay (Bol. and Small. Kyltygey, Elena and Baklany), six in the Small Sea (Khubyn, Zamugoy, Toinik, Ugungoy, Kharansa, Izokhoy, etc.) and the rest - in close proximity to the shores of other parts of Baikal, such as Listvenichny, Boguchansky, Baklany (near Peschanaya Bay), etc.

All islands have a total area of ​​742.22 sq. km, and most of them are large capes, separated from the continent under the influence of the destructive force of the surf. In addition, there are also several low sandy islands on Baikal, which in high water are completely hidden under water and protrude above the surface only when the water is low. Such are the islands, elongated in the form of narrow strips, separating the Proval Bay from Baikal (Chayachi Islands, Sakhalin), such are the islands that separate Angarsky Sor from the open Baikal - the so-called Yarki. The islands separating the Istoksky Sor from the open Baikal belong to the same type.

The bays and inlets, which are so important for the settlement of small vessels, are relatively a rare thing, moreover, they are distributed along the coast very unevenly.

The largest bays, Chivyrkuisky and Barguzinsky, which we have already mentioned above, are formed by the Svyatoy Nos peninsula protruding from the lake. Almost a bay is the so-called Small Sea, separated from open Baikal by Olkhon Island and Proval Bay, to the north of the Selenga Delta.

Peschanaya and Babushka bays on the western shore of southern Baikal are famous for their picturesqueness. Further, a peculiar group of bays, or rather lagoons, bearing the name “sors” on Baikal, are its former bays separated from the open lake by narrow sandy spits. Such are the Posolsky and Istoksky sors, separated from Baikal by narrow strips of land washed by the action of the surf, such is the Angarsky sor in the very north and Rangatui in the depths of the Chivyrkuisky Bay. All of them are separated from Baikal by narrow strips of sediment, in the form of sandy spits, sometimes hiding under the surface of the lake into high water.

Except for these large bays, almost separated from Baikal by its sediments, all other bends of its coast depend to a large extent on the direction of the coastline of Baikal, since the sinuosity of its coast depends on whether the coast is directed along or across the dominant direction of the mountain ranges. that make up the coast.

Those sections of the Baikal coast that are directed across the main direction of the mountain ranges that limit its basin are characterized by significant indentation, such as, for example, the Olkhon Gates or the southern coast of the Barguzin Bay. Those sections of the coast, which in their direction coincide with the direction of the mountain ranges that limit the Baikal basin in this area, are characterized, on the contrary, by exceptional straightness, disturbed only by secondary accumulations of coastal sediments or the eroding effect of the surf. This is the entire section of the western shore of Lake Baikal from the mouth of the river. Sarma to Cape Kotelnikovsky, such is the area that limits the Svyatoy Nos peninsula from the west, and many others.

In many areas, the shore of Lake Baikal is completely straight for many kilometers, and almost sheer cliffs, many meters high, break into the water very often. Particularly characteristic in this regard is the section between Sosnovka and the entrance to the Chivyrkuisky Bay on the eastern shore of middle Baikal or the section from Onguren to Cape Kocherikovsky on the western shore of middle Baikal.

According to the distribution of depths or the topography of the bottom, Baikal can be divided into three main deep depressions. The first of them - southern, occupies the entire southern Baikal to the confluence of the river. Selenga. The greatest depth of this depression is 1473 m, while the average depth is 810 m. The depression of southern Baikal is characterized by an exceptionally steep bottom slope near the western and southwestern shores and a relatively gentle slope near the opposite slopes.

Lacustrine deposits at the bottom of the southern depression have not completely smoothed out the features of the original relief, at the bottom of which there are a number of hollows and irregularities adjoining the Trans-Baikal coast and elongated in a northeasterly direction. These underwater ridges are especially pronounced in the part of the depression adjacent to the delta of the river. Selenga, and hide under its deposits. One of these ridges stands out so much that it forms in the middle of the width of Baikal on the line between the village. Goloustny and s. The Posolsky shallow water, where depths of 94 m have been discovered, and the depths in this shallow water have not yet been sufficiently explored and it cannot be vouched for that even smaller depths will not be found there. This shallow water is, in all probability, a remnant of what has been noted here on old maps Stolbovoy Island, partly destroyed by the waters of Baikal, partly submerged under its surface.

On the bridge separating the southern deep basin of Baikal from its middle basin, the depth does not exceed 428 m, and this bridge basically reflects the structure of the bedrock. This view is supported by the presence of a longitudinal ridge stretching in front of the Selenga delta, extending far both in the southwestern and northeastern directions and known by the locals as "manes". In its part adjacent to the Selenga, this lintel is gradually and significantly modified by the offsets of the Selenga.

To the east of the ridge directed to the northeast, approximately opposite the channel of the Selenga delta, called Kolpinnaya, there is a deepening of the bottom, reaching 400 m and locally called the "deep". A legend is connected with this abyss that in this place in the bottom of Baikal there is a hole through which Baikal connects either with Lake Kosogol or with the North Polar Sea. The emergence of this legend was facilitated by the fact that in the region of the depression there is a local whirlpool, which is well observed on quiet days, when all objects floating on the surface receive rotational motion. This whirlpool, which gives the impression that water is drawn into the hole below, is caused by the meeting of currents in two directions, which mix the surface layers of water to a depth of about 25 m.

The middle deep basin of Baikal occupies the entire space between the barrier against the Selenga and the line connecting the northern tip of Olkhon Island through the Ushkany Islands with Cape Valukan on the eastern shore of Lake Baikal. In this depression are the greatest depths of Baikal, reaching 1741 m. This depth is located at a distance of 10 km from Cape Ukhan on Olkhon. The average depth of the basin reaches 803 m. The area occupied by depths over 1500 m, which are not found in the other two deep basins of Baikal, is 2098 sq. km. km. The bottom has a particularly steep drop near the eastern shores of Olkhon Island, as well as to the east of the Ushkany Islands, where in some areas of the bottom the slope angle reaches over 80 °.

The bottom sections adjacent to the eastern coast of the depression are more gentle, and depths of 100 m in some places are here several kilometers from the coast.

The Barguzinsky Bay, which is part of the middle basin, has a very complex bottom topography. It is divided into two depressions by an underwater ridge. In the part of the bay adjacent to the southern head of the Svyatoi Nos peninsula, depths of more than 1300 m enter, which go far into its northern part. The relief of the bottom of the entire eastern part of the bay is influenced by the drifts of the river. Barguzin, which covered the bedrock topography with a thick layer of sediments.

The depression of middle Baikal is separated from the northern depression by an underwater ridge, discovered by the station in 1932 and named Akademichesky.

This ridge, on which the depths do not exceed 400 m, stretches from the northern tip of Olkhon Island to the Ushkany Islands and further, less pronounced, to the north to Cape Valukan. Thus, the Ushkany Islands themselves are only the northern part of the Academic Ridge protruding above the surface. This ridge has slopes that descend very steeply to the southeast towards the depression of middle Baikal, and gently to the northwest towards the northern depression, i.e. retains the same features as the profiles of Olkhon Island and Bolshoi Ushkany Island.

The northern deep basin of Baikal occupies the entire space located north of the Akademichesky Range and includes the Small Sea. This depression has the greatest depth of only 988 m, average depth its 564 m. The northern depression is characterized by an exceptional evenness of the bottom topography with a gradual increase in depth from the southern end of the Small Sea to the Kotelnikovsky Cape area. In the northern depression near the western shores, the bottom slopes more steeply into the depths than near the eastern shores, where there are significant shallow waters.

Most of the surface of the bottom of Lake Baikal at depths of more than 100 m is covered with thick deposits of silt, which mainly consists of countless shells, dead and fallen to the bottom of algae that lived in upper layers water. Only in a few places, like the Akademichesky Ridge, does the bottom of Baikal consist of bedrock, there are also areas of the bottom where rounded boulders and pebbles can be found at great depths, obviously, these are flooded channels of ancient rivers that are not covered with silt deposits due to the bottom currents there.

As for the shallow depths of Baikal, many consist of vast areas, especially those adjacent to river deltas, of sand or sand mixed with silt. Even closer to the coast, the bottom is covered mainly with stones and more or less large pebbles. Only in a few areas the bottom to the very shores is composed of sand. Such areas have great importance as suitable for seine fishing.

Not always, however, Baikal had those character traits bottom topography and the form of its outlines that it currently possesses. There is reason to assert the opposite, namely, that Baikal in its present form was formed, from a geological point of view, relatively recently - at the end of the Tertiary or even at the beginning of the so-called Quaternary time. By this time, according to modern views of geologists, the formation of great depths of Baikal, as well as the formation of those mountain ranges that border the lake, belongs. There is little information about what the reservoir that was on the site of Baikal before that time was.

Apparently, it was a complex system of lakes, interconnected by straits and occupying a larger territory than modern Baikal. There is reason to believe that this multi-lake area extended to Transbaikalia, Mongolia, and possibly Manchuria and Northern China.

Thus, Baikal in its current state is, to a certain extent, a remnant of water bodies that once occupied a vast area and repeatedly underwent significant changes. How could this affect the composition of the animal and flora Baikal, we will consider below, in the corresponding chapter.

During the ice age, when powerful glaciers covered some parts of Siberia large spaces, there was no continuous glaciation in the Baikal region, and glaciers descended to the shores of Baikal only in some places. Heaps of stones and sand, brought by glaciers and called moraines, in northern Baikal in many places descend from the adjacent mountains to Baikal itself, but it can be argued that this ice has never completely covered the surface of Baikal.

The moraines left after the ice age had a significant impact on the formation of the shores of Northern Baikal. Some capes in the north of Baikal are made of moraine materials, such as, for example, Cape Bolsodei. On the eastern shore of Northern Baikal, where many capes are also made of moraine material, they were subjected to severe destruction by the surf. Smaller boulders and loose material were washed away by the waves, and large boulders, preserved in the area as dangerous pitfalls for navigation, are the remains of moraines that were in these places and indicate their much greater distribution in the past than is the case now.

Geologists have made different assumptions about how the Baikal basin with its vast depths was formed in its modern form.

During the eighteenth and first half of the nineteenth centuries, geologists believed that Baikal was a deep sinkhole in the earth's crust, resulting from a major catastrophe that took place in this area of ​​​​the mainland. I.D. Chersky significantly changed these ideas. He considered Baikal not a failure, but a very ancient reservoir, preserved from the time of the Silurian Sea and gradually deepened due to the slow and smooth bowing of the earth's crust.

Later acad. V.A. Obruchev returned to the old ideas about the failure and explains the formation of the modern depths of Baikal by subsidence of the bottom of the graben, which this lake is. This subsidence occurred simultaneously with the uplift, which formed a mountainous country on the coast of Lake Baikal, and apparently continues to this day.

There are other geologists who also associate the formation of Baikal with the arched uplift of the Baikal region and subsidence - the collapse of the central part of this arch, but the time of this uplift, in their opinion, refers to the second half of the Quaternary period, i.e. to the time of the existence of primitive man.

Finally, according to the latest views of E.V. Pavlovsky, the Baikal depressions and the ridges separating them are the so-called synclines and anticlines, complicated by faults and developed gradually over many geological epochs, against the background of a general arched uplift of the Stanovoi ridge.

Finally, according to the views of N.V. Dumitrashko, Baikal is a complex system of three basins. The southern one arose during the Upper Jurassic, the middle one - in the Tertiary time, the northern one - at the border of the Tertiary and Quaternary time. The basins and the ridges surrounding them are blocks into which the Baikal region was divided during recent eras mountain building. The slumped boulders turned into depressions, the rising ones turned into ridges. We have a number of evidence that the formation of the Baikal basin continues to this day, and that the bottom of the basin continues to sink, and its edges in the form of mountain ranges limiting the Baikal depressions rise.

Signs of the lowering of the coast, villages. Ust-Barguzin in 1932. Photo by G.Yu. Vereshchagin

The subsidence of the Baikal shores is especially pronounced in places where the basin continues beyond its shores, such as, for example, to the west of the area between Kultuk and Slyudyanka, in the Barguzin Bay, in the area between the Kichera and Upper Angara rivers, as well as on the far protruding basins of Baikal, the delta of the river. Selenga. In all these places, not only are there features of the coastline, which indicate the gradual sinking of the coast under the lake level, but there are also those confirming this. historical facts. So the village of Ust-Barguzin has already changed its place twice, moving away from the shore of Lake Baikal, as the waters of the lake flood the place of its former location. This village is in a semi-flooded state at the present time. A similar phenomenon is observed in the village located at the mouth of the river. Kichery (Nizhnangarsk), where once was the center of the entire district, and now only a small number of houses remain. In the Selenga delta, the lowering of the terrain is expressed in the gradual swamping of the delta's meadows and the transformation into a swamp of once-dry mowings and even fields.

But the most significant is the lowering of part of the coast in the area of ​​the river. Selenga in December 1861, which led to the formation of Proval Bay. Then the northern part of the river delta disappeared under the waters of Lake Baikal. Selenga, the so-called Tsagan steppe with all the Buryat uluses, hayfields and other lands, with total area about 190 sq. km. This was preceded by an earthquake, while a strong vertical impact was felt, from which the soil on the steppe swelled with mounds and sand, clay and water were thrown out of the wide cracks formed. The steppe was flooded with water, which spouted fountains, more than two meters high. And the next day, the water of Baikal flooded the entire descended space to the Bortogoi steppe. According to eyewitnesses, the water came from the lake like a wall. In place of the steppe, Proval Bay is currently spreading with depths of up to three meters.

The secondary redistribution of sediments along the shores leads to a number of changes in the nature of the Baikal coastline, of which we will only point out the most important ones. Thus, the accumulation of these sediments in bays and other bends of the coast leads to their gradual straightening and the formation of shallow, gently descending to the water's edge banks, composed of sand or small pebbles, which are usually good non-aqueous tones.

The movement of sediment along the coast leads to other phenomena: for example, islands located near the coast are gradually attached to the coast by forming a bridge made of sediment connecting them to the coast. The largest of these bridges on Baikal connects, as already noted, the former rocky island of Svyatoy Nos with the continent, turning it into a peninsula. Typical dams made of sediments are observed on some capes of the Small Sea, such as Kurminsky, which was also once an island and only secondarily, by sediments, attached to the shore. In the same way, some capes in the Chivyrkuisky Bay are attached to the coast, for example, Cape Monakhov, Cape Katun, etc.

The advancing coastal shaft near the mouth of the river. Yaksakan (east coast of northern Baikal). Photo by L.N. Tyulina

The movement of sediments along the coast also leads to the lacing of its bays from the lake. It is this process that caused the formation of its so-called sors on Baikal. Once it was just the bends of the coast - bays. Away from these bays along the coast, under the influence of the prevailing direction of the surf, the movement of sediments, which, having reached the bay, was deposited on its bottom in a direction that is a continuation of the general direction of the coast in this area. Thus, narrow, striped sandy islands arose, with which the sors are gradually separated from Baikal. In some cases, such bridges have already led to the almost complete separation of bays from the lake, such as, for example, Posolsky sor. In other cases, this process is not completed, such as, for example, the Istoksky sor, or it is just beginning, which takes place in Proval Bay.

In the cases prevailing on Lake Baikal, coastal sediments are weakly accumulated near its shores, and as a result, the shores themselves are exposed to the destructive action of the surf. Some parts of the coast are literally gnawed away by the surf. Up to a height of 5 meters or more, the rocks are destroyed, representing cliffs with an uneven, porous surface, and in many places niches and caves are carved into the rocks by the surf.

The destruction is especially strong on the shore of the island facing the Small Sea. Olkhon and, in particular, on the capes of this coast, as well as on the capes of the Olkhon Gate Strait.

The surf can also lead to the complete destruction of the islands, as if cutting them near the water's edge. It is in this state, very close to complete destruction, that the Small Ushkany Islands are located, of which the long island is currently only a few meters wide.

Completely cut off by the surf of Lake Baikal, apparently, is the island of Stolbovoy, which was once in the middle of Lake Baikal between Goloustnoye and Posolsky and marked on old maps, and now its trace has been preserved only in the form of a shoal in this place.

The surf leads to the separation of capes from the continent and their transformation into islands. This is observed in the Small Sea, where the islands of Kharansa and Edor arose in this way.

Enormous waves that cause strong surf, as well as the roughness of the lake, in which this excitement is repeated very often, cause an exceptionally strong influence of the surf on the shores and leads both to their destruction and to the movement of sediments and the formation of shore sections washed by the lake. Baikal is a classic place for studying the work of the lake on its shores, which is far from being appreciated in this regard to the proper degree.

The etymology of the name of the lake has several versions. According to one of them, the word is Turkic and means "rich lake" - Bai-Kul. According to another, the name of the reservoir was given by the Mongols, and it means either “rich fire” (Baigal), or “big sea” (Baigal Dalai). And the Chinese called it "North Sea" (Bei-Hai).

The Baikal basin as an orographic unit is a complex formation of the earth's crust. It began to form 25-30 million years ago, and recent studies show that the formation process of the lake continues. According to geologists, Baikal is the embryo of the future ocean. Its shores "scatter", and after a while (several million years) a new ocean will replace the lake. But this is a matter of the distant future. Why is Baikal interesting for us today?

First of all, their geographical characteristics. The maximum depth of Baikal is 1637 meters. This is the highest figure among all the lakes in the world. The African, which is in second place, is lagging behind by as much as one hundred and sixty-seven meters.

The average depth of Baikal is also very great - seven hundred and thirty meters! The area of ​​the lake (more than 31 thousand sq. km.) Is approximately equal to the area of ​​a small European country (Belgium or Denmark).

The depth of Baikal is also due to the huge number of large and small streams and streams (336!), Flowing into the lake. Only Angara flows out of it.

Baikal is also the world's largest reservoir of the purest in volume, slightly larger than all five great American Hurons, Erie, Michigan and Ontario)! In numbers, this will be more than 23,600 cubic kilometers. The great depth of Baikal and the impressive area of ​​​​the water surface became the reason that the locals dubbed this lake lying in the depths of Eurasia the sea. Here, as on a real sea, storms and even tides occur, although they are of small magnitude.

Why is the water of Lake Baikal so transparent that at a depth of up to forty (!) meters the bottom is visible? The channels of the rivers feeding the lake are located in hardly soluble crystalline rocks, as is the bed of the lake itself. Therefore, the mineralization of Baikal is minimal and amounts to 120 milligrams per liter.

Given that the depth of Baikal is 1637 meters, and coastline 456 meters above sea level, it turns out that the bottom of the lake is the deepest continental depression in the world.

In August 2009, the Mir-1 deep-sea submersible dived at the deepest point of Lake Baikal, not far from it. The dive lasted more than an hour. For five and a half hours, video filming was carried out at the bottom of the lake and samples of bottom rocks and water were taken. During the descent, several new organisms were discovered and a place where oil pollution of the lake occurs.

For ten years, an autonomous deep-water station has been operating nine kilometers from the coast at a depth of 1370 meters, which houses monitoring equipment. electromagnetic field Earth. Scientists expect that the depth of Lake Baikal will affect the accuracy of research, because the equipment is installed almost a kilometer below sea level. And a station for collecting, processing and transmitting information was installed on the shore to process incoming data.

Where are the deepest depths of Baikal located?

Off the eastern coast of Olkhon Island, on the coast between Capes Izhimey and Khara-Khushun, 8-12 km from the coast of the island (in the middle basin), the maximum depth of 1637 m was noted. mouths of the rivers Pereemnaya and Mishikha. In the northern basin, the greatest depth - 890 m - was recorded in the coastal area between Capes Elokhin and Pokoiniki.

Why are the greatest depths located closer to the western coast of the basin?

Because the main fault lines of the earth's crust and the largest subsidence of its blocks in the Baikal basin occurred along the western shores.

Where is the greatest depth in the Barguzinsky Bay located?

The greatest depth - 1284 m - is located in a trough that stretches along the southern tip of the Svyatoy Nos peninsula, closer to the Lower Izgolov.

What is the deepest depth of the Small Sea?

It is located in the northern extremity of the sea, in the so-called Big Olkhon Gates, at the alignment of the Zama capes on the mainland and Khoboy on Olkhon, and is equal to 259 m.

What is the shallowest depth in open Baikal?

Above the Posolskaya Bank, located almost in the middle of Lake Baikal. G. Yu. Vereshchagin indicates that the minimum depth he discovered on the bank is 34 m, and N. P. Ladokhin found a depth of 32 m. Insignificant depths, about 260 m, are above the underwater Akademichesky ridge, which separates the middle basin of the lake from northern, as well as above the Selenga bridge, which separates the southern basin of Baikal from the middle one, here the minimum depth is 360 m.

How do waves and currents affect the nature of the bottom?

The influence of surface waves does not extend far into the depths, but in the water column, between its layers, at a depth of tens and hundreds of meters, internal waves can arise. Photographs of the tops of the seamounts and at the bottom of the deep waters of Lake Baikal show signs of ripples of the same type as those caused by waves in sandy shallow waters. The presence of currents at great depths is evidenced by the fact that the soil columns taken at individual elevations contain clean sand and gravel. The same was found on underwater heights in Baikal: on the Akademichesky ridge, in its southern part, there are sandy deposits, on the Posolskaya Bank, small pebbles in an oxidized ferruginous crust. But the signs of ripples at the bottom of great depths are not always formed by waves and currents. In the study with the help of deep-sea vehicles in Baikal at a depth of 1410 m, signs of ripples of biogenic origin were found.

Where are the underwater ridges located in Baikal?

The most expressive is the Academic Ridge, which stretches from Olkhon Island to the Ushkany Islands. The Ushkany Islands are the highest point of this range. Its length is about 100 km, the maximum height above the bottom of Lake Baikal is about 1848 m. The underwater ridge of the Srednebaikalsky, or Selenginsky, is located opposite the Selenga delta. The total length of the ridge is about 100 km, and highest altitude above the foot in the southern basin of the lake - about 1374 m. If it is true that the thickness of bottom sediments in Baikal is about 6 thousand meters, as established by gravimetric surveys (and the latest measurements give even more than 7 thousand meters), then one of the highest mountains on Earth with a height of more than 7.3 thousand meters is flooded in Baikal (and maybe more than 8 thousand m).