Lake Teletskoye, Day One

Christine Porschet
Marcus Whitman Middle/High School

Lake Teletskoye is one of the largest lakes in Russia and one of the fifteen deepest lakes on the planet. The lake is a popular destination spot because of its pristine forest and options for outdoor activities. Over two thirds of the area surrounding the lake are a reserve and the Altai Mountains are a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The lake is called the Golden Lake. There is a legend that during a time of famine a hunter found a gold ingot and while he went to sell it his family perished. Upon return he was so distressed that he jumped off the mountain top and into the lake, never to be seen again. They say that is why it is called the Golden Lake.

We took a boat from the northern part of the lake for a long ride to the Kordon Bele reserve. The boat ride was over an hour long with a few stops along the way at some of the waterfalls.

Lake Teletskoye was settled by the Scythians in the 7th century. They came from the Black Sea twice a year to bury their dead. The Scythians believed that the bodies needed to be buried in a remote area because if the enemies found the burial site then they would be defeated.  

There is an undisturbed burial mound at the reserve at the south end of Lake Teletskoye. The mound is intact because after the discovery and removal of Princess Ukok many natural disasters were attributed to the disturbance of the sacred burial mound and subsequent burial mounds that were found remain intact. The mound is marked with a jasper stone (not native to the area) engraved with the image of a face.

In a separate location there is a stone totem called "head of a dog". This totem was used to protect the settlement from bad spirits identify the tribe and serve as a place for sacrifices.

After our tour of the reserve we had a delicious lunch prepared by several of the 17 year round villagers. The scrumptious Altai food included fried fish, summer shchi, fern and carrot salad, lepyoshka, potatoes with dill, sweet and savory blini, blini with fresh honey served with fresh milk, tea and compote.

After enjoying the eventful day we went for a swim, where the water was significantly warmer that in the Northern part of the lake, and got back in the boats for our ride back to Artybash.