Another cup of tea?

Last I wrote we were on our way towards Irkutsk and Lake Baikal for an epic 2 day hike around the lake including one day of 25km. When we arrived in Irkutsk we were told there had been a change in plans due to a lack of available guides, and that we would be spending a night at a homestay in a village called Listyvanka before going ona 20km round trip over two days with one night of camping. Gideon was disappointed at the change as it would mean seeing less of the lake and missing out on a hydrofoil trip back to Irkutsk, but secretly (or maybe not so secretly) I was relieved not to be attempting the 25 km in one day.

The homestay was as I think as a homestay should be. The house seemed to be mostly traditional and an experience. There was electricity, but no plumbing. Water was fetched from a well at the end of the street and there was an outdoor not-so-long-drop dunny. We bathed in a traditional Banya, a bath house with water heated by a woodfired oven, a bit like a sauna for washing out of a bucket. Not quite as refereshing as shower, but a magical relief after two an a half days without a shower on the train. We were also fed traditional Russian meals.

The hike: to be honest, there was a lot more eating done on the hike than hiking! A group of 9 of us (including the guide and his wife) set off on foot with camping gear and provisions for two days and one night. Much to my relief, although we had mosquitos, it appeared that we have missed tick season around the lake. After about 5km (90mins) of walking briskly uphill through forest, we stopped for lunch. We sat and watched amazed as the fuide built a fire and cooked us a fish and potato soup with tea and fresh vegetables! Then after antoehr 5km of hiking we stopped at our campsite by the lake, firstly for a "refreshing" swim in the lake (I reckon it was about 10dC), then a hot dinner of buttered rice and tea amongst other things. The lake, although freshwater (drinkable!) was so bit, it was just like camping on a beach by the sea, being lulled to sleep by the sound of waves on the shore and rain on our tents, expect that we couldn't sleep due to the bad positioning of our tent across a ridge (I miss my thermarest!) We awoke to a beautifully sunny day and a hot breakfast of porridge and tea. Then set off on the 10km back to Listyvanka.

The second day of hiking was completely different to the first. We followed the edge of the lake closely. As we followed a scarily thin and rocky path along the cliff face, there were quite a few moments, while sprawled against the cliff wall, I wondered if a wrong step might send me plummeting onto the rocks in the shalllows of the lake below. Happily our hard work was worth it, seeing stunning views of the clear blue waters of the lake, surrounded by dramatic cliffs, dotted wit hthe greeneness of pines and pretty coloured flowers. About 1.5 hours after breafast, we stopped for lunch and tea!

After the hike, we were transferred straight from Listyvanka to Irkutsk for a one night homestay in Irkutsk. It was an optional additional night that we had chosen in anticipation of recovery needed from the 25km hike. In retrospect, we really didn't need it. There was very little to see in Irkutsk, and while there was the novelty of staying in an old wooden house and the beds were the most comfortable we'd had in a while, the house was more like a hostel, it was stuffy and had a pretty disgusting bathroom. If we hadn't just done an overnight hike, I might have skpped the shower!