Portrait of Alexander
Solzhenitsyn 
Returning from his enforced exile in America
after the fall of the Soviet Union, Alexander Solzhenitsyn
crossed Russia by train from its eastern Pacific shore to
Moscow, stopping on his way in many places, including
Krasnoyarsk, the major city in the Central Siberia.
William Sokolenko organized for Mr. Solzhenitsyn a personal
tour of the famous Stolby National Park, where the exhibited
photo portrait was taken.
Lake Baikal
In the rugged mountains of east central
Siberia is one of the world's most impressive lakes, Baikal.
Measuring nearly 800 kilometers (497 miles) in length, it
has an area of more than 31,500 square kilometers (12,162
square miles) and a maximum depth of more than 1,620 meters
(5,315 feet). Its surface is about 455 meters (1,493 feet)
above sea level, but its bottom falls well below sea level,
giving it the greatest volume of freshwater of any lake in
Europe or Asia; indeed, it has been estimated that it
contains as much water as the Baltic Sea, which is much
larger in area but also much shallower in depth. Its long,
narrow shape, mountainous sides, and great depth testify to
its fault-valley origin. (The New Book of
Knowledge; Groiler Incorporated; 1990)
National park "Stolby"
Just in a few miles from the
southern-western suburbs of Krasnoyarsk City one can find an
amazing place,a pearl of the Siberian land - "Stolby"
preserve. It is located on the right bank of the Yenisei
River (the longest and the most powerful river of Asia),
near the northern-western spurs of Sayan Mountains. It
occupies the territory of about 116,000 acres (47,000
hectares).
Here, in the heart of taiga, the magnificent crags rise
right out of the forest. One can count about a hundred of
them. These stone giants, freely raising their heads up to
the sky, are made of granite and syenite, crystalline rocks
of rosy-grayish color. Some of these crags rise up to three
hundred feet over the Earth's surface. From the time
immemorial, winds and rains, frosts and sun had carved
fantastic figures from the wild stone. People gave names to
these rocks: "The Grandfather", "The Big Eagle", "The Lion
Gates", "The Griffon", "The Feathers" etc. From the viewing
platforms one can enjoy the wonderful view of the majestic
rocks and feel the power of the Siberian wild forest which
covers numerous hills and mounds.
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