Lake Ladoga… This place from year to year invariably attracts thousands of tourists and guests of the northern capital. The question of how you can get to Lake Ladoga from St. Petersburg, how many kilometers you need to overcome, is of interest to many. Let's talk about it in our article.
Neva-Sea
As you know, Lake Ladoga is the largest in Europe, and it is rightfully called the sea. When you get to these places, you begin to truly understand the beauty and grandeur of this ancient lake with full-fledged, completely sea tides, steep storms, with a very deep and bottomless bottom. The old name of Ladoga is the Neva-Sea. This is due to the proximity of the Neva, which originates in these waters. The area of Lake Ladoga, together with the islands, reaches a total of about 18 thousand square kilometers, the average depth is 50 meters.
Numerous islands are concentrated mainly in the north. Two large archipelagos, Valaam and Mantsinsaari, are located in the centralparts of the lake. The water of this freshwater sea is slightly mineralized and transparent. During the severe northern winter, the lake is covered with a layer of ice, which begins to thaw only by mid-late April near the southernmost shores. Sharp gusts of the north wind drive unmelted ice masses into the Neva. About how you can get to Lake Ladoga from St. Petersburg, a little further…
North Channel
The character of Ladoga is cool and unpredictable. Often storm winds prevailing in one part of the lake-sea are replaced by almost complete calm in another. In calm and clear weather in this mystical place you can see mirages - unknown islands hovering in a haze above the water or the outlines of unknown ships disappearing in the morning mist…
The history of these places goes back to ancient times. Around the 9th century, the first ships began to plow the waters of Ladoga, laying the ancient trade route, known as "from the Varangians to the Greeks." It was the first water channel connecting the northern lands with the southern ones, Scandinavia with Byzantium, South Russia with the North.
The Ladoga shores, stretching for thousands of kilometers, are inhabited by a few inhabitants. There are mainly small old towns and villages here. Priozersk, Novaya Ladoga, Sortavala, Shlisselburg… These names exude the north wind, coolness and immensity.
The way to Ladoga. The fastest and most convenient way
The first question that worries all tourists arriving in the northern capital who have already managed to enjoy walks onriver boat and a little tired of the rich cultural life, visiting museum theaters and evening promenades along the Nevsky - how to get to Lake Ladoga from St. Petersburg? First of all, we note that there are different ways to get to Ladoga.
For lovers of long walks, walking is recommended, but this, of course, is not suitable for everyone. By far, the most convenient way to cover a distance of about 60 km is by car. To find out how to get by car from St. Petersburg to Lake Ladoga, you can read the numerous reviews of tourists or local residents who often visit these places.
Passing numerous coastal villages along a rather old, but quite decent asph alt road, you can drive to the nearest beach in about an hour. A wide sandy strip of the coast, bordered by tall ship pines, a small, slowly rolling wave, a transparent depth of water and a fresh sea breeze. All this is our northern lake-sea!
By train from St. Petersburg
If you look at the map of roads, St. Petersburg and Lake Ladoga are not separated by such a great distance. What other way can you get from one point to another? There are, of course, other ways, for example, by rail. You can easily find out the schedule of passing trains, as well as make inquiries about how to get from St. Petersburg to Lake Ladoga by train, at the city station.
After traveling a couple of hours on a commuter train,You find yourself at the final station Ladoga Lake. Guests arriving on the platform are solemnly greeted by a local historical monument, a steam locomotive, which witnessed the events more than half a century ago, when the path from the northern capital to the rest of the country was tightly cut off by the German invaders. During the Second World War, the famous “Road of Life” passed through the ice of the lake, the way of saving many thousands of residents of the besieged city. As a sign of the meeting of the land and water parts of the "Road of Life", a memorial monument "The Broken Ring" was erected.
When you decide on your transport, don't put off your trip. Lake Ladoga is certainly one of the pearls of Karelia, a place that everyone who has visited these northern latitudes at least once should visit.
