IN THE early morning I set of from Irkutsk to Lake Baikal, an inland sea in the heart of Siberia. Under grey skies the chilly lake surrounded by forested hills radiant in the colours of autumn extended as far as the eye could see.
The enormous lake contains around 20% of the world's freshwater. It is the world's deepest lake at 1642 metres filling a rift valley where the continent is slowly tearing itself apart. At 25 million years, this is also the oldest lake in the world.
Blogs from today:
Lake Baikal
Coast to coast across Eurasia
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