Geography. The Irkutsk Region is located in Eastern Siberia. From north to south, the region stretched for almost 1,450 km, from west to east – for 1,318 km. The total area of the region is 774.846 km². The Irkutsk Region borders the Krasnoyarsk Territory in the west, Yakutia in the northeast, the Trans-Baikal Territory in the east, Buryatia in the east and in the south, and Tuva in the southwest. In the south, the region is surrounded by the offshoots of the Eastern Sayan mountains (reaching 2.875 m in height); in the east – by Baikal mountains with the highest peak – the Tryokhgolovy (Three-Headed) Golets mountain (1,728 m).
Climate. The climate is severely continental, with long and cold winters and short but hot and torrid summers.
Average temperature
- -20 °С in January
- +24 °С in July
Population
Economics. The most well-developed industries are wood, wood-processing and pulp and paper, mining, and fuel industries, non-ferrous metallurgy, power engineering, mechanical engineering, food, chemical, and petrochemical industries, ferrous metallurgy.
Logistics. The region’s transportation system is rather well-developed. The main mode of transport is railway transport.
- The main station “Irkutsk-Passazhirsky”
- The region ranks second in the Siberian Federal District by length of highways. The main highways are four federal highways (М55, Р418, Р419, А164)
- Irkutsk International Airport, Bratsk Airport, and Ust-Ilimsk Airport
Tourist attractions
- Baikal is the world’s largest freshwater lake. Its area exceeds 3.1 million ha, and its coastline is 2,000 km. Its maximum depth is 1.6 km.
- Seals are animals that are considered one of the symbols of Baikal. The sealarium located in the Listvyanka settlement holds shows with the participation of trained seals. Performances are held several times a day.
- The Ukovsky Waterfall is a national natural landmark. It is 20 m high and 10 m wide. As it is located in the corner of the gorge in a way, it seems to be a monumental staircase-like structure. The water flow is rather powerful, but water freezes in winter and the waterfall looks like an artificial sculpture.
The capital, Irkutsk, is the fifth largest city in Siberia. The city was founded in 1661. Today the city is a major cultural center that regularly holds numerous cultural and film festivals.
Population
- Philharmonic with an organ hall
- Circus
- Children’s railway
- Zoo gallery
