Trans-Baikal State National Park is the true pearl of Buryatia. The unique landscapes of the eastern coast of Lake Baikal, valuable natural complexes whose safety was threatened, prompted the Government of the RSFSR in 1986 to issue a decree on the creation of a state-protected park in this area.
Here is a real paradise for animals: more than 44 species of mammals, 50 - vertebrates, 241 species of birds, 3 species of reptiles and the same number of amphibians. Many representatives of the fauna are included in the Red Book of Russia.
The national park is part of a huge complex, a real repository of northern attractions and natural beauties called the Preserved Podlemorye. It includes two more parks - the Frolykhinsky reserve and the Barguzinsky reserve. All three nature protection zones are part of the “Lake Baikal” facility, which is under the protection of UNESCO.
Park Features
The territory of the reserve zone covers the Academic, Sredinny, Svyatonosonsky and Barguzinsky ridge and a total of 269 thousand hectares. 37 thousand hectares is the water area of Baikal, the deepest freshwater lake in the world.
Most of the reserve complex is occupied by mountain slopes, covered in abundance with thickets of yerniks, cedar dwarf pine, larch, pine and cedar taiga.
One of the most beautiful places is the Svyatoy Nos peninsula: the Chivyrkuy isthmus connects it with the eastern coast of Lake Baikal. The top of the Academic Range, which is the underwater border between the northern and southern troughs of the Baikal Basin, is represented by the Small Ushkany Islands and the Big Ushkany Island.
This formation is called the Ushkany Islands archipelago.
Chivyrkuisky Bay
The Trans-Baikal National Park is famous for the largest freshwater seal rookery on Baikal - the seal. This is the endemic of Baikal and the only representative of the pinnipeds. Most seals are found on the Ushkany Islands, where their numbers sometimes reach 2500 - 3000 individuals. In autumn, during storms, seals (most often pregnant females) move to Chivyrkuisky Bay. However, this is not their wintering place: having healed and rested, the seals again go into open water, since the bay is covered with ice.
The bay is famous for its thermal springs, the most famous of which is Snake. He owes his name to the population of common snake that lives in the Arangatui swamps. The water temperature in the source sometimes reaches + 50-60 degrees. Mineral springs Nechaevsky and Kuliny swamps are also popular among park guests.
The shores of the Chivyrkuisky Bay are severely indented, and the water crashes into the land for 25 kilometers. This feature led to the fact that along the entire body of water appeared small sandy bays protected from the winds with a depth of up to five meters. One of the most noteworthy is the Ongokon Bay.
Five tourist routes give guests the opportunity to get acquainted with the inhabitants of the protected area, its beauties and breathtaking landscapes. From the highest point of the park - Mount Markovo, located on the Svyatoy Nos peninsula, an amazing panorama of the area opens.
Islands and park
The nature of Buryatia is diverse and beautiful in any of its manifestations. So, taking a boat trip along the Chivyrkuisky Bay, you can admire the real islands, the steep banks of which have turned into a refuge for numerous gray and silver gulls, howling their nests here.
Climatic features of the park
The park is located in the middle Baikal eastern climatic region, which is characterized by a continental climate with warm, sometimes arid summers and long cold winters. The influence of Baikal softens weather conditions in the coastal part of the protected area. The average temperature in winter is -19 degrees Celsius, in summer +14 degrees. The water temperature in the lake does not rise above +14 degrees even on the hottest days.
Water resources of the reserve
Trans-Baikal National Park is rich in water resources. Many small rivers flow here, among which Bolshoi Chivyrkuy, Malaya and Bolshaya Cheremshana stand out. The basins of these rivers are closed, so they carry their waters to Lake Baikal. There are also lakes: the largest of them are Arangatuy and Maly Arangatuy, located on the Chivyrkuy isthmus and connected to the bay. Bormashovoe lake is smaller in size and is known for its mineral waters.
A feature of the park is the presence of karst lakes - there are more than twenty of them.
Flora of the Transbaikal National Park
The Trans-Baikal Territory is located in the taiga forest zone, which directly affects the structure of the vegetation cover of this area. It is due to the vertical zonation of the Transbaikal mountain regions. Forests mainly consist of conifers: Gmelin larch, Siberian fir, pine, cedar and cedar dwarf trees.
A small area is occupied by deciduous forests, represented mainly by stone and broad-leaved birch and aspen.
The Trans-Baikal National Park is characterized by an unusual distribution of mountain taiga forests compared to their location in the continental Siberian mountains. So, in the park the number of cedar-larch and larch trees is relatively small - their area occupies about 14 thousand hectares, and they are located on madder on river terraces, while in other Siberian forests such trees are represented in the majority.
Endemics and relics
The flora of the protected area is diverse, many plant species are endemic and relict. The most valuable of them settled on the highlands of the Ushkany Islands and the Holy Nose.
These include choosenia, a community of cedar dwarf and yernik, Tiling borodinia.
Variety of fauna
The Trans-Baikal National Park has become a real home for sables, wolves, wolverines, bears, foxes, squirrels, moose, brown bears, red-gray voles, hazel grouse, pine trees, musk deer, black-capped groundhog and many other representatives of the fauna. The animals here feel completely safe.
Among the representatives of amphibians there are rare species - Siberian and Muzzle frogs. The six reptile species that also live here include the common snake, the nimble lizard, the muzzle and the viviparous lizard.
Among birds, both sedentary and avian, you can find white and yellow wagtails, brown-headed gaits, Muscovites, Dubrovniks, nuthatching, pine forests, lapwings, snipe, black, river terns, gray and silver gulls. Sometimes in the park you can see a black stork (the nesting site of which remains a mystery), a golden eagle, a white-tailed eagle, a peregrine falcon and an osprey.
Another rare bird that has disappeared from the coast of Lake Baikal and lives in small numbers in the Chivyrkuisky Bay is the Great Cormorant.
Many bird species nest in swamps hidden from human eyes and located mostly on the Chivyrkuisky Isthmus. Here is also located the least transformed ecosystem of the world - Arangatuysky bogs, in which moose, capercaillie, muskrat live.
The largest group is the group of waterfowl, represented by common mallard, gogol, pintail, whooper swan, teal whistle and red-headed duck.
There are owl-like birds in the park: marsh and eared owls, long-tailed owls, eagle owl and white owl are very rare guests, found only in winter or in places where a person’s foot rarely steps.
The national parks of Buryatia, including the Trans-Baikal National Park, are rich in various representatives of the underwater world. Thus, perch, ide, Siberian grayling, dace, burbot, omul, Baikal sturgeon, pike, roach and endemic species — a small golomyad — are found in water bodies.
Trans-Baikal National Park: how to get there
The nearest settlement to the park is the village of Ust-Barguzin.
You can get here by land or water. The best land route is private transport services that depart from Irkutsk along the Baikal coast. From the capital of the Republic of Buryatia - the city of Ulan-Ude - you can get to the park by minibus or regular bus.
The distance to the reserve is about 275 km and the road takes about 5-6 hours.
It should be borne in mind that most of the way passes along a gravel road. For people who prefer a water route, private flights leave from the Baikal port, as well as from the villages of Khuzhir, Nizhneangarsk and Listvyanka.
Having visited this park, you will not regret it for a minute, because it is not only the hallmark of Lake Baikal, but also a real oasis of natural wonders, which the Trans-Baikal Territory is so rich in!