By Oleg Kiriyanov
Contributing Writer
If you ask somebody what he or she knows about Russia, probably 90 percent answer, “The country where Siberia is.” Correct, Siberia occupies more than a half of Russia’s territory stretching from the Ural Mountains to the Far East.
Its area is more than 10 million square kilometers -- 4,000 to 5,000 kilometers from west to east and 2,000 to 3,000 kilometers from north to south -- vast territory, which is difficult to imagine until you get there. If you see five to 10 people a day while traveling in the vast Siberian valleys or mountains, that means you are walking along a crowded avenue, from the Siberian point of view.
It is obvious that Siberians have a different sense of distance. For them a distance of 500 to 600 kilometers means “close,” 1,000 to 2,000 kilometers “not so far,” and only above that is accepted as “far away.” For people from Novosibirsk, the most popular place for weekend parties is the riverside of the Katun River -- about 550 kilometers away.
Well, great distances between cities and the small number of population for such a huge territory makes local people think that way. Probably Canadians and Australians understand that very well. Due to its great size, Siberia does not have a “typical” landscape. In the north it starts with eternal ice and snow, changing into regions with some vegetation (mainly grass and low trees).
Go further to south and you meet huge regions of “taiga” forests many parts of which have still not seen a human being. After that are vast steppe regions and finally very dry semi deserts near the border with Mongolia. Besides that there are a lot of big mountain ranges with summits covered with snow all year round and glaciers that are the origin of the many rivers Siberia is famous for such as the Enisey, Lena, and Ob to name a few.
About 75 percent of Russian hydroelectric power comes from Siberian rivers. Actually once you get to Siberia, you do not stop admiring its strikingly beautiful landscapes. Everybody can find a place to fall in love with there. A friend of mine whose hobby is traveling and who has visited dozens of countries says: “If you want to see the vast forests of Canada, the huge glaciers of Greenland, the beautiful lakes of Switzerland, the picturesque mountains of the Alps, unmeasured distances of Mongolian steppes and still something more -- come to Siberia, we have them all.”
I find it difficult to disagree. And that makes this part of Russia a natural paradise for those who cannot live without some additional injection of adrenaline in the form of extreme sports. Mountain climbing, rafting, weeks-long horse riding, skiing, paragliding, mountain bikes -- you can enjoy everything. Well, if you are not ready to sleep in a tent and carry a 30 to 40 kilogram heavy backpack every day, there are some less extreme options.