Travel Guide Lac Beloïe (Белое Озеро)

At km 707, continuing navigation on the upper Sheksna, a kind of obelisk, called the Point of the Seagull, marks the entrance to the White Lake Canal ("Bieloye ozero" literally meaning "White Lake"). The latter, with a surface area of 1,200 km², is relatively shallow with an average depth of 5 to 6 m. It is almost perfectly round in shape with a diameter of just under 50 km. It is part of the Volga-Baltic canal (and before that of the Mariinsk canal system), the complex of lakes, canals and rivers that connects the Volga River with the Baltic Sea. The White Lake, which the Veps tribes inhabited as early as the 8th century, has taken an important part in Russian history and folklore. It was considered the fishing place of the Tsar in the 17th century. In fact, the Tsar was not really interested in fish, but rather in the taxes he collected from the fishermen here. This was due to its strategic geographical location, which made it a real link in the trade relations between the north and the south of Russia. The lake also played an important role in the Mariinskaya system before it naturally became part of the Volga-Baltic Canal. Covering an area of 1,400 km², the White Lake is fed by numerous rivers, but only the Sheksna flows out of it. This is why there is a change in inclination at the lock. The bottom of the lake is sandy. During the day, the swell can be heavy, and at night, fog can cover the lake very quickly. Boats usually cross the lake in about two hours. At km 714. The ruins of the beautiful flooded church of Krokhino mark the entrance to the White Lake. The gradually collapsing building was built in the 19th century, but its origin dates back to the 15th century when the Prince of Bielozerks had to stop here because of a storm on the White Lake. He had a first church built to express his gratitude. A few years later, he added a monastery to the church when his three-year-old son, who was blind from birth, regained his sight. This monastery was very dynamic spiritually, but also in its participation in the life and development of the community, transforming the small village founded in 1673 into a very important port on Lac Blanc. The opening of the canal in 1846 caused Krokhino to lose its strategic interest and led to the decline of the town and the monastery. The socialist production of electricity put a definitive end to its history by flooding it to allow the construction of the Sheksna hydroelectric power station.