Buguldeika: A Day Trip To A Marble Quarry On The Shore Of Lake Baikal

It was exactly the kind of family trip I later said: “For one day, no more!”

And it was not that I did not like Buguldeika – on the contrary, everything was so pleasant that I did not want to leave, everything inside me as if begged me to stay for a little longer – Baikal would not let me leave so easily. But the plans for the next day did not allow this wish to come true.

How to Get to the Marble Quarry in Buguldeika

So, on that autumn day in early October, we left Angarsk not early in the morning, but only at noon. This is because the bright idea to go to Buguldeika came to us spontaneously.

When planning a trip I do not recommend doing so – the way is not close, about 200 km with a tail, and the autumn days are short. It would be a shame not to see the surroundings because the sun sets down earlier than it does in the summer.

Then again, we used to take trips like this in the fall because my husband and I are introverts in the neglected stage. And there have been too many strangers on Baikal in recent years during peak season.

We had to pass only through Bayandaya, despite the navigator’s assurances that the way through Maloe Goloustnoe would be shorter. After you pass the village of Kosaya Step, you need to turn right and go about 45 km on the dirt road to Baikal.

What to see in Buguldeika, except the marble quarry.

On our way to Buguldeika:

we will pass a small village;
discover the remains of an ancient Buryat settlement, from which some yurts were moved to Taltsy.

After that, the road along the river with the same name will take us to the settlement.

A small digression: this year in Taltsy I once again paid attention to these yurts. The “Yurt of the Shaman” and other expositions were closed. But in the absence of wind, the metal lock swayed to and fro. It looked very strange… As if intact with the wind, which blows not here, but somewhere there, where this dwelling stood for a hundred years…

It is not without reason that Buguldeyka was nicknamed “The Queen of Winds”.

Buguldeika: Roads, Seashore and Beach

Frankly speaking, the settlement itself looks depressing. Closer to the shore we noticed some spots with posts that looked like they were marking the corners of houses. I later watched a TV program about their purpose – to register titles to the plots instead of renting them.

As always, we stopped by at the beginning to say hello to Baikal. We got closer to the left mountain on a road with sharp rocks. In one place there was a risk of puncturing the wheel, but it was no problem. So, if you want to get to Baikal, follow the right road.

In Buguldeika, the shoreline is a combination of rocks and sand, including some not always smooth rocks.

Marble Quarry in Buguldeika: Description, History, and Photo

The marble quarry itself is located on a hill to the left of the entrance to the village. Getting lost will not work – you can see it if you stand with your back to Baikal. The scale, of course, is amazing. The deposit was explored in the late 1960s and early 1970s of the last century.

Marble of the highest quality was mined here. But something was wrong. As I understood, blasting workers had incorrectly removed the top layer, and after the 2010s, economic activity was restricted in this area.

So there is a marble quarry in Buguldeika under the Baikal sky and someone’s invisible eyes have watched over its depths for more than 2 billion years. And according to what I’ve read, some of the largest marble reserves in the world are hidden in this place.

At the bottom of the quarry, you can walk down two stairs. My husband traveled and led, I had no such desire. The landscape reminded me of the ruins of an ancient palace.

Again, I had an analogy with Narnia-Prince Caspian when Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy got to the ruins of Cair Paravel-remember the very beginning of that book. “It was a bright, quiet, mysterious, and a little sad place.”

We wandered there for a very long time. My son couldn’t stop climbing on the rocks. I couldn’t stop watching Bulka and stroking the rock that seemed to be alive.

The sun on Baikal in the fall sets suddenly – like one: and everything around you is illuminated with a soft orange glow, which transforms the reality, and on the count of two nature sinks into a haze of gloom…

I forgot to add that we drove up to the top. The trip to the marble quarry impressed me. I would love to spend time there again, but at least for a couple of days to immerse myself in the atmosphere of the place.

In 2020, some not very good people drew graffiti on the snow-white marble. They sort of made an advertisement on their Instagram pages in the vein of “Was Was here,” and then the volunteers washed these graffiti.

So a huge request – if you’re itching to write something on the marble, write a better post on Instagram or VK and reinforce your words with photos against the background of white and unspoiled marble walls.

The fact is that if it carries on like this, and everyone who will come will spoil this beauty, the environmental prosecutor’s office may close access to the marble quarry to everyone. That’s the way things are.

Lodging and Hotels in Buguldeika

Lodging there, as I understood, wasn’t too expensive. As an option, you can stay in the estate “Zarechny”, where there are horses and where I once almost won a certificate for a week’s stay. Or in other, no less wonderful places.

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