Icebreaker Angara
Ледокол «Ангара»
Built in England in 1900, shipped in pieces to Lake Baikal and reassembled there. Now a museum ship that tells the story of Baikal shipping and the history of the Trans-Siberian Railway.
The Icebreaker Angara is one of the oldest surviving icebreakers in Russia. It was built in 1898-1900 by Armstrong's yard in Newcastle, England. The ship was taken apart into thousands of pieces, transported by rail to the shores of Lake Baikal, and reassembled before launch. In its working years, it and the giant ferry Baikal carried passengers and freight across the lake for the Trans-Siberian Railway, until the Circum-Baikal Railway was completed. It also played a role in events during the Russian Civil War. The ship was retired in the 1960s, restored in 1990, and now sits as a museum ship on the Irkutsk Reservoir shore. Visitors can explore the steam engine room, the captain's cabin, the bridge, and exhibition halls on Baikal shipping history, and the guided tours are lively and engaging. Tickets must be purchased on site, and the ship is usually closed on Mondays. Getting there: in the Solnechny district, southeast of Irkutsk, about 8 km from the center and roughly 20 minutes by taxi. It's an easy stop on the way to Listvyanka.
Opening hours
Approx. 10:00–18:00; closed Mondays
Nearby sights
- Sukachev Estate Museum
- Church of Our Lady of Kazan
- Shastin's Lace House (Europe House)
- Decembrist House Museum
- 130 Kvartal
- Irkutsk Central Market
- Church of the Holy Cross
- Znamensky Monastery