9-day ski touring trip in Mamay Baikal, Siberia

I glad to invite you for skitouring in the middle of Siberia next to famous Lake Baikal.

A great place for early winter as generally the biggest snowfalls already in November and December. The best place for ski touring around Lake Baikal is the valley of the Bolshoy Mamay river, just 12 km from Baikal lake. It has the greatest precipitation in the region and very interesting terrain.

Climate and Snow

Mamay valley has a special micro-climate therefore winters here are warmer than in other regions of Baikal. Until middle of January, before Baikal is covered with ice, precipitation is abundant. Combined with stable cold temperatures, it brings a huge quantity of light snow.  It’s why I recommend to use there skis not less than 100mm width under the foot.

Skiing and terrain

The main slopes are on a North-West aspect where the valley is protected by mountains on all sides so there are no strong winds at all, which guarantees good snow and excellent riding. The mountains in Mamay are generally 1600 meters high and the average run is about 500 meters vertical. Terrains have everything – forests, snow pillows, open alpine slopes.

Itinerary

Due to its remote location, we can only reach Mamay by van or train about 3h and after by walk(ski) 2.5-3h till the hut. Luggage go with snowmobiles to the hut. After that we will spent 6 full days for skiing and enjoying Siberian food and national Russian Sauna – Banya at evening time.
At day 8 after breakfast and maybe short ski touring we ski same way down and move by van to Irkutsk city. Second part of the day excursion thru unic wooden architecture of Irkutsk and farewell dinner.

Accommodation and food

We are going to stay in a simple but warm and cozy mountain hut completely isolated in the nature. It has some basic facilities only but everything that we need there. Our chef will take care for us preparing some local cuisine with 3 meals, each day and necessary snack for day time.  On the back way from Mamay we will stay in the 3 stars hotel with DBL or TWIN rooms accommodation in city center.

You can also check my 10-day Altay mountains ski touring program if looking for trip in remote places in Siberia