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The Shaman Stone at the source of the Angara

Regional journey · City history · Baikal shores · Nature & trails

The Source of the Angara River

Upstream from the dam and the icebreaker to the Shaman Stone and Port Baikal

Photo: Octagon, CC BY 3.0

Duration
7–9 h
Difficulty
Easy
Best season
Spring, Summer, Autumn
Getting around
Mixed
Start
The icebreaker Angara, Irkutsk
Finish
Port Baikal

This route runs against the current: from the Irkutsk hydroelectric dam and the icebreaker Angara, along the reservoir to where the river leaves Lake Baikal, then by ferry across the source to Port Baikal. It is a story of a river, a dam and a railway, all bound together.

The Angara, the only river to flow out of Baikal, gave the city water, energy and a road. The Irkutsk dam, built in the 1950s, raised the lake by about a metre and flooded the old railway along the Angara — which is why the Circum-Baikal line became a dead-end branch. On this route all those events come together.

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Schematic: stops are joined by straight lines. This is not a walking track — follow the written directions. The map mirrors the list of stops below; all information is available without the map.

Step-by-step itinerary

  1. Stop 1 · Time here: 60 min

    The icebreaker Angara

    The icebreaker Angara moored in winter Photo: Brücke-Osteuropa, Public domain

    Built in England and assembled on Baikal in 1900, the icebreaker served the lake crossing until the Circum-Baikal Railway was completed. It is now a museum on the Irkutsk reservoir.

    Opening hours & tickets: Check opening hours in advance.

    Open in maps: OpenStreetMap · Yandex Maps · 2GIS

  2. Stop 2 · Time here: 15 min

    The Irkutsk dam

    Getting there. Nearby, on the road across the dam.

    The dam was built in the 1950s. It turned the upper Angara into a reservoir and raised the level of Baikal. From the road you can see the difference in water level above and below the dam.

    Open in maps: OpenStreetMap · Yandex Maps · 2GIS (approximate location)

  3. Stop 3 · Time here: 30 min

    The Shaman Stone at the Angara source

    Getting there. About 60 km along the Baikal Highway.

    The Shaman Stone at the source of the Angara Photo: Octagon, CC BY 3.0

    The rock in mid-stream features in both Buryat and Russian legends. The best view is from the shore by the Baikal Museum.

    Open in maps: OpenStreetMap · Yandex Maps · 2GIS

  4. Stop 4 · Time here: 75 min

    Chersky Stone

    Getting there. By trail or chairlift from the village.

    View from Chersky Stone over the source of the Angara and Baikal in winter Photo: LxAndrew, CC BY-SA 3.0

    From above you see the whole source: lake, river and Port Baikal on the far shore.

    Open in maps: OpenStreetMap · Yandex Maps · 2GIS

  5. Stop 5 · Time here: 30 min

    The ferry across the source (Rogatka pier)

    Getting there. Down to the pier by the fish market.

    A passenger ship moored on Lake Baikal Photo: Pierre André Leclercq, CC BY-SA 4.0

    A short crossing that lets you see the source from the water. The ferry is the main way to reach Port Baikal: there is no road from Irkutsk.

    Opening hours & tickets: Ferry timetable from VSRP; it changes in the shoulder seasons.

    Open in maps: OpenStreetMap · Yandex Maps · 2GIS

  6. Stop 6 · Time here: 60 min

    Port Baikal

    A steam locomotive and a passenger train at Port Baikal station Photo: Artem Svetlov from Moscow, Russia, CC BY 2.0

    The village at the start of the Circum-Baikal Railway, with Baikal station, old railway buildings and a quiet that Listvyanka lacks. In the early twentieth century the icebreaker-ferry Baikal carried railway wagons across the lake from here.

    Open in maps: OpenStreetMap · Yandex Maps · 2GIS (approximate location)

Practical tips

Transport

To Listvyanka by car or taxi (stopping at the dam) or by bus. Across the source, the VSRP ferry from Listvyanka (Rogatka pier) to Port Baikal, and back the same way; check the timetable, especially in the shoulder seasons.

Practical tips

  • Note the time of the last ferry from Port Baikal back to Listvyanka.
  • Port Baikal has few cafés — bring a snack.

Seasonal notes

Best from late spring to autumn. The ferry runs in winter too, but its timetable changes during freeze-up and break-up.

Accessibility

Gangways and steps on the ferry and the icebreaker.

Safety and caring for nature

Never walk on the ice by the source in winter. The road by the dam is busy.

Budget

Icebreaker museum ticket, return ferry fare and transport to Listvyanka.

The icebreaker Angara moored in winter Photo: Brücke-Osteuropa, Public domain
View from Chersky Stone over the source of the Angara and Baikal in winter Photo: LxAndrew, CC BY-SA 3.0
A steam locomotive and a passenger train at Port Baikal station Photo: Artem Svetlov from Moscow, Russia, CC BY 2.0

Destinations: ListvyankaPort Baikal and the Circum-Baikal Railway

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