What is Lake Ladoga. Lake Ladoga, northwestern shore, from the city of Sortavala to the city of Priozersk. Lake Ladoga, eastern shore, from the Svir Bay to the Vidlitsa River

When we were just going there, they scared us very much that Ladoga was supposedly harsh and unpredictable, so if we suddenly get together there, we need to prepare a will in advance and we shouldn’t count on anything good. I don’t know where these horror stories come from, but in practice, more and more people walk along Ladoga every year and some problems, if they happen, are either with ice fishermen or with hard-drinking people. In general, people walk there quietly until late autumn.

Tourists have nothing to fear there, if you observe some kind of safety and do not climb into the water in objectively bad weather.

Here I want to talk about Lake Ladoga and how we saw it. Of course, we were far from everywhere - there are many islands, but we visited the Lakeside, Lahdenpokh, Sortaval and Pitkyarantsky skerries, as well as the archipelagos.

For example, we visited:

• Mykerikkyu Island
• Yalayansari Island (Yalayansaari, Finnish Jalajansaari, Hungry Island), part of the Western Archipelago.
• Heinäsenmaa Island, part of the Western Ladoga archipelago
• Verkkosaari Island is part of the Western Archipelago.
• Vossinoisaari Island in the Western Archipelago.
• Bayevy Islands on Ladoga, which are part of the Valaam archipelago.
• Cross Island (Ristisaari), which is part of the Eastern Archipelago.
• Kheposari Island is a small island in Ladoga skerries located near the city of Sortavala.
• Palosaret Islands, which are located in the Lakeside skerries.

To begin with, a little background information about Lake Ladoga

Ladoga lake is located in two regions, the northern and eastern coast in the Republic of Karelia, and the western, southern and southeastern coast in Leningrad region.

Ladoga is considered the largest freshwater lake in Europe. The area of ​​the lake without islands is 17.9 thousand km². At least 40 rivers and large streams flow into Lake Ladoga, and one flows out - the Neva River. The water is clean, except for areas polluted by industrial effluents.

The cities of Priozersk, Novaya Ladoga, Shlisselburg, Sortavala, Pitkyaranta, Lahdenpokhya are located on the shores of Lake Ladoga.

There are about 660 islands on Lake Ladoga. Of these, about 500 are concentrated in the northern part of the lake, in the so-called skerry region, as well as in the Valaam (about 50 islands, including the Bayevye islands), the Western archipelagos and the Mantsinsaari group of islands (about 40 islands). The largest islands are Riekkalansari, Mantsinsaari, Kilpola, Tulolansari and Valaam.

The most famous on Lake Ladoga are the Valaam Islands - an archipelago of about 50 islands with an area of ​​\u200b\u200babout 36 km², due to the location of the Valaam Monastery on the main island of the archipelago. Also known is the island of Konevets, on which the monastery is located.

The islands of the lake are rocky, with high, up to 60-70 m, sometimes sheer shores, covered with forest, sometimes almost bare or with sparse vegetation.

The southern and southwestern shores of the lake are overgrown with reeds and cattails for 150 km.

There are shelters and nesting places for waterfowl. There are many nesting gulls on the islands, they grow blueberries, lingonberries, and larger ones have mushrooms.

The lake is rich in freshwater fish, which go to the rivers to spawn. In Lake Ladoga live: Ladoga slingshot, salmon, trout, char, whitefish, vendace, smelt, bream, cheese, blue bream, silver bream, rudd, asp, catfish, pike perch, roach, perch, pike, burbot and others.

The only representative of pinnipeds, the Ladoga ringed seal, lives in Lake Ladoga. The number of seals in the lake is estimated at 4000-5000 animals. You can meet them both in skerries and on archipelagos, however, seals prefer low rocky islands for recreation.

The lake freezes in December (coastal part) - February (central part), opens in April - May. central part covered with solid ice only in very severe winters.

Due to the long and strong winter cooling, the water in the lake is very cold even in summer; it warms up only in the thin upper layer and in the coastal strip. The water temperature on the surface in August is up to 24 °C in the south, 18-20 °C in the center, near the bottom about 4 °C, in winter under ice 0-2 °C.

There are an average of 62 sunny days per year. Therefore, during most of the year, days with cloudy, overcast weather and diffused lighting prevail.

The so-called "white nights" are observed over the lake, coming on May 25-26, when the sun drops below the horizon by no more than 9 °, and the evening twilight practically merges with the morning. The white nights end on July 16-17. In total, the duration of the white nights is more than 50 days.

Calms are rare. In October, storm winds with a speed of more than 20 m/s are often observed on Lake Ladoga, the maximum wind speed reaches 34 m/s. Breezes are observed along the entire coast in the summer in windless sunny days and clear nights. The lake breeze starts at about 9 am and lasts until 8 pm, its speed is 2-6 m/s; it extends 9-15 km inland. Fogs are observed most often in spring, late summer and autumn.

There are constant disturbances on the lake. During severe storms, the water in it "boils", and the waves are almost completely covered with foam. In the water regime, surge phenomena are characteristic (fluctuations in the water level by 50-70 cm annually, up to a maximum of 3 m), seiches (up to 3-4 m), wave height during storms up to 6 m.

Seasonal fluctuations in the water level in the lake are small due to the large area of ​​the water surface of this reservoir and due to the relatively small annual variation in the amount of water entering it.

Nevertheless, in Lake Ladoga, in any case, the water level changes regularly and this must be taken into account. In the Sortaval skerries, we somehow passed a shallow channel between the islands and went calmly in one direction in August, and in September, returning, we already began to cling to the bottom, which caused us certain troubles.

In addition, not only can the water level vary throughout the year, but there are also thirty-year (Brickner) cycles in which the water level in the lake can vary by several meters.

Here in the photo, for example, you can see what the water level is now and what it was like 20-30 years ago. Where the water oscillated, the color of the stone became lighter and the structure polished. Can you imagine how many islands then appear out of the water, then disappear during such cycles?

The northern shores, starting from Priozersk in the west to Pitkäranta in the east, are mostly high, rocky, heavily indented, form numerous peninsulas and narrow bays (fjords and skerries), as well as small islands separated by straits.

The southern shores are low, slightly indented, flooded due to the neotectonic submeridional skew of the lake. The coast here is replete with shoals, rocky reefs and banks. It is inconvenient to walk here with a motor - unlike the northern coast, algae constantly cling to it, which also does not add joy.

The eastern shore is not very indented, two bays protrude into it - Lunkulanlahti and Uksunlahti, fenced off from the side of the lake by one of largest islands Ladogi - Mantsinsaari. There are wide sandy beaches here. The west coast is even less indented. It is overgrown with dense mixed forest and shrubs, coming close to the water's edge, along which there are scatterings of boulders. Ridges of stones often go far from the capes into the lake, forming dangerous underwater shoals.

World War II fortifications on Lake Ladoga

Heinäsenmaa, Verkkosaari, Vossinoisari, Myukkerikke, Rahmansari and several other small islands - this is the Western Archipelago. The people call them Defensive because during the Winter War of 39-40, they housed all kinds of Finnish fortifications related to the Mannerheim Line. Also, on the island of Rahmansari in September 1941, very heavy battles were fought - the Finns successfully knocked out ours from there.

Heinäsenmaa Island on Lake Ladoga

Since the 1950s, Soviet test sites have been located on the islands of the Western and Eastern Archipelago, where weapons of mass destruction were tested. In particular, there are several contaminated zones on Heinäsenmaa, fenced off with barbed wire and radiation signs.

Verkkosaari Island

On Verkkosaari there is neither a training ground nor a burial ground, only old Finnish positions, a couple of shooting cells and a dugout inhabited by fishermen.

Rahmansari Island

Active battles were fought on Rahmansari during the Second World War, but we did not see any artillery positions there. All that is interesting on the island is a lighthouse and landing stage.

Mykerikkyu Island

I have already read somewhere that there are allegedly really zones with radioactive contamination on Mykkerikkyu, but even though we did not have a dosimeter, these zones seemed somehow doubtful. Enthusiastically turning our heads, we dragged the catamaran closer to the shore along flat pitfalls, deciding first to see what was happening here, and then have a bite to eat and decide whether we should go further or stay here for the whole day.

Ristisaari Island

Hiking routes along Ladoga

I was asked a question like this:

• Kayaks can be assembled right in Priozersk - opposite railway station- there is a convenient beach, there is a boat station. In this case, from Priozersk along Vuoksa, you can go straight to Ladoga through the Tikhaya River. The Quiet River is a rapid (more precisely, a shivers) - well, under the bridge there is such a stormy place - you just have to go straight, as the current carries, and calmly slip through, but it’s very fun to walk along it, and the river itself is pleasant and pretty.
• In Priozersk, you can call a taxi, it's cheap there, and take half an hour to get to some Ladoga beach- drivers know all these beaches - they will take you straight to the lake. From there you can start in any direction - both to the skerries and to the archipelagos.
• By car or taxi (from Priozersk) you can get to the island of Kilpola - there is a boat station, where you can leave your cars. Well, go along Ladoga right away.

You can also land on the island of Kilpola or in the village of Tervu or the village of Hiitola (you need to go up the river to it) or near the village of Burnevo, on the beach and call a taxi there. And, of course, you can leave cities like Sortavala or Pitkyaranta (if suddenly someone gets there).

Many go to the so-called "Kocherga" - you can google where it is, but there are usually a lot of tourists there. In that area on the islands there are large flat beaches for large companies and convenient mooring. True, most likely all these beaches will be busy in July, so you will have to look for less convenient places. Although, in July and August there will be people everywhere. I can't imagine where it isn't.

If we talk apart from the original question, then for a relaxed holiday it is better to go to the Priozersky, Lahdenpohsky, Sortavalsky or Pitkyarantsky skerries. And if you want to climb all sorts of Finnish fortifications and look at abandonment, then it’s better to go to the archipelagos, for example, to the island of Ristisaari, Heinäsenmaa, Myukerikkyu, etc.

The weather in July-August is usually warm and calm, there are usually no storms (only in autumn), and if there is, then just a slight wave, with a few exceptions. And in any case, in the summer there are usually no storms for more than two days in a row. You can swim, sunbathe, and generally have fun.

Border guards on Lake Ladoga

I was asked this question:

We are now thinking little trip along the skerries of Lake Ladoga. Can you tell me what pick-up and drop-off points are there, from where you can get to St. Petersburg? Is it possible to throw yourself out in the middle of the way between Priozersk and Lahdenpokhya?

We go by train to St. Petersburg and from St. Petersburg, and there we rely on electric trains or auto taxis for drop-off. Or maybe in general we can choose one place to start and end the journey, and just paddle around the area on different islands all day long, without big transitions.

How is the weather there usually in the second half of July, and are there any interesting and calm routes for five days of kayaking for a group of beginners and not so kayakers? Are there any beautiful wild places for this option or only crowded?

And further. Are there any problems with border guards on Ladoga? We understand that the border zone passes nearby.

How to throw yourself on Lake Ladoga

1. Kayaks can be collected right in Priozersk - opposite the railway station - there is a convenient beach, there is a boat station. In this case, from Priozersk along Vuoksa, you can go straight to Ladoga through the Tikhaya River. The Quiet River is a rapid (more precisely, a shivers) - well, under the bridge there is such a stormy place - you just have to go straight, as the current carries, and calmly slip through, but it’s very fun to walk along it, and the river itself is pleasant and pretty.

2. In Priozersk, you can call a taxi, it's cheap there, and drive half an hour to some Ladoga beach - the drivers know all these beaches - they will take you right to the lake. From there you can start in any direction - both to the skerries and to the archipelagos.

3. By car or taxi (from Priozersk) you can get to the island of Kilpola - there is a boat station, where you can leave your cars. Well, go along Ladoga right away.

How to throw out (leave) from Ladoga

As for the drop, the easiest way to leave, of course, is from Priozersk, Kuznechny or Lahdenpokhya.

You can also land on the island of Kilpola or in the village of Tervu or the village of Hiitola (you need to go up the river to it) or near the village of Burnevo, on the beach and call a taxi there. And, of course, you can leave cities like Sortavala (if suddenly someone gets there).

Where to go on Ladoga on kayaks or catamarans

On Ladoga, you can go wherever you want, just along the islets - they are all interesting and beautiful.

Many go to the so-called "Kocherga" - you can google where it is, but there are usually a lot of tourists there. In that area on the islands there are large flat beaches for large companies and convenient mooring. True, most likely all these beaches will be busy in July, so you will have to look for less convenient places. Although, in July and August there will be people everywhere) I can’t imagine where it is not.

There will be almost no one on Verkkosaari or Mykerikkyu - it will be more precise, but less than in skerries. But newcomers probably will not dare to go to these islands. Yes, this is not necessary, since the next ones are also interesting. A good route (if not in your own car and you don’t need to return to it) from Priozersk to Lahdenpokhya. You'll get there in five days. Well, everything is along the coast, but it will work out on the islands. From Lakhdenpokhya, you can already go home by train.

You can also go to the archipelagos - for example, Heinäsenmaa or Verkkosaari or Vossinoisaari or Mykerikkyu. True, not everyone will agree to this, perhaps, because they believe that it is far and dangerous, although we calmly walked along these routes in kayaks. And many even swam to Valaam.

Weather on Ladoga in summer (in July and August)

The weather in July-August is usually warm and calm, there are usually no storms (only in autumn), and if there is, then just a slight commotion. You can swim, sunbathe, and generally have fun.

Border guards on Ladoga

Border guards can only be met on the train to Lahdenpokhya, and even then they will only check your passport and ask where you are going. Say that there are no problems on Ladoga. But if you land in Priozersk, then there will not even be border guards, most likely. In principle, no passes or anything like that is needed on Ladoga.

By the way, just in case, I'll write about GIMS. Kayaks do not need to be registered now. And many catamarans too.

The problem of the history of the development of Lake Ladoga and the formation of the river. The Neva is currently debatable in many respects. The currently available fundamental generalizations made by teams of authors 1 leave a number of important questions that require further scientific study and solution. The main ones are the time of occurrence of the river. Neva and the direction of flow from Ladoga before the formation of the river. Not you.

The basin of Lake Ladoga began to fill with water as the glacier of the last Valdai glaciation was destroyed and melted. According to recent studies on the problem of deglaciation of the basins of Lake Ladoga and Onega, using varvochronological, radiocarbon and paleomagnetic analyzes of ribbon clays, it was found that Lake Ladoga was freed from ice in the interval of 14000-12500 calendar years (11800-10300 14 C years ago) ( Fig. 1).

Rice. 1. Stages of deglaciation in the basin of Lake Ladoga

Within the basin of Lake Ladoga, there was a deep-water cold oligotrophic periglacial reservoir (Fig. 2), which was the eastern reach of the Baltic glacial lake 2 , in which a thick layer of lacustrine-glacial banded clays 3 was formed over 2000 years.

A characteristic feature of banded clays is their distinct gradation layering. In sections of banded clays, there is an alternation of layers of two types: clayey, relatively thin and darker-colored, and coarser, silty or sandy, thick and light-colored.

The first are called winter layers, the second - summer layers. Ribbon clays were formed from glacial turbidity, a product of moraine washing, which was brought by melt water flows into the near-glacial reservoir (Fig. 3).

The sedimentation of coarser clastic material on the bottom of the lake in the spring-summer period and finer material in suspension in the autumn-winter season led to the formation of banded clays. In the cold, sharply continental climate of the Late Glacial, the productivity of lacustrine and terrestrial ecosystems was low, which was reflected in the very low content of organic matter in banded clays.

A thick layer of lacustrine-glacial deposits of the BLO covers almost the entire bottom of Lake Ladoga, and their thickness reaches 20-30m 4 . Deposits of the Baltic glacial lake are also found in bottom sediment sections of many lakes located in the northern lowland part of the Karelian Isthmus 5 .

Higher in the section of banded clays, the layers gradually thin until they completely disappear: banded clays are replaced by microlayered and homogeneous clays (Fig. 4).

This facies transition from one type of clay to another was associated with the gradual degradation of the glacier, the retreat of its edge from the catchment area of ​​the lake and, accordingly, with a decrease in the supply of detrital material and the precipitation of predominantly suspended matter.

According to existing ideas, the last reduction of the Baltic Ice Sheet occurred unevenly, as did the subsequent isostatic uplift of the territory. It is believed that about 10300 14 C years ago in the area of ​​the modern city of Billingen in central Sweden (Fig. 2), the collapse of the glacial blade led to the release of the straits, a sharp decrease in the runoff threshold and a drop in the level of the Baltic Glacial Lake (BLL), which caused the release of under the waters of a vast territory from the Baltic to White Sea adjacent to the edge of the ice sheet.

The descent of the BLO was catastrophic and short-lived. Sea waters of the World Ocean penetrate into the Baltic Basin, forming the brackish water conditions of the Yoldian Sea stage (Fig. 5). Lake Ladoga from this point in time is isolated from the Baltic.

The decrease in the BLO level was accompanied by strong processes of denudation and erosion of the exposed parts of the bottom, as a result of which, in the sections of bottom sediments of most lakes in the northern part of the Karelian Isthmus, a sandy interlayer is observed at the contact of clays and overlying silts or a sharp boundary between them, indicating a break in sedimentation. In the sediment structure of lakes located within the Karelian Isthmus - the Heiniok Strait, which connected Lake Ladoga and the Baltic Sea, interlayers of sand up to 0.5 m 6 thick are found, overlapping band clays. Higher in the sections, sand interlayers are overlain by organomineral lacustrine deposits (sapropels) and bog peat.

In the early Holocene (10,300-9,500 years ago), due to significant climate warming in the Northern Hemisphere, the rapid destruction of the Baltic ice sheet, the descent of the Baltic glacial lake, and, as a result, the isolation of Lake Ladoga, there was a change in the lake of glacial lacustrine type lacustrine sedimentation (Fig. 4). Characteristic thin gray homogeneous clays (0.2-0.8 m) are formed.

In the second half of preboreal time, the Ladoga level rose to 18-20m. This was a consequence of the ancestral transgression of the Baltic (Fig. 6) about 9200 years ago, which led to the impounding of the runoff from Ladoga and, as a result, to a rise in the water level in the lake (Fig. 7). During the maximum of the Ancylus transgression, the southern shallow waters of Lake Ladoga were flooded up to modern isobaths of about 20 m (Fig. 6).

About 9500/9000 years ago, approximately at the turn of the preboreal and boreal, lacustrine deposits - silts - began to accumulate in the basin of Lake Ladoga (Fig. 4). Due to the fact that the water area of ​​the lake was repeatedly reduced in the Holocene, the complete and thickest sections of silt deposits are observed in the northern deep-water region. In the process of sedimentation, the role of organic matter of autochthonous origin increases. Silts show an increase in the content of organic matter compared to clays.

At the turn of the preboreal and boreal about 9,000 years ago, the level of Ladoga again decreases due to the regression of the Baltic to levels below the present position, which is recorded according to the study of bottom sediments in the shallow southern part of the lake 8 .

The separation of Ladoga and Baltic takes place, the Heiniok Strait dries up, and many lakes of the Karelian Isthmus are isolated, in which organogenic silts are formed, and peat bogs are formed in the mouths of the rivers. According to different authors, the radiocarbon age of peatlands is 7870 ± 110 years in the Pitkyaranta region, 7970 ± 260 and 7960 ± 230 years at the mouth of the Oyat River, 7110 ± 170 years on the Vyun River, and 6900 ± 70 years on the Olonka River 9 .

The runoff from Ladoga at that time was directed through the channel system of the Vuoksa lake-river system to the Vyborg Bay, and the threshold of the runoff from Ladoga was in the area of ​​the modern village of Veshchevo (Finnish name for Heinioki) at an altitude of 15.4 m above sea level.

The most interesting and controversial period in the history of Ladoga is the period of the last 5000 years. This stage, which received the name "Ladoga transgression" in the literature, corresponds to the interval of 5000-3000 years ago (Fig. 8). The reasons for this transgression are interpreted ambiguously. M. Saarnisto 10 main reason seen in the advanced isostatic uplift of the earth's crust on the northern coast of the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic, as a result of which the flow of water from the Saimaa lake system to the Gulf of Finland stopped.

As a result of the skew, a new runoff threshold arose through the marginal ridge of the Salpausselkä-I moraine near the city of Imatra into the system of the river. Vuoksa, which at that time flowed from Ladoga to the Baltic. The waters of the largest Saimaa lake system in Finland, which is dammed by Salpausselkä moraine ridges, according to M. Saarnisto, broke into Ladoga, sharply increasing the incoming part of the lake's water balance.

According to A. V. Shnitnikov 11 , the development of the Ladoga transgression was due to another centuries-old rhythm of fluctuations in total moisture content, which was widely manifested in this period of the Holocene and could lead to an outburst of water from Lake Baikal. Saimaa and to a significant increase in runoff to Ladoga from a vast drainage basin. Apparently, during this period, the effect of several factors, endogenous and exogenous, contributed to significant transformations of the hydrographic network of the basin and the water balance of Ladoga.

The result of the development of the Ladoga transgression, as is commonly believed, was the overflow of Ladoga through the Mginsko-Tosnensky watershed and the formation of the Neva River. Most researchers, starting with G. de Geer, J. Ailio, E. Hyppä, who were later referred to by D. D. Kvasov 14, believed that the Neva channel between Ladoga and the Baltic was formed mainly as a result of the glacioisostatic uplift of the northern Ladoga region and the skew Ladoga basin, as a result of which the waters of the lake flooded its southern part and intruded into the valley of the river. pra-Mga, flowing into Ladoga.

They reached the height of the Mginsko-Tosnensky watershed, represented by a ridge (about 18 m) composed of moraine loam, eroded it and carried out the descent of the waters of Ladoga along the valley of the river. Pratosna, which previously flowed into the Gulf of Finland. At the same time, the lower parts of the valleys were widened and deepened by the runoff from Ladoga (Fig. 8).

The time of the maximum of the Ladoga transgression and the beginning of the formation of the Neva River have different dates for different authors. Yu. Aylio 15 and S. A. Yakovlev 16 believed that the Neva arose in the period 4500-4000 years ago. Later, K. K. Markov et al. 17 pointed to the short duration of the Ladoga transgression, which fit within a part of the Subboreal period. O. M. Znamenskaya et al. 18 dated it 2000 years ago, and D. D. Kvasov 19 considered it in the interval 2300-1200 years ago. According to M. Saarnisto and T. Grönlund 20 p. The Neva appeared about 3100 years ago.

D. B. Malakhovskii et al. 21 present new conclusions about the time of the Ladoga transgression and the formation of the Neva River, which are refined according to the dating of terraces of different ages and the roof of peat bogs underlying the sediments of the transgression in the Nevsky Forest Park section (3000–2800 years ago) and overlapping them in the section "Nevsky Piglet" (2400 years ago).

Thus, on the basis of these data, in a short period of time, about 400 years, the level of Ladoga dropped from 18 m to 5-6 m, which is quite realistic, given that the southern watershed of the lake was composed of loose sedimentary rocks, while the northern one - Heinioksky - was crystalline. .

With the isostatic uplift of the northern part of the Karelian Isthmus, the Heiniok Strait dried up and swamped, as a system of lake-river channels on the line Priozersk - Veshchevo - Vyborg. During the regression of Lake Antsylovoe and the continuing uplift and skew of the northern part of the Ladoga Basin, the level of Ladoga and Baltica became equal.

It was at this time that a new runoff from the north broke through from the Saimaa system of lakes and its bifurcation arose. Part of this runoff went along the old hollow of the Heinioka Strait to the Priozersky Bay, and part of the runoff continued to the Baltic. A large volume of traction sediments ran along the western shore of Ladoga and contributed to blocking the runoff from Ladoga along the hollow of Sukhodolskoye Lake (former Lake Suvanto).

The powerful sandy coastal ridges of subboreal time studied by us, more than 17 meters high, adjacent to glacial deposits (an ancient lake stretching from north to south almost from Priozersk to Pyatirechye), are recorded along the western coast of Ladoga. They were broken by a water stream in 1818. in the area of ​​the modern mouth of the river. Burnoy (Taipole Bay).

It should be emphasized that the proposed blocking of the runoff from Ladoga could only occur as a result of block movements on the Karelian Isthmus, which were combined in time, caused by the activation of isostatic rises in the northern Ladoga region, an increase in moisture, and a change in the direction of runoff from the Saimaa system. The relative subsidence of the southern part of the basin could lead to a breakthrough of water from Ladoga and the formation of the river. Neva (or a significant increase in runoff along the channel of the great-Neva, if it existed before these events, i.e. there was a bifurcation of runoff from Ladoga).

The Burnaya River was formed as a result of a sudden breakthrough of the waters of the lake. Suvanto (Sukhodolsky) through a man-made canal and its descent to Ladoga only in May 1818. Lake level Suvanto dropped by 11m, and its bottom was exposed on an area of ​​more than 5000ha. The channel flowing from it to the west into the river. Vuoksu, completely dried up, a rocky isthmus formed in its place. From that time on, R. Vuoksa flowed back and began to flow into Ladoga, and numerous lakes of the Karelian Isthmus sharply lowered their level and became shallow.

This happened as a result of lowering the lake level by 10-11m. Suvanto and other local erosion bases in the Vuoksa basin. Significant changes were also caused by a further artificial increase in flow in the section of the river. Vuoksa - lake. Suvanto in 1857 and the formation of the Losevskaya duct. This event 119 also affected the entire hydrographic network of the Karelian Isthmus and led to a corresponding restructuring in the structure of its landscapes.

Numerous lakes of the Karelian Isthmus have sharply lowered their level, shallowed and significantly reduced the size of their water areas as a result of a decrease in local erosion bases in the basin of the river. Vuoksa. Comparison of the areas of the largest lakes on the maps of the Karelian Isthmus at the beginning of the 19th century and in 1983, reduced to the same scale, showed that, for example, the area of ​​Lake. Sukhodolsky decreased by 32.4%, lake. Balakhanovskoye - by 59.5%, lake. Cancer - by 88.6%, dozens of small lakes have completely disappeared.

Literature:
1 . Kvasov, D. D. History of Ladoga, Onega, Pskov-Peipsi Lakes, Baikal and Khanka / D. D. Kvasov, G. G. Martinson, A. V. Raukas (eds.). - L., 1990. - 280 p.; The evolution of natural settings and state of the art Geosystems of Lake Ladoga: Sat. scientific tr. / Ed. N. N. Davydova, B. I. Koshechkina. - St. Petersburg, 1993. - 118 p.; Kvasov, D. D. Late Quaternary history of large lakes and inland seas of Eastern Europe. - L., 1975. - 278 p.; Davydova, N. New data on Late Pleistocene and Holocene history of Lake Ladoga / N. Davydova, V. Khomutova, M. Pushenko, D. Subetto // Report on Lake Ladoga Research in 1991-1993. Joensuu. 1994. - No. 111. - P. 137-143; Subetto, D. Contribution to the lithostratigraphy and history of Lake Ladoga / D. Subetto, N. Davydova, A. Rybalko // Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology. Palaeoecology. - 1998. - No. 140. - P. 113-119; The First International Lake Ladoga Symposium // Hydrobiology. - 1996. - Vol. 322. - 328 p.
2 . Davydova, N. N. Late Pleistocene history of Lake Ladoga // History of the Pleistocene lakes of the East European Plain / V. I. Khomutova, N. N. Davydova, A. V. Raukas, V. A. Rumyantsev (ed.). - SPb., 1998, - S. 134-140; Kvasov, D. D. Late Quaternary history of large lakes and inland seas of Eastern Europe. - L., 1975. -278 p.; Subetto, D., Davydova N., Rybalko A. Contribution to the lithostratigraphy and history of Lake Ladoga / D. Subetto, N. Davydova, A. Rybalko // Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology. Palaeoecology. - 1998. - No. 140. - P. 113-119.
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4 . Subetto, D.A., General characteristics of bottom sediments. Lake Ladoga / D. A. Subetto, A. E. Rybalko, M. A. Spiridonov // History of Lake Ladoga, Onega, Pskov-Peipsi, Baikal and Khanka / D. D. Kvasov, G. G. Martinson, A. V. Raukas (ed.). - L., 1990. - S. 35-42.
5 . Sevastyanov, D.V., Subetto, D.A., Arslanov, Kh.A., et al., Izv. Russian Geographical Society. T. 128, no. 5. - 1996. - S. 36-47; Sevastyanov, D.V., Subetto, D.A., Sikatskaya, E.D., and Stepochkina, O.E., Peculiarities of evolution of the lake-river network in the basin of Lake Ladoga in the Holocene // Bulletin of St. Petersburg State University Ser. 7, no. 1 (No. 7). -2001. - S. 88-100; Subetto, D. A., Davydova N. N., Wolfart B., Arslanov H. A. Subetto D.A., Davydova N.N., Volfart B., Arslanov H.A. Litho-, bio- and chronostratigraphy of lacustrine deposits of the Karelian Isthmus at the Late Pleistocene-Holocene boundary // Izvestiya RGS. T. 131, no. 5. - 1999. - S. 56-69; Subetto, D. A. Structure, features and history of the formation of bottom sediments // Lake Ladoga: past, present, future / V. G. Drabkova, V. A. Rumyantsev (ed.). - St. Petersburg, 2002. - S. 122-136.
6 . Sevastyanov, D.V., Subetto, D.A., Sikatskaya, E.D., and Stepochkina, O.E., Peculiarities of evolution of the lake-river network in the basin of Lake Ladoga in the Holocene // Bulletin of St. Petersburg State University Ser. 7, no. 1 (No. 7). - 2001. - S. 88-100; Subetto, D. A. Structure, features and history of the formation of bottom sediments // Lake Ladoga: past, present, future / V. G. Drabkova, V. A. Rumyantsev (ed.). - St. Petersburg, 2002. - S. 122-136.
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8 . Kvasov, D. D. History of Ladoga, Onega, Pskov-Peipsi Lakes, Baikal and Khanka / D. D. Kvasov, G. G. Martinson, A. V. Raukas (eds.). - L., 1990. - 280 p.; Subetto, D. A., Davydova N. N., Wolfart B., Arslanov H. A. Subetto D.A., Davydova N.N., Volfart B., Arslanov H.A. Litho-, bio- and chronostratigraphy of lacustrine deposits of the Karelian Isthmus at the Late Pleistocene-Holocene boundary // Izvestiya RGS. T. 131, no. 5. - 1999. - S. 56-69; Subetto, D., Davydova N., Rybalko A. Contribution to the lithostratigraphy and history of Lake Ladoga / D. Subetto, N. Davydova, A. Rybalko // Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology. Palaeoecology. - 1998. - No. 140. - P. 113-119.
9 . Abramova, S.A., Davydova N.N., Kvasov D.D. History of Lake Ladoga in the Holocene according to spore-pollen and diatom analyses. History of lakes of the North-West. / Rev. ed. S. V. Kalesnik. - L., 1967. - S. 113-132. Koshechkin, B. I. Holocene transgressions of Lake Ladoga / B. I. Koshechkin, I. M. Ekman // Evolution of natural conditions and the current state of the geosystem of Lake Ladoga / Ed. N. N. Davydova, B. I. Koshechkina. - St. Petersburg, 1993. - S. 49-60; Subetto, D. A., Davydova N. N., Wolfart B., Arslanov H. A. Subetto D.A., Davydova N.N., Volfart B., Arslanov H.A. Litho-, bio- and chronostratigraphy of lacustrine deposits of the Karelian Isthmus at the Late Pleistocene-Holocene boundary // Izvestiya RGS. T. 131, no. 5. - 1999. - S. 56-69
10 . Saarnisto, M. The Late Weichelian and Flandrian history of the Saimaa lake complex. -Helsinki, 1970. - 108 p.
11 . Shnitnikov, A. V. Variability of the total moisture content of the continents of the Northern Hemisphere. - M.; L., 1957. - 337 p. Shnitnikov, A. V. Intra-secular variability of the components of total moisture content. - L., 1969.
12 . Subetto, D. A. Structure, features and history of the formation of bottom sediments // Lake Ladoga: past, present, future / V. G. Drabkova, V. A. Rumyantsev (ed.). - St. Petersburg, 2002. - S. 122-136.
13 . Bjorck, S. A review of the history of the Baltic Sea, 13.0-8.0 ka BP // Quaternary International. - Vol. 27. - 1994. - P. 19-40.
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15 . Ailio, J. Die geographikche Entwicklung des Ladogasees // Fennia. - 1915. - Bd. 8, No. 3. -157 p.
16 . Yakovlev, S. A. Deposits and relief of Leningrad and its environs. - L., 1925. Part 1. -186 p.; 1926. Part 2. - 264 p.
17 . Markov, K. K., Poretsky V.S., Shlyamina V.E. On fluctuations in the levels of Ladoga and Onega lakes in the post-glacial period / K. K. Markov, V. S. Poretsky, V. E. Shlyamina // Tr. Committee by studied. quarter period. - 1934. - T. 4. Issue. 1.
18 . Znamenskaya, O. M., Sokolova V. B., Khomutova V. I. Comparative analysis of paleogeographic conditions for the development of the southern and western shores of Lake Ladoga / O. M. Znamenskaya, V. B. Sokolova, V. I. Khomutova // History of Lakes. - Vilnius, 1970. - S. 319-331.
19 . Kvasov, D. D. Late Quaternary history of large lakes and inland seas of Eastern Europe. - L., 1975. - 278 p.
20 . Saarnisto, M. Shoreline displacement of Lake Ladoga - new data from Kilpolansaari / M. Saarnisto, T. Grönlund // Hydrobiologia. - 322. - 1996. - P. 205-215.
21 . Malakhovskii, D. B. New data on the Holocene history of Lake Ladoga / D. B. Malakhovskii, Kh. A. Arslanov, N. A. Gei et al. // Evolution of natural settings and the current state of the geosystem of Lake Ladoga / Ed. N. N. Davydova, B. I. Koshechkina. - SPb., 1993. - S. 61-73.
22 . Bjorck, S. A review of the history of the Baltic Sea, 13.0-8.0 ka BP // Quaternary International. - Vol. 27. - 1994. - P. 19-40.

Flora and fauna

Lake Ladoga is full of life. However, the harsh Ladoga does not indulge its inhabitants. great depth, low temperature water, a small amount of dissolved nutrient salts, as well as coarse-grained bottom sediments hinder the development of flowering aquatic plants - macrophytes. But the real scourge for them is the dynamism of the water mass. Frequent and strong disturbances often do not allow macrophytes to populate the shallow coastal zone at all.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the most diverse vegetation is found in the northern - skerry - region of Ladoga, where intricately indented shores are covered from storms by a scattering of countless islands and reefs.

Terrible waves with furious force pounce on the rocky shores of these islands, facing the open Ladoga. Here, macrophytes do not grow, and in the water only long green tufts of filamentous algae, ulotrixes, attached to the rocks, sway, but deeper, in the skerries, where the destructive force of the waves weakens, the first flowering plants appear in the water.

The pioneers of overgrowth are reed, swamp, marsh horsetail. At some distance from the shore one can see single clumps of water buttercup and pierced pondweed. But plants rarely grow alone. To make it easier to endure adverse conditions, they form groupings built according to certain laws, consisting of several types of macrophytes.

On the leeward side of the islands, among the chaotic heaps of stones and fragments of rocks, small patches of aquatic plants appear with bright emerald highlights. And a little further a narrow, but already denser strip of reeds ran into the depths of the bay. As if with a patterned border, it is framed by white flowers of a water buttercup, sitting on thin branched stems, strewn with leaves dissected into the thinnest slices.

And in the thickets of reeds, oblong, slightly reddish leaves with an inflorescence of pink flowers float on the surface of the water. This is amphibious buckwheat. Spikelets peek out of the water here various kinds pondweeds, and the plants themselves are immersed in water.

But we meet the real abundance and variety of aquatic plants in the upper reaches of the bays of the skerry part of Ladoga, deeply protruding into the mainland. Gentle shores, shoals, mineral-rich muddy soils and, finally, protection from waves - what could be better for the growth of macrophytes! Here are sedge thickets, in which several dozen species of moisture-loving plants can be counted, and swamp horsetail communities that enter the water to a depth of 2 meters.

And at greater depths, plants with leaves floating on the surface of the water dominate. Shiny brownish leaves of regular oval shape leave a great impression. This is a floating pond. Near him, leaves sway like arrowheads. For this similarity, the plant itself received the name arrowhead. A little further on the water stretched the bright green laces of the leaves of the burr-reed, so named because of the appearance of its fruits, resembling a bristling hedgehog. There are also small islands of large leathery green leaves of the capsule, among which its flowers turn yellow.

Behind the strip of plants with floating leaves, which is narrow in most Ladoga bays, or may be completely absent, submerged plants begin. Here, more often than others, pierced-leaved and heterogeneous pondweeds are found. On silty soils, groups of urut and hornwort, plants with strongly dissected leaves, develop well. At the bottom there are thick bunches of Canadian elodea, or water plague, well known to us from the home aquarium, a native of North America. It is believed that elodea owes its appearance in Europe to aquarists. In 1836, she was brought to Ireland, from where her victorious march through the waters of Europe began.

Such a picture of coastal overgrowth can be observed by slowly sailing along the coast in a boat. But in order to imagine the degree of overgrowth of the reservoir as a whole, especially such a huge one as Lake Ladoga, they carry out aerial reconnaissance. Aerial observations of aquatic vegetation on Ladoga have shown that a narrow green border of reed thickets 5-10 meters wide stretches along the coasts of numerous islands and the mainland.

An even narrower strip adjoins it. Only at the tops of bays deeply cut into the land do various groups of macrophytes develop. The width of the overgrowing strip in these places reaches 70-100 meters. The total area of ​​aquatic vegetation in the northern part of Ladoga is about 1,500 hectares.

There is almost no aquatic vegetation along the eastern and western coast lakes. From the plane you can see how the waves wash the sand of the huge beaches of the east coast and break on the boulders of the west coast. And only behind the ridges of stones at the mouth of the Vuoksa (Burnaya) River, which flows in from the west, as well as in the strait between the island of Mantsinsari and the eastern shore of Ladoga and in the Uksunlahti Bay, dense islands of reed thickets have strengthened.

In the shallow southern bays, Ladoga receives two large tributaries - the Svir and the Volkhov. Rivers bring nutrients to the lake for living organisms. Here in the bays there are the largest communities of aquatic plants, occupying over 8,000 hectares. Branching cord-like stems of a luxuriantly developed pierced pondweed are visible in the water. Closer to the shore, thickets of pondweed give way to a green carpet with patterns of various shades. A grayish hue, belonging to the sedge plant, dominates near Ptinov Island. All along south coast dark green islands of reeds stand out, interspersed with rather large arrays of light green thickets of reeds.

Reed is the most common plant in the world. It is very hardy and can grow in various conditions environments - in stagnant and flowing water bodies up to 2.5 meters deep, on land, in places with a high level of groundwater, on various soils, preferring, however, muddy ones. Cane has a variety of uses in the economy. Its stems are used in the pulp and paper industry to make paper and board. In the early stages of the growing season, reeds serve as pet food. Chemical analyzes showed that young shoots contain 16 percent carbohydrates, and they even have more vitamin C than a lemon. However, the exploitation of reed reserves on Ladoga is unprofitable, since their total area is a little over 100 square kilometers, and they are too scattered along the entire coast.

But the higher aquatic plants, of which there are a total of 120 species, do not exhaust the flora of Lake Ladoga. The water in it is saturated with the smallest organisms, the so-called plankton. One-celled diatoms, enclosed in shells with an amazingly thin lacy pattern, amaze with their diversity and abundance. Here, several asterionella cells formed an asterisk.

A patterned necklace is located right next to it - this is a colony of the diatom melozira, a little further you can see circles of stephanodiscus dotted with specks. It is difficult to describe the diversity of these smallest creations of nature. Indeed, only in the plankton of Ladoga, 154 species of diatoms, 126 species of greens and 76 species of blue-greens are known, not to mention representatives of other, more rarely found types of algae.

The phytoplankton of Ladoga is dominated by cosmopolitan algae widely distributed in lakes of all latitudes. They are joined by a significant number of boreal species - inhabitants of water bodies temperate zone Earth and north-alpine algae living in the northern and high mountain cold reservoirs. The combination of these groups of algae makes it possible to characterize the algal flora of Lake Ladoga as cold-loving.

The last of the groups of plant organisms that live in the lake are microbes, which are the destroyers of organic matter created by planktonic algae and higher aquatic plants (with the exception of a small group of microbes that can synthesize organic matter chemically). Latest Research showed that the waters of Ladoga are poor in bacteria.

For comparison, we take as a standard the crystal clear water of artesian wells. Here, in one cubic centimeter, you can count up to 15 thousand bacterial cells. The deep Ladoga waters contain only 60-70 thousand microorganisms, and in the surface layer - from 180 to 300 thousand. Only near the mouths of rivers and in places where wastewater from industrial enterprises is discharged is the number of bacteria increased.

What explains the low number of bacteria in Ladoga? Intensive reproduction of bacteria is prevented by low water temperature. The consequence of a small number of microorganisms, which are the main "cleaners", is the weak ability of Ladoga waters to self-purify. And this means that we must carefully protect Ladoga from pollution by industrial and domestic wastewater.

As a result of many years of research in Lake Ladoga, 378 species and varieties of planktonic animals were identified. More than half of the species are accounted for by extremely peculiar and very small organisms - rotifers. A quarter of the total number of species are protozoans, and 23 percent fall together on cladocerans and copepods.

In the waters of Lake Ladoga, zooplankton, like all other living creatures, is unevenly distributed. For example, the strong indentation of the coastline in the skerry region of Ladoga creates a system of bays and coves isolated from the main stretch, in which zooplankton forms characteristic of small reservoirs develop. These include the well-known species of Daphnia and Cyclops.

A large group of aquatic invertebrates lives at the bottom of the lake and is collectively called benthos. 385 species of them were found in Ladoga. Some of these organisms live in the silt, cutting through it with channels of their passages, others attach themselves to stones and boulders, but the population of aquatic plants is the most diverse.

Four-fifths of the total number of species of bottom organisms is confined to a narrow shallow zone, and only 57 species of organisms live in the vast deep-water and cold-water zone, but this number includes relic crustaceans - animals that inhabited the ancient lake that preceded Ladoga during its connection with by the Baltic Sea. Now they have found favorable conditions for their existence here.

At the bottom of Lake Ladoga, fauna elements that are different in origin, species and geographical distribution are combined. The first place in the composition of the benthic fauna belongs to insect larvae, which account for more than half of all species of bottom animals - 202 species. Next come worms - 66 species, water mites, or hydrocarines, mollusks, crustaceans, etc.

Bottom animals play a very important role in the reservoir, being the main food for most fish. If we mark on the map the places of the greatest development of benthos, and then mark accumulations of valuable species of commercial fish on the same map, it turns out that these areas coincide.

On Ladoga, along with its canals and lower reaches of inflowing rivers, 58 species and varieties of fish are known, including 5 species introduced by man. These include temporary aliens, which include river lamprey, Baltic sturgeon, saltwater Baltic salmon and eel; overcoming the fast current of the Neva, they occasionally enter Lake Ladoga and its tributaries.

There is even evidence that the Baltic sturgeon, before the construction of the dams, passed through the entire Svir to the southern part of Onega. The sturgeon breeds in the Ladoga rivers, then descends into the lake and can live here without going to the sea. For these reasons, Baikal and Lena sturgeons were introduced to Ladoga to restore and replenish sturgeon stocks.

There are fish in Ladoga that are unique to it. These are Ladoga lamprey, Ladoga ripus, several breeds of whitefish, Ladoga smelt, and a relic four-horned goby. But, of course, the bulk are fish that live in many freshwater reservoirs. We will only talk about widespread, commercially important or otherwise remarkable fish.

Perhaps the most valuable fish of Ladoga are salmon, of which 7 species are known. In addition to the sea salmon entering the lake, lake salmon and lake trout, or taimen, are common throughout Ladoga. These beautiful strong fish are very similar to each other, but they still have differences. Outwardly, they are expressed in the fact that numerous black spots are visible on the body of the salmon, which are especially numerous near the pectoral fins.

Unlike salmon, trout have a lighter color, fewer dark spots on the head and on the body. Both trout and salmon can weigh up to 8 kilograms, but most fish weighing 2.5 kilograms come across. For spawning, these fish go to the rivers. Not so long ago, they could rise into almost all the rivers of the Ladoga region, but now dams have been built on most of them. In addition, some rivers are polluted by the effluents of pulp and paper mills and timber rafting, and salmon and taimen do not enter them. For spawning the largest number lake salmon goes to the rivers Burnaya, Vidlitsa, Svir. Due to the sharp decline in the stocks of this fish, salmon fishing has been banned since 1960.

In many tributaries of Lake Ladoga, small in size, but beautiful in color, brook trout live.

In Lake Ladoga there are two more varieties of fish, which in general appearance resemble salmon. This is an ordinary and pit char, reaching a weight of 5-7 kilograms. The common palia is distinguished by its dark color and light spots on the sides. Pit char is lighter in color, and therefore it is also called gray char. Unlike the common char, the pit char prefers great depths. Palii are lake fish and, as a rule, do not enter rivers.

In winter, they live in deep layers of water, and after the opening of the lake, they go to underwater shoals, where they hunt for smelt. As the water temperature rises, the fish will go deeper again. Paliya breeds only in the lake, and only in its northern part.

The next representatives of the salmon family living in the waters of Ladoga are the common, or European, vendace, one of the most important commercial fish of the lake, and the Ladoga ripus, or large vendace. These are very delicate fish. Their distinguishing feature is the color of the back. Vendace has a back with a greenish shiny tint or almost black. The back of the ripus has a purple or dark blue hue.

These fish differ in size and habitat. Vendace rarely reaches a length of 20 centimeters and a weight of 90 grams, while ripus is found up to 40 centimeters long and weighing up to 1 kilogram. The vendace is common in large quantities in the northern half of the lake, and ripus - in the southern, where the places of its reproduction and feeding are located.

7 varieties of whitefish live in Ladoga - Ludoga, Ladoga Lake, Black, Valaam, Volkhov, Vuoksa and Svir. The first four varieties are typical lake ones, spending their entire lives in the lake, and the Vuoksa, Volkhov and Svirsky whitefish are lake-river ones: they breed in rivers and feed in the lake.

All whitefish reach a length of 50 centimeters or more and weigh more than 2 kilograms. The commercial value of different varieties of whitefish is not the same. Lake whitefish, with the exception of the Valaam whitefish, are widely hunted in various parts of the lake, while lake-river whitefish are quite rare.

Sig-ludoga got its name due to the fact that it keeps mainly on underwater rocky places called luds. Ludoga lives in both the northern and southern parts of the lake. In summer, it often gathers along the western, southern and eastern coasts, and migrates to the north in winter. For spawning, the ludoga comes to the southern coast of Ladoga near Ptinov Island and to the Volkhov Bay. This whitefish provides here the bulk of the commercial catch. Lake Ladoga whitefish lives mainly in the Petrokrepost bay.

Black whitefish inhabit northern part lakes and is the main commercial species there. It adheres to mainland and island coasts with shallow depths.

Finally, the deepest of the whitefish is the Valaam whitefish, which lives only in the northern part of the lake at depths of up to 150 meters or more. This fish got its name in ancient times. Russian fishermen went to the Valaam archipelago, where in autumn deep-sea whitefish concentrate around the islands and between them and the northern skerries.

They caught him there until January. The fishermen returned to the mainland already on the ice. This whitefish is also known as a goiter, because when pulled from the depth to the surface, due to a sharp change in pressure, the front of the abdomen (goiter) swells in the fish.

The lake-river Vuoksinsky whitefish is distributed mainly in the northern part of Ladoga, from where it goes to spawn in the rivers of the northern and western coasts. In the 18th - early 19th centuries, there was a large whitefish fishery on the Vuoksa River, but the construction of dams reduced the stocks of the Vuoksa whitefish.

The same thing happened with the Volkhov and Svir whitefishes; The Volkhov whitefish suffered especially hard, for which the dam blocked the path to the Msta River, where it had previously spawned, putting it on the verge of extinction. Therefore, in order to restore the livestock of lake-river whitefish, work is being carried out on artificial reproduction at fish hatcheries of these valuable fish, which have excellent taste qualities.

Considering geographical features Lake Ladoga and the valuable nutritional qualities of whitefish, the famous Baikal omul and peled were introduced to Ladoga.

Probably, many have heard about the cautious and swift fish with a large dorsal fin - grayling. Grayling lives both in the lake itself, preferring its northern part, and in the tributaries of Ladoga. In the lake, the grayling adheres to the rocky coasts of the mainland and islands, where it can be seen flying up from the water after a flying insect. Grayling never gathers in flocks, even during the spawning period, and therefore it is caught in Ladoga in small quantities. Grayling has always been the dream of amateur anglers.

The main commercial fish in Lake Ladoga is smelt, which accounts for up to half of all fish caught in the reservoir. It is hardly necessary to characterize smelt - it is well known to the inhabitants of the north-west of our country.

Pike is found in all coastal thickets, but its quantity is small for such a huge reservoir as Lake Ladoga.

The greatest diversity of species is represented by the family of carp fish, which includes roach, dace, chub, ide, rudd, minnow, asp, tench, gudgeon, bleak, silver bream, bream, white-eye, blue bream, syrt, sabrefish, crucian carp and carp introduced into the lake. Most of these fish have no commercial value.
The bream lives mainly in the Volkhov and Svir bays and the Petrokrepost bay, where it spends its entire life without making distant migrations. In the north of the lake, in the bays near Priozersk, near the island of Mantsinsari and in some other shallow bays, there are flocks of bream. The bream prefers well-heated bays with silty-sandy bottoms rich in benthos and with well-developed aquatic vegetation. Like a bream, dampness is found in the southern part of Ladoga; in the northern half of the lake, it is almost never found.

A lucky angler occasionally gets hooked great traveler- eel. It breeds along the coast Central America in the Sargasso Sea. Then its leaf-like larvae swim for three years with the waters of the warm Gulf Stream to the shores of Europe. Here the larvae develop into young eels, which usually enter rivers and lakes on spring nights. In freshwater continental reservoirs, the fish lives 9-12 years.

Then the eel begins to migrate to the ocean, and its appearance and blood composition change dramatically. Having entered the Baltic Sea, the eel moves along the coast to the west, then disappears into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, so that in a few years its descendants again make their way into European rivers and lakes on bright spring nights.

Burbot is common throughout Lake Ladoga, although here it does not reach large sizes. In autumn and winter, burbot goes to shallow waters to the mouths of rivers and islands, and in summer it goes to deep places. Burbot is a voracious predator. It feeds on fish and invertebrates and voraciously devours eggs, even its own.

Pike perch is a valuable commercial fish of Lake Ladoga. It accounts for up to 10 percent of the total catch. Pike perch is a predatory fish, feeding mainly on smelt, which it pursues throughout the lake, and places where smelt accumulates can serve as a sign that pike perch is also there. It is quite large on Ladoga - its average length is 50-60 centimeters, weight 3-4 kilograms, and sometimes fish up to a meter long and 10 kilograms in weight are caught.

Lake Ladoga abounds with perch. Smaller individuals keep near the coast, and larger ones in the open part on the moons. It can reach 40 centimeters in length and 2 kilograms of weight. In catches, perch accounts for more than one tenth of the annual production of Ladoga fish.

On sandy and small-rocky shallows throughout the lake, ruff is kept. He usually gathers in flocks. Previously, there was a ruff trade, especially in the bay of Petrokrepost and on the shallows of northern Ladoga. Live ruff was delivered to St. Petersburg and was in great demand. Currently, the mining of ruff is abandoned.

Travelers making excursions on Lake Ladoga often see seals (seals) that look out of the water not far from the sides of the ship.

The seal is the only representative of mammals permanently living in the Ladoga waters. More than 10 thousand years ago, his ancestors penetrated from the White Sea depression into the Karelian glacial sea, which later gave rise to Lake Ladoga. Animals acclimatized in the new reservoir, and now there are quite a lot of them in Ladoga. On sunny days, the seal loves to soak up the hot rays, climbing the coastal rocks or boulders. Rolling from side to side, he comically scratches himself with his flippers. Often you can observe it on a log floating on the waves.

The seal is a fish-eating predator. Often he uses the "services" of fishermen, eating valuable fish from the nets. During these raids, the animals often destroy the fishing gear, causing damage to the fishermen. In this regard, even notes with a formidable title appeared in the periodical press: "Nerpa must be destroyed!"

Let's try to answer the question - is the seal so dangerous that you need to fight it? Unfortunately, up to now the way of life of this interesting animal has not been studied at all: the places of its wintering and breeding time, the nature and areas of distribution of the seal in the lake are unknown.

Meanwhile, if we turn to the research of the staff of the Limnological Institute of the Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences, who study the life of the closest relative of our "Ladoga" - the Baikal seal, it turns out that the seal is a good orderly. Animals cannot keep up with healthy fish. Sick fish swim more slowly and become the prey of seals, which thus protect the fish from the epidemic.

If we knew the biology of the Ladoga seal, we could properly and rationally hunt it, especially since the skins of one-year-old seals are very highly valued in the fur market, and the meat of the animals caught could be used by Ladoga fur farms for fattening valuable fur-bearing animals.

The last animal worth mentioning is the dolphin, which occasionally comes from the Baltic to the Neva and Lake Ladoga.

Lake Ladoga is located on the territory of Karelia and the Leningrad region and is considered the largest freshwater lake in Europe. It stretches from south to north for 219 km, the maximum width is 138 km. The depth varies unevenly: in the northern part it ranges from 70 to 230 m, in the southern part - from 20 to 70 m.

The famous Lake Ladoga, on the ice of which the Road of Life ran during the siege of Leningrad, today is a unique monument of Karelian nature, which annually attracts thousands of tourists. Its shores and islands are amazingly picturesque. The most famous are, of course, Valaam and Konevets, where ancient unique monasteries are located. But every island, every rocky cape on Ladoga is something special.

On the shores of the lake are located Priozersk, Novaya Ladoga, Shlisselburg in the Leningrad region; Sortavala, Pitkyaranta, Olonets, Lahdenpokhya - in Karelia. 32 rivers flow into the reservoir, and only one flows out - the Neva.

Every year, since 1997, the Ladoga Trophy has been held on the shores of the lake: a rally in off-road vehicles along the perimeter, the route of which is approximately 1200 km.

How to get to Lake Ladoga

First of all, you need to decide on which side of the lake to “drop anchor”. To the north and east can be reached from Petrozavodsk, to the north, east, south and west - from St. Petersburg.

From St. Petersburg, most types of transport go to Priozersk. Every half an hour from the Northern bus station and several times a day from the Parnas metro station - buses of the Piteravto company (off. site), travel time about 2.5 hours; daily electric trains of the North-Western Suburban Passenger Company (off. site) from the Finland Station will reach their destination in just 2 hours ( ordinary train goes almost 3). By car to Priozersk - also about 2 hours from Piskarevsky Prospekt along the A-118 and A-121 highways (it is also Priozerskoye Highway).

There is also a railway station in the village of Lake Ladoga, it takes a little less than 1.5 hours from St. Petersburg from the Finlyandsky Station by a daily SZPPK train, and a little more than an hour by car along the Road of Life highway.

To the "Karelian part" of the lake, to Sortavala, from St. Petersburg's Ladozhsky station, travel more than 5 hours by train St. Petersburg - Kostomuksha with Russian Railways / FPC (off site). By bus of the Passenger Transportation company, which runs several times a day from the Northern Bus Station, - 5-6 hours (all flights following in this direction make a stop in another picturesque place - Lahdenpokhya).

From St. Petersburg, cruise ships of the operator "Vodohod" (off site) go through the island: the voyage takes a week, it starts from the St. Petersburg pier "Utkina Zavod". From Priozersk from the Valaam pier, the ship "Valaam" will deliver to the island of the same name in 3.5 hours, "Meteor" - in 1 hour 15 minutes, departure daily. From Moscow, from the Northern River Station, “Mosturflot” invites you to make multi-day tours with a visit to Valaam (off site).

Bicycle rental is available in Priozersk, Shlisselburg, Novaya Ladoga, Lahdenpokhya. The bike can be found through the site of private announcements, but most often the rental is listed in the list of services of large camp sites.

Ladoga lake

Lake Ladoga Hotels

Dozens of hotels, guest houses, family hotels and even peasant estates. They are ready to accept both single tourists and whole groups - by prior arrangement.

The price tag per night is from 1500 RUB for accommodation in a budget double room in the Starhouse mini-hotel in Shlisselburg on the street. Chekalova, 14 to 25,000 RUB for a cottage for 6 people in the "Ladoga Estate" on the Karelian coast of Lake Ladoga (Ozernaya St., 1, Niemelyankhovi settlement, not far from Sortavala). The house has its own sauna, a fully equipped kitchen, three double bedrooms with private bathrooms and a barbecue area.

The cost of a single room in a hotel or guest house is from 5000 RUB per day. However, numerous visitors are happy to save on this item of expenditure and settle on the banks of Ladoga as savages, in tents.

What to bring

The St. Petersburg coast of Ladoga is not rich in exclusive gifts: a typical set of magnets, mugs, postcards, woodwork and birch bark. On the Karelian coast of the lake, the assortment of souvenirs is more interesting.

Karelia is a deposit of shungite. Beads, bracelets made from this mineral and even cosmetics with it can be found in Sortavala, Lahdenpokhya, Pitkyaranta and others. settlements Karelian part of Ladoga. They also sell the famous Karelian Balsam and Karelian Collection tinctures.

Another noteworthy rarity is products made from Karelian birch: spoons, caskets, plates. Tablecloths and napkins with Zaonezhsky embroidery will be an excellent addition to them.

It is impossible to leave Lake Ladoga without "delicious souvenirs" - raw and smoked fish, berries, mushrooms, herbs. Someone will be lucky to collect and catch on their own, the rest - a direct road to the markets.

From Ladoga churches and monasteries, especially from Valaam, guests bring icons, candles, crosses. The island is also famous for its gingerbread.

Cuisine and restaurants of Lake Ladoga

Catering establishments in the villages and towns of Lake Ladoga are not a dime a dozen, of course, but you won’t die of hunger either. In restaurants and cafes, Russian, Caucasian and European cuisines are held in high esteem, there are pizzerias, where you can taste sushi and rolls.

The main ingredient of most local dishes is fish, most often pike perch. Dumplings, meatballs, soups and snacks are made from it. Fish is also added to the "gates" - branded Karelian pies made from rye dough. They are also made with mushrooms and berries, which are abundant in the local forests.

Cafes and restaurants are located mainly at hotels, camp sites, guest houses and near the main attractions. The interior and service sometimes cause criticism, but the skill of the chefs, on the contrary, deserves praise.

The difference in prices is small: in Sortaval, and in Shlisselburg, and somewhere in Vidlitsa, breakfast for two will cost 700 RUB, lunch - 1200 RUB, and dinner with alcohol will cost about 2500 RUB.

Entertainment and attractions

It makes no sense to list all the museums on the shores of the lake - their name is legion, the expositions are often similar: the history of the city, folk crafts, paintings by local artists. The museum of the private collection of Kronid Gogolev in Sortavala (Komsomolskaya st., 6) stands apart. Its founder is a skilled wood carver. In his own art space, he exhibits not only his own works, but also the creations of other Sortavala masters. Another almost pilgrimage place is the Road of Life Museum in the village of Lake Ladoga.

Among the exhibits of the museum are steamships, an airplane, military guns, which stand right under the open sky. In the indoor halls - an exhibition of cars that cruised along the Road of Life, expositions dedicated to the Great Patriotic War and the famous track. 5 km from the museum, to the south of the lake - the memorial "Broken Ring".

One of the main "miracles" of Ladoga is the island of Valaam and the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery standing on it. People come here to feel special peace and tranquility, to pray at the myrrh-streaming icon Mother of God painted by Hieromonk Alipy, admire the landscapes that inspired Kuindzhi, Shishkin, Roerich.

You can sail to Valaam and back by boat from Priozersk, where the Kexholm fortress (Korela fortress) built in the 13th century stands: a small building is surprisingly harmoniously inscribed in the landscape. Near Priozersk is the island of Konevets. A whole ensemble of religious buildings brought him fame, which is crowned by the Konevsky Nativity of the Theotokos Monastery. A miraculous icon of the Mother of God, brought from Athos by the founder of the monastery, Arseniy Konevsky, is exhibited within its walls.

The south of Ladoga is Shlisselburg with the not-so-impregnable Oreshek fortress, built by the grandson of Alexander Nevsky. With her observation deck views of the lake and the Neva flowing from it are especially good. East of Shlisselburg is Novaya Ladoga, which boasts a group of wooden and stone churches and cathedrals and memorable places associated with the Road of Life.

Fishing on Lake Ladoga

53 species of fish live in Lake Ladoga: Ladoga slingshot, salmon, trout, char, whitefish, vendace, smelt, bream, cheese, blue bream, silver bream, rudd, asp, catfish, pike perch, roach, perch, pike, burbot and others. Human impact on the reservoir reduces the number of valuable fish - salmon, trout, char, lake-river whitefish and others, and the Atlantic sturgeon and Volkhov whitefish are listed in the Red Book of Russia.

Europe is famous for its beauty and attractiveness. Its nature has more than once become the property of songs and legends, fairy tales and poems, writings and stories. Among all the diversity, expanses of water stand out. Lake Ladoga is a bright representative. Its main difference from other water bodies lies in the rich flora and fauna.

general characteristics

Lake Ladoga is called the largest in Europe. Its area exceeds 18 thousand square kilometers. Interestingly, 457 kilometers of water area is occupied by the islands of Lake Ladoga, which in themselves are not so large. For example, the area of ​​the largest land areas located in the middle of the lake surface does not exceed one hectare. And in total there are more than 650 pieces. Nature has placed the islets so that over 500 of them are located in the northwestern part of the lake.

The rocky islands are distinguished by their bizarre shape and unusual outlines. Their height is 60-70 meters. It is especially interesting to observe the harmonious combination of coastline and island lines. The islands are separated by numerous bays that cut into land areas.

Mother nature has been working on the artistic and aesthetic design of this corner for more than one millennium. the globe. Lake Ladoga is one of the oldest water bodies. In its lifetime, it has seen a lot, experienced amazing events, which can be judged by the numerous remains and remains on its banks and bottom.

New research has made it possible to find out more accurate parameters of the water body. Lake Ladoga is 83 kilometers wide and 219 kilometers long. Without insular territory it occupies a total of 17578 square kilometers, which allows us to call it the largest European lake.

The length of the coastline exceeds one and a half thousand kilometers. Scientists managed to calculate the coefficient of its irregularity. It is 2.1, which allows us to speak about the presence of multiple bays. The bowl of the lake is distinguished by its impressive capacity, which is 908 cubic kilometers.

lake depth

The average depth of Lake Ladoga is 51 meters. However, if we talk about the largest, then the figure already grows to 230 meters. The map of the depths of Lake Ladoga also makes it possible to judge impressive indicators. It usually marks the areas that are considered the deepest.

The bottom relief is not uniform. Therefore, it is not surprising that the depth of Lake Ladoga is different throughout its entire water area. For example, in the southern part, the bottom is flat and smooth. This helps to reduce depth. The decrease is observed from north to south. In the northern part, the depth reaches 10-100 meters, and in the southern part, this value is an order of magnitude lower and varies in the range from 3 to 7 meters. The bottom is distinguished by rocky spits and shoals, you can even find clusters of boulders.

Bottom relief

In general, such differences in depth are explained by the features of the geological structure of the bottom. Which, in turn, is due to its impressive length. The geological structure also leaves its mark on the lake basin and its appearance. Interestingly, the bottom relief seems to resemble islands. He copies them exactly. Thus, mountains and plains, depressions and potholes, hills and slopes can be observed at the bottom of the lake.

Most often, depressions up to 100 meters deep predominate. There are more than 500 of them in the northwestern part of the lake. It is interesting that such formations are concentrated in groups. And they, in turn, create a kind of labyrinth of bays. This phenomenon is called skerry. The map of the depths of Lake Ladoga allows you to verify this.

The slope of the lake has an average of 0.0105 and the angle averages 0.35 degrees. This value near the northern coast is already 1.52 degrees, and near the eastern coast - 0.03. This is also considered quite an important indicator.

Animal world

In a country like Russia, Lake Ladoga plays a huge role. It is called the supplier of drinking water for the northern capital of the state - St. Petersburg. However, in addition to this, a huge number of a wide variety of animals live in Ladoga. The main place among them, of course, is occupied by fish.

To date, more than 58 varieties and species of fish are known to exist in the waves of Lake Ladoga. It is interesting that there are those who are "guests" in Ladoga. These include sea eel, Baltic salmon and sturgeon. They only occasionally swim into the waters of the lake. Their permanent habitat is the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic.

Unfortunately, due to the massive catching of fish today, far from all of its former inhabitants have remained in Ladoga. Sometimes representatives of the fish kingdom disappear for no apparent reason. For example, sterlet. It is no longer found in Ladoga waters, and the researchers have not found the reasons for this.

New species

But new inhabitants appeared in the lake. They are represented by peled and carp. The latter appeared in Ladoga relatively recently - in 1952-1953. The reason for this was that it was bred in the nearby lake Ilmen. The fate of the peled was similar. It "wandered" to Ladoga from the Karelian Isthmus, where it was actively bred in the late 50s of the last century.

In addition, in the waters you can also find such fish as palia, salmon, pike perch, whitefish, bream, trout, ripus and vendace. They are distinguished by their value in the field of industry. These species are called commercial. There are also less valuable inhabitants of the lake. Among them are roach, smelt, pike, ruff, blue bream, bleak and bream. They are considered no less tasty, but their use in food is represented by smaller volumes.

Probably, it is impossible to really name all the fish that are found in the waters of Lake Ladoga. There are so many inhabitants there that work on their discovery and study continues even now.

On the brink of extinction

Some fish of Lake Ladoga are now on the verge of extinction. Among them are those that are considered valuable in the industrial field. The clearest example is salmon. In Ladoga there are individuals whose weight exceeds 10 kilograms. They are real giants. Interestingly, the fish goes to spawn in late spring and summer. Young animals live there for no more than a couple of years, and then return to the lake.

Now the rivers are littered with lumber, so salmon spawning has become difficult. In this regard, it was decided to suspend the mass catch of fish. The corresponding law was passed in 1960.

Another valuable fish is palia. She lives in the northern part of the lake. In winter, it can be found at a depth of more than 70 meters, and in the warm months it rises to 20-30. Reproduction occurs in mid-autumn.

Live in Ladoga and whitefish. Now there are seven varieties of them in the lake. Four of them, namely the Lake Ladoga, Ludog, Cherny and Valaam, are considered exclusively riverine, and the other three - Svir, Vuoksa and Volkhov - can live both in the lake and in the river. On average, during the breeding season, each individual lays about nine thousand eggs in October and November.

More recently, people were massively engaged in catching whitefish, and now this species is on the verge of extinction. A peculiar reason for this can be called the construction of the dam of the Volkhovskaya hydroelectric power station. The fish could not overcome such an obstacle, and the measures people took to do this did not save the situation.

Rivers of Lake Ladoga

Now let's talk about water arteries.

The rivers of Lake Ladoga are very numerous. This allows us to speak of its wide drainage basin. Its area exceeds 250 thousand square kilometers. Not every lake can boast of such figures.

Finland and Karelia, located nearby, share water wealth with Ladoga, rivers also carry their waves from Novgorod, Pskov and Vologda lands. The water bodies of the Arkhangelsk and Leningrad regions make their contribution.

In total, about 45 thousand streams and rivers flow into Lake Ladoga. Interestingly, before becoming part of Ladoga, the waters of the rivers accumulate in the nearest lakes, including Saima, Onega and Ilmen. They, in turn, make it possible to form such tributaries of the main Ladoga as the Volkhov, Vuokse and Svir. In total, they bring more than 57 cubic kilometers of water into the lake every year. This is approximately 85 percent of the total water mass that accumulates in the geographical object we are considering in a year.

All other tributaries are called small. There is no explanation for this, because among them there are such impressive full-flowing rivers as Janisjoki, Syas and Tulemajoki.

It should be understood that the tributaries of the Ladoga are quite young - by the standards of rivers - in age. They are only 10-12 thousand years old. That is why most of them have not yet formed wide valleys. They flow among rocky areas and steep banks.

The Baltic crystalline shield lies in the northeastern part of the lake. That is why the most full-flowing and loud tributaries flow into Ladoga from that side. Very often they turn into full-flowing turbulent streams, encountering rocks on their way that are quite difficult to wash away.

Svir tributary

Lake Ladoga is located in Russia, and the Svir is called its most full-flowing stream. This river flows from the Svir Bay of Lake Onega, and flows into Ladoga from the southeast.

Its length is about 224 kilometers. The river includes two large tributaries, which are called Pasha and Oyat. Interestingly, the origin of this object is still shrouded in secrets and mysteries.

The Svir River itself and its banks are not distinguished by the picturesqueness inherent in Ladoga. The description of Lake Ladoga tells about the amazing beauty of its shores, which Svir cannot boast of. Its coast is covered with alder bushes and wetlands, coniferous forests are found. Basically, the banks of the Svir River are accumulations of stones and boulders.

In ancient times, the Svir was famous for its numerous rapids. They could not be called high, but heaps of boulders were a serious obstacle to navigation. locals very often rescued sailors, helping them to cope with crossings. Very often, residents of coastal villages and cities themselves served as sailors, pilots, and even captains. Proximity to a full-flowing river left its mark on the character and lifestyle of people.

But if we talk about the animal world, then it is quite large. It is in the waters of this river that salmon spawning is often observed. In the spring, you can meet flocks of these fish that head to the mouth of the Svir. The Oyat and Pasha tributaries play the main role in spawning. Ichthyologists believe that it is these rivers that can contribute to the revival of salmon in Lake Ladoga.

When to visit

Lake Ladoga has been shrouded in secrets, riddles and legends for centuries. All this, of course, attracts many tourists. People also go to Ladoga to admire the amazing beauty of nature, to see one of the largest lakes in the world with their own eyes.

In order not to miscalculate, you should know when it is better to go, what time to give preference to.

A trip here in May and June will be foggy in the truest sense of the word. In late May and early June, thick fogs descend on Ladoga, and it is quite easy to get lost in them. In such cases, it is very important to take with you experienced guides who will help you get on the right track and see all the surrounding beauty.

This time is considered cold enough for those places. In the evening, skerries can be covered with a thin crust of ice, and the wind brings dampness. Of particular interest are a few hours after sunny weather. At such moments, the lake shines with calmness and attractiveness. However, in the next moment, a breeze comes up. It causes meter-long waves in the bays, although the lake off the coast continues to be distinguished by tranquility.

One of the most striking advantages of this time, of course, after the attractive appearance of the coastal territory, is the complete absence of mosquitoes. Dignity is also called the extraordinary purity of the lake. The bottom, even at a depth of several meters, can be seen very clearly. It is believed that if you drink water at such a moment, then happiness will not be long in coming. The water itself is clean and delicious.

Those people who appreciate comfort and coziness should visit Ladoga in the last two months of summer. This period is considered the best for a good rest. In this case, the temperature of air and water exceeds the optimal mark, allowing you to swim in the waves of the lake and sunbathe on the shore. On the islands you can pick berries and mushrooms, which are in abundance there.

Those people who travel to Ladoga in order to admire the local beauties should choose the autumn months, when literally the entire coast shimmers with gold and bronze. In October, there is a deterioration in the weather, which is accompanied by fogs and storms. At such times, you can meet many artists and landscape painters here. They try to capture the exuberant beauty of Ladoga.

Lake Ladoga in winter is also an interesting sight. However, it is quite cold here at this time of the year. But the middle of the lake does not freeze even in severe frosts due to the impressive depth.

Those people who want to visit this corner of our vast Motherland should look for Lake Ladoga on the map. Many travel companies offer entire itineraries. If you wish, you can choose one of the suggested ones or create your own.

A trip to the coast of Lake Ladoga will surely be remembered by everyone. Distinguishes this area Amazing beauty nature at any time of the year, the diversity of flora and fauna, as well as the opportunity to have a great rest.