» On June 2008 » Washington www.wta.org

Great Baikal Trails Association

Savoring a view of from a new trail. Volunteers are creating a 1,200-mile Siberian Trails trail system around ’s largest lake. Volunteers create a new organization to maintain trails around Russia’s Lake Baikal trails around our lake. It is our official mission to be “an international, volunteer-driven, non- profit organization that will develop, maintain, Lake Baikal. . Maybe these sound like promote and protect the first national system of very exotic places; or perhaps they are just trails in all of Russia, and in that way advocate words on a map for most of you, if that. But for for the sustainable development of Baikal and those who live here, or who come to visit from its environment.” many different countries, there is some kind The thought of building a trail around Lake of invisible, even spiritual connection that we Baikal is certainly challenging. You see, to go come to feel with this lake. For us the name of all the way around the lake will mean we need the lake is sacred: we even call it Mother Baikal to build more than 1,200 miles of trail alone. from time to time. But then again, we learned from our many For Siberians, then, Baikal is not just the international partners that this kind of feat is deepest lake on the earth, not just one-fifth of certainly possible. We now see the Appalachian all the world’s fresh water reserves. Nor is it Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail as some of the just a home for a lot of endemic animals and more inspirational examples. Still, we are talk- plants, each unique in its own way. No, Baikal ing about one of the more remote corners of the is something we all feel responsible for; it’s our world, and a trail that will go through three dif- miracle, and it’s in our own backyard, and we ferent national parks and three different nature will try our best to save it and keep it clean reserves along Baikal’s shores. Plus, with all and beautiful for many years, if we can. its spur trails, going up to Mongolia and other But who are we, we Siberians? Well, some of beautiful destinations, we can easily envision a Anya us are a younger generation of Russians who system of trails that will exceed 2,500 miles in Belova & care about our environment. That is why some length! What a crazy dream! of us have started up some new environmental And we are building this trail for reasons Tanya groups here, including our own Great Baikal other than just creating more access to the Trail Association (to which we, the authors per- lake and other parts of Siberia. There are many Yourchenko sonally belong). You may not know it, but, until grandiose plans that our Moscow brethren are Anna and Tanya recently, there were no real systems of trails in promoting, like ones for building automobile are members of the our part of the world. That is why we formed roads all along our shores (at this point, only Great Baikal Trail GBTA, to be the first to build trails in all about 5 percent of Baikal’s shoreline is devel- Association. of Russia. But we do more than just build new oped). There are others who think that high-rise www.wta.org June 2008 » Washington Trails On Trail « hotels and casinos might be a more appropriate making a constructive and long-lasting contri- way to lure tourists to the region. And still oth- bution to the future of our region. No, the GBTA ers see all the forests and the clean water and also offers a lot of opportunities for personal that gold under “them there hills” around Baikal growth. A lot of us are just out of school and as their own rightful treasure to exploit. But are looking for our particular niche in life. And we see it as everyone’s treasure, which we can we find that the GBTA has more to offer than simultaneously protect and make available for just random trips out to the lake to build an everyone to enjoy. endless trail. Our own experience with the GBT Our organization is still very young, having has been a fun one. There are now many dif- been founded in the early part of this decade. ferent opportunities for us volunteers to travel Our first trail-building projects were held in the abroad ourselves, to gain new experience, to summer of 2003, and each year since we have develop new skills, to make new and (for us) ex- run more and more two-week projects each otic friends. Many of our GBTA colleagues have year. Altogether, after five years of work, we at gone to , Australia, and, of course, the the GBTA have conducted 94 separate interna- . The Seattle-based group Earth tional projects. We’ve had 1,945 volunteers who Corps, amongst others, has hosted nearly a have helped us build and reconstruct our trails, dozen GBTA staff members on long-term intern- nearly a third of whom have come from abroad. ships these last few years. So now there are 540 kilometers (about 325 miles) of new and improved trails around Lake Baikal, thanks to all our wonderful volunteers. What’s more, with our urban trail projects and our and interpretation programs, the number of volunteers we’ve trained and put to work now comes to more than 3,000. This in- cludes hundreds of kids from different villages around Baikal who have helped us develop all our booklets, maps, signs and other educational materials. Recently we’ve found that a constant stream of young folks have been coming to our organi- zation to volunteer. This might be their entrée into the world of and here. With us they are able to acquire a lot of different skills, and many of them (not unlike ourselves) quickly graduate to become crew-leaders and trainers, or inter- preters and trail designers. When we started a few years back, we were basic volunteers on several of the GBTA summer projects. But after that, we were totally hooked on this work! We started visiting the GBTA youth clubs and Great Baikal Trails Association interpreter courses, and took part in all the For us personally, however, the culmination came these last winter months, when we had training seminars that the GBTA offers. Be- Volunteers construct a wonderful chance to go to the United States cause the official languages for the trail work trail at Lake Baikal for a four-week exchange program. There, we are both Russian and English, we found that (hardhats aren’t yet worked on a few trails in several state parks, we could help out a lot as language interpret- mandatory). Mem- and visited many other trails in the American ers (each one of the GBTA projects has at least bers of the Great Bai- West. Of course it was grand fun; but now, one interpreter to make sure that there’s a lot of kal Trail Association when we are back in Russia, we look differently bonding between our local Russians and all the recently traveled to at our own Baikal park system and the facili- foreigners). Then, last summer we came to lead the United States to several crews ourselves, and have since become ties they have, and we try to figure out what we can do personally to improve or renovate talk with volunteer nearly full-time volunteers in the GBTA office groups—including in the large city of (yes, we do have big them. As we said above, other (i.e., American) examples can be greatly inspirational for us. WTA—to learn skills cities in Siberia). Right now, one of us is the and help build their GBTA international coordinator working with While in the U.S. we also had the privilege organization. foreign volunteers, and the other is the head of of meeting and talking with many colleague the GBTA Club, and works closely with lots of groups, including the wonderful people at the schools and kids’ groups. Student Conservation Association, the Pacific Perhaps one of the reasons that we attract so Crest Trail Association, and Washington Trails many hundreds of new volunteers each year is Association (we were surprised at how many not only because we offer them all the chance associations you Americans have for building to work on the shores of this beautiful lake, trails!) What was encouraging was that, after » On Trail June 2008 » Washington Trails www.wta.org

our meetings, we really felt that we are not you meet people who speak strange languages alone, and that there are many important part- and come from cultures very different from ners for the Great Baikal Trail Association. We our own. And yet, somehow they all become now know more about these partners, about part of your new family over the course of two how they really work; and we plan to collabo- weeks, and most remain friends for the rest of rate with them all in our quest to attract more your life. We remember so many unforgettable volunteers and other expertise from America to evenings sitting around the campfires on one our Great Baikal Trail. of our beaches, under a sky full of stars. These Of course, we hope that sharing our own memories will stay in our hearts forever: all experience was (and will be) useful not only for the team-building games, and the funny stories these new partners of ours, but also for all the we share, not to mention the swimming in the folks they work with as well. It’s almost like sweet waters of Baikal. Each project almost an international family of trail builders taking becomes a small oasis away from the rest of shape before our very eyes. So, we are thankful civilization, where volunteers meet, become to all the people we met or visited, and to all friends, and some even decide to change their those who organized our meetings and presen- lives for good. Really, we could write a book of tations, or took part in them. If it were not for such stories! Nothing can create such a strong them, our trip might have turned out mostly bond of affection amongst a group as a wish to to seem like a sightseeing junket without any make this world a better place to live. practical use (which would not have been so Answer Two (perhaps more romantic?): What bad, perhaps?). Now we are doing our best our volunteers like most about GBT projects here, sharing everything we learned in the USA is not just the friendly, even family-like atmo- with other GBTA volunteers. Don’t you Ameri- sphere in the camp. On Lake Baikal, when you cans call this “paying it forward?” wake up in the morning and know that the day will be (usually!) as sunny and wonderful as it was yesterday, you think, perhaps might it even be better, with even more adventures: seeing the sunrises and sunsets across the lake, sing- ing Russian songs around the campfire, cooking national dishes from around the world (have you ever tried Russian pancakes with sushi, for instance?). Then there’s all the sharing of cultural traditions and legends, interspersed with swimming in the lake or in a mountain river with a nice waterfall near it, taking pic- tures of brave chipmunks or the famous Baikal seal. Sounds idyllic? Most people are surprised when the projects end and they realize that it’s time to go back home (where hopefully they will spend hours telling all their friends about their splendid experience in wild Siberia). After Boyd Norton these two weeks, a part of you, your energy, Now, we wouldn’t be doing our job here if Lake Baikal seals your thoughts, and your feelings somehow still we didn’t do a bit more to promote our GBT (or nerpa) are one of remain here, in the form of the trail that you projects. We are always looking for more volun- the few freshwater built. And just think of those future trekkers, or teers, people who want to take their experience species of seals in that family with children, who come to Siberia on the trails of Washington or some other state the world. Baikal is and say: “Hey we can hike to the top of that and put it to good use in some other part of the home to many en- mountain now.” Or that local group of Siberian world (like Siberia). After all, at the risk of brag- demic species. The friends who decide to have a walk outside the ging too much, we have a lot of our own cool deepest lake in the city, along one of our new trails. They will all places to sightsee here at Baikal! world, Baikal con- thank the many volunteers who left behind all In any case, to show what we mean, here tains over 20 percent their memories, and who, with their work, made are two answers that we give to a question a quick trip out to the lake possible for all of us. of all the world’s that we hear most from prospective volunteers: surface water. So, as you can see, we are not bashful in the “How enjoyable is it to be an international joy we show in our work, or shameless in the volunteer on the GBT?” way we promote it. We are very lucky to live Answer One (our attempt at a heart-warming here in Siberia (hmmm, we wonder if you have answer): Well, for us, it is so great that all our ever heard that said before!) and to build our GBT projects are international, with volunteers Great Baikal Trail. We hope that many of you from all over the world. You foreigners are, in a readers might come and see what we mean in way, rather exotic for all of us Siberian volun- person. teers. It’s another reason that we can attract so For more information on the Great Baikal many of our own Russians to these GBT proj- Trail, or to sign up as a volunteer, visit: www. ects, perhaps. Anyway, it’s great fun whenever greatbaikaltrail.org. 