Listvyanka. Sketch by Ellen Amand

30-35 thousand years ago the destiny of Listvyanka was determined - the break-up in the mountain ridge occurred and a new river, Angara, was born. It is the only outflow from the Internal Sea Baikal... the distribute of another great Siberian River, Enisei.
So the most convenient way from West to East by rivers up to Baikal Lake and further across it to China, Mongolia, Far East appeared, everything else was only the question of time, and time came and in the beginning of the 17th century russians arrived to this region , Irkutsk was established on the right shore of the Angara happened to be on the trading crossroads ... From Irkutsk to this "hottest" spot began they go at once and from here as well as from the opposite to Listvyanka Port Baranchik (Baikal now) across the lake... Then in the natural way of things the spot turned into settlement. The history of Listvyanka began. …

Listvyanka Village is a honey-bread… Really!. It is small, stretched for five kilometers of its main street at the foot of the Eastern ridges along the shore of Baikal. Small groups of houses climbing up valleys of little rivers running into the lake compose the whole settlement. Everything is in sight, but the Village is rather saturated with interesting places and possibilities which are to be discovered by a curious inquisitive travellor… So one should find the key to its treasures…
First of all the outlet of the Angara is a spot never to be neglected... Here is Shamanrock jutting out of the water, nothing but a top of the former Ridge, and a beautiful local legend in its most popular variant comes to mind inevitably, how the Daughter Angara ran to Her fiancee Enisei River and Father Baikal in a great rage threw the stone trying to stop His only child... in vain!!! The stone is on the bottom and She is still running away...

The spot never freezes in winter because of the warmness and the high speed of the underwater stream, and there are many ducks on the rock awaiting here springtime...

Do not hurry! If you miss the hiking to the Chersky Stone you will miss much. Imagine the narrow paved road in the forest which behaves like a snake, turn after turn, up and up till the end of the third terraincour, grade 2400 meters. It takes 30 or 45 minutes to reach the top of the ridge and after all the charm, all the beauty of Siberian forest you will be given another present ... the view on the outlet of the Angara and Baikal Lake from the highness of 700 meters... The opposite shore is in 40 km and seen in the light blue colour...

... The slopes of Pribaikalsky ridge around Listvyanka are wild,here is typical Siberian forest with birches, asps, pine trees, rich underbrush, bright wild flowers. There are some eatable berries, mushrooms and grasses known by residents. With the help of experienced guides one can hike paths in taiga. A kind of happiness for you - if you love forests, if not, then you will… or will be at least surprised and impressed.

A word about the water?.. Impossible to say more than one can see with one's own eyes.. Baikal it is just Water Itself in all its grandeur…

...If to leave the main street with its quite for visitors oriented life and wander up a valley to a little settlement you may find yourself as if in a different world... such stillness... where are inhabitants? where are their dogs?....no movements... no sounds... at a moment in all this mystery you suddenly feel time wind blow your cheeks... It is another puzzle of our dearly beloved Listvyanka... really, it has more than one face...

Thanks to Limnology institute established in 1961 the village got its next, scientific, this time, appearance and significance and became famous all over the science world. It has also great attraction for artists, writers and musicians... Some kinds of log architecture are represented in here: typical Siberian wooden houses with laces along walls under roofs, with lace-ornamented window shutters, with wooden gates resembling iron-made castle gates, with chamber flowers on the window-sills. There is Orthodox church and shamanism sacred places too…

On the shore there is the Tombstone in the memory of Alexander Vampilov - Russian playwright - he drowned here in cold waters of Baikal… The Lake never makes jokes… Another great person is buried at the cemetery which goes along the slopes above two pink castles of nowdays nouveauriches - Grigory Galazy, author of the one of the best books about the Lake - "Baikal in questions and answers", he lived in Listvyanka in 90s still. Traditionally organized museum of Baikal flora and fauna gives plentiful versatile information and the aquarium gives the chance to see the freshwater seal - Nerpa. Such a shame it is still an object of chasing! …

The village participated in the construction of Transsib - in 1890s there were collected two huge ice-breaking ships: the ferry-boat Baikal and Angara. To carry wagons and passengers from the port Baikal to the eastern port of Tankhoi. And the construction of Irkutsk hydro-electric power station changed the face of Listvyanka as the level of the lake rose and the first row of houses close to the shore was moved from here. Now the saved row of the street faced the lake…

Listvyanka has kept its image and essence through centures. New features are brought by new time ... Very swiftly like mushrooms after good rain grow here private houses, castles for themselves and for touirists… Listvyanka has been Baikal tourists' Mecca , in the near future it will be bigger, much more standardized, with more civilized conditions Baikal tourists' Mecca..

Good Bye, honey-bread village!..