![]() Michael McAleer surveys the frozen expanses of Lake BaikalĬertainly the postcard images look enchanting, with the ice glistening in the winter sun and the translucent surface showing the clear water underneath.Īs with all things in Siberia, reality bites. Someone in Mazda clearly had an epiphany about an epic test drive after hitting the vodka and omul hard, and came up with the grand plan to drive the new CX-5 – all-wheel drive versions, let’s not be silly here – across a frozen Baikal. Quickly talk returns back to Baikal and the all-pervasive omul fish. Widen the chat to the presidential election and the recurring message among the very few Russians willing to talk politics with us is that Putin brings order where before there was chaos and criminality. One Russian woman, through broken English, says: “We will not know the truth.” Needless to say, in a frontier town so far away, reports of nerve gas attacks on former spies based in the UK elicits little more than a shrug. It's hardly surprising that it earned the infamous title as the murder capital of Russia. All this in a remote frozen wasteland 5,500km from its Moscow-based rulers. Adding culture to the mix was the exiled elite who led the failed Decembrist revolt of 1825. Invariably they made it from labour camp and mines to the town. A former garrison town tasked with keeping the neighbouring Buryats in check – and an eye on the neighbours to the south – it was also the main town for the surrounding prison camps where exiles were sent.Īccording to notices in the local museum, the 19th century saw a million convicts marched from the western regions into the Siberian wild, many with their families in tow. The people of Irkutsk know this better than most. Russians are famed for their hardiness and stoicism in the face of adversity. To add to the thrills and increase the risk of spills, every few months Baikal shakes. Unfortunately for us, as the spring approaches cracks open and streak for up to 30km across the ice. Thankfully, for our driving plan, Baikal freezes hard in the winter to a depth of over one metre of ice. ![]() One of these is the omul fish, a staple in every local dish. It’s home to a multitude of species unique to this location. The lake boasts several benchmarks, including as the world’s oldest lake at 25 million years. ![]()
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