Lake Chany is a large endorheic reservoir, which is a system of reaches interconnected by numerous channels. Its name comes from the Turkic language and is translated as “large vessel”.
There are many legends and tales associated with this place, the most popular of which is the belief about a mythical monster living in the depths of a reservoir. Many local residents say that they saw either a lizard or a huge fish that creates huge waves and overturns fishing boats. There is no scientific explanation for this phenomenon yet: none of the expeditions to Chany have seen anything like it.
Today the lake is a favorite vacation spot for many Russians.
Geography and origin
The largest body of water in Western Siberia is located in the Chanovsky district of the Novosibirsk region. The area where Lake Chany is located is called the Barabinskaya Lowland. Most of it is surrounded by forest-steppe, and only from the south can one observe the endless steppe landscape.
Experts date the formation of the basin to the end of the last ice age. The lake appeared approximately 10-13 thousand years ago. For hundreds and thousands of years, steppe vegetation prevailed here, and only 5.5 thousand years ago dwarf birches and similar shrubs began to grow along the banks.
Features of Lake Chany
The vats are located at an altitude of 106 m above sea level. The length of the lake is 91 km, width – 88 km. The surface of the water surface today is approximately 2000 km². The absolute maximum was recorded at the end of the 18th century, when the area of Lake Chany exceeded 12,000 km². Based on many years of observations, scientists concluded that recently this reservoir has noticeably shrunk.
The lake is recharged mainly with melt water. Two rivers flow into it - Chulym and Kargat, but they account for only a small part of the total flow.
The water of Lake Chany is slightly salted, and the concentration varies in different parts of the reservoir. Salinity levels in the southeastern part are slightly lower. The lake itself is shallow: the average depth is only 2 meters, the maximum is 7 m. The bottom is flat, muddy or sandy. The banks are flat, heavily indented, mostly covered with thickets of sedge, reeds, and reeds.
Lake Chany is characterized not only by fluctuations in water levels associated with seasonality, but also by longer ones, lasting, as a rule, about 40 years.
History of the origin of Lake Chany
The reservoir was formed approximately 10–13 thousand years ago, during the era of the end of the Ice Age. Previously, the source was located in the steppe zone. The first trees appeared approximately 5.5 thousand years ago.
The reservoir was first mentioned in Russian materials at the turn of the 16th–17th centuries, during the period of development of the territory of Siberia. They began to actively explore the source only in the 18th century, during the settlement of the Barabinsky region.
The first description of Lake Chany was discovered by the geographer Pallas in 1786, a little later by the surveyor V. Filimonov in 1803. In the 19th century, the first hydrological surveys began in the lake area, led by I. Zhilinsky. In 1911, ichthyologist A. Skorikov, after studying the reservoir, wrote a research treatise “Lake fishing in the Barabinsky region.” In 1932, a group of researchers from Leningrad University worked on the lake.
In the middle of the 20th century, active work began to restore the water level in the source. The first dams were built. From 1979 to 1994, there was a strong decrease in the water level in the lake. In 1980, several projects were developed to restore the water balance of the reservoir.
Active efforts to reconstruct the dam on the reservoir began in 2000. After 5 years, the government allocated funds for the reconstruction of the dam. According to further forecasts, the area of the lake will gradually decrease.
Pulsating Lake Chany
Fluctuations in the water level in the reservoir are associated with the climatic characteristics of the region. Russian researcher A. Shnitnikov discovered a pattern in the increase and decrease in water level in the source, not related to the time of year. These changes occur in a cycle of 30–45 years.
A long-term analysis of the factors and features influencing the fluctuations of water in this source formed the basis of the book “Pulsating Lake Chany”. The work describes two phases of the reservoir - low-water and high-water. In the first, the source becomes drainless, and the salinity of the water increases. In the second phase, the lake is watered and a flow is formed into the area of the Irtysh River.
© Aspekt2003
Climate
The area around the lake is dominated by a continental climate. In winter there is bitter frost, in summer it is warm, but not hot. The period when the thermometer rises above zero is only about 4 months. Freeze-up on the lake occurs in early November, the final melting occurs in May.
The territory where Lake Chany is located is the Novosibirsk region. The nature here is quite harsh, as throughout Siberia. In autumn, cold and strong winds blow from the west and northwest. The waves on the lake rise by more than a meter; there have been cases of death of people who went sailing in stormy weather.
Geographical information
The lake is located on the territory of five districts of the Novosibirsk region: Zdvinsky, Barabinsky, Chanovsky, Kupinsky and Chistoozerny. The lake is a system of reaches connected by channels and shallow areas, of which the three largest are: Chinyaikha, Tagano-Kazantsevsky and Yarkovsky, differing in water mineralization, area, depths, soils, and food supply.
The reservoir is located at an altitude of 106 meters above sea level. The lake is 91 kilometers long and 88 kilometers wide. The area of the lake is variable and currently, according to various estimates, ranges from 1,400 to 2,000 km². The average depth is about 2 meters. The lake basin is flat. The lake is shallow, depths up to 2 meters make up 60% of the total area of the lake. The shores of the lake are quite low and heavily indented, overgrown with reeds, reeds, sedges and bushes. The bottom soil is sandy and silty. The maximum recorded water temperature in summer is 28.3 °C.
It freezes in the second half of October - the first half of November, and opens in May.
Most of the lake is located in the forest-steppe natural zone.
The lake is of great fishing importance. The adjacent lands are used for haymaking and grazing. Water from the lake is used for technical needs.
Lake Chany is a popular holiday destination, including winter and summer fishing. The abundance of waterfowl attracts a large number of hunters. Recreation centers have been built on the shore of the lake, and special tours are organized. Lake Chany poses some danger for vacationers, because in bad weather there are very high waves on it, and there have been cases of death of people who went out on boats into the lake at such times.
As a result of human activity, the lake contains a large amount of pollutants. The concentrations of phenols, petroleum products, nitrogen compounds and other substances are growing. In terms of water quality, in the village of Kvashnino the water is extremely dirty (class 7), in the village of Tagan the water is dirty (class 5).
Islands of Lake Chany
There are 70 islands in the waters of Chanov. The largest are Amelkina Griva, Medvezhiy, Kolpachok. Some are considered natural monuments because they have preserved unique relict species of plants and animals.
Not only Lake Chany itself has a strange name; there is also a rather interesting story behind the name of the islands. Thus, the island of Chinyaiha is named after a noble woman who was captured by robbers along with her husband. The chieftain liked her, but there was no reciprocity on her part. The leader of the thugs invited the husband to bet his wife, but while the game was going on, Chinyaya went down to the lake and drowned herself. They say that her ghost still walks among the white-trunked birches of the island and protects the fishermen.
Nearest settlements
There are 12 villages located in the immediate vicinity of Lake Chany. Two centuries ago there were 17 settlements, but due to shallowing, several of them were abandoned and abandoned. At the beginning of the 20th century, people also lived on the islands. For example, melons, in particular watermelons, were even grown on Medvezhye.
Today, the largest are considered to be Yarkul, Kvashnino and Kazantsevo. Shaitik and Malkovo are slightly smaller in size.
Nature of the lake
The diversity of the ichthyofauna is represented by 16 species of fish. The most numerous are silver crucian carp, ide, perch, pike perch, and carp. Pike, roach, and bream are less common. Among the rare species are golden crucian carp, dace, tench, gudgeon, verkhovka, peled, and lake minnow.
The main refuge for fish in winter is the Yarkovsky Reach. This is the only unobstructed place in the lake. In the rest of the water area, due to the lack of oxygen in the water during the cold season, as well as complete freezing to the very bottom, a colossal amount of fish simply die.
The numbers are also affected by sudden changes in water levels, low water levels and, of course, destructive human activities. Since 1926, fish farming work has been carried out on the lake. Every year, fry of carp, peled and other commercial fish are released into Chany.
The reservoir is of great importance for many migratory birds. Here you can often find ducks, seagulls, swans, geese, and terns. The vicinity of the lake is home to a large number of rare and endangered species, such as the white-tailed eagle, red-breasted goose, blackbird, and Dalmatian pelican. According to many years of research by naturalists, there are more than 220 species of birds in these places. Ornithologists claim that more than 1.5 million individuals of various birds visit the lake every year.
Among mammals, muskrat is found in Chany, and hares, foxes, badgers, and roe deer are found in the surrounding areas.
There are 404 species of algae in the lake. The most overgrown is the Chinyaikha Reach. Along the banks, in addition to reeds and reeds, birch, bird cherry, aspen, hawthorn, rose hips, and raspberries grow. On one of the many islands (Uzkoredkom) you can admire entire thickets of wild peonies.
Part of the water area belongs to the Kirzinsky Nature Reserve, where hunting and fishing are prohibited. Poachers will face a hefty fine.
Animal and plant life
Lake Chany is home to 16 species of fish. The most numerous: silver crucian carp, perch, carp, ide, pike perch. Roach, pike, and bream have average numbers. Small species: golden crucian carp, peled, dace, tench, lake minnow, gudgeon, verkhovka. The main wintering place for fish is Yarkovsky Plyos and Lake Yarkul. The most abundant fish in the Yarkovsky Reach is perch. In the summer, all the main species of ichthyofauna live in significant numbers in the Chinyaikha Reach; in the Tagano-Kazantsevsky Reach, the most common species are ide, pike perch, carp, crucian carp, with slightly smaller numbers of roach and perch.
During low water periods, winter kills cause enormous damage to fish numbers. Also, during periods of low water, a large number of eggs and juveniles die, so fish farming work is necessary. The lake is regularly stocked with fish, and commercial fish farming is carried out in it. The first fish farming work in the lake began in 1926-1927. Initially, carp, carp, and bream were acclimatized. Later, there were attempts to acclimatize pike perch, peled, tench, nelma, muksun, and Baikal omul; when stocking the lake, verkhovka was accidentally introduced. The first attempts to acclimatize pike perch did not achieve much success; no increase in catches was noted. Subsequently, acclimatization turned out to be successful, and it reached large numbers. The bulk of bream dies in low water when death occurs, so its numbers have not yet reached commercial levels. Currently, there is no reliable information about the presence of Baikal omul and nelma in the lake. The failure with omul is explained by the fact that the lake is shallow for this type of fish. Acclimatization of peled was not successful due to the increased mineralization of the water; currently commercial peled farming is carried out, when larvae grown in fish farms are released into the lake, and the fish grow to commercial sizes. In addition, a significant part of the larvae of omul, muksun, peled and nelma were eaten by perch, roach and ide.
At the end of the 20th century, a form of silver crucian carp called Amur crucian carp entered the lake. Amur crucian carp has multiplied rapidly over the course of several years, practically displacing golden crucian carp from the lake, which could not withstand its competition, and currently ranks first in catches.
In 1976, the Uryumsky fish hatchery was built on the Chulym River, which, among other things, is engaged in the cultivation and stocking of Lake Chany with juvenile carp. Active stocking of juveniles weighing 25 - 80 grams has led to the formation of a large self-reproducing population of carp in the lake. According to observations of the Novosibirsk branch of “Sibrybniiproekt” in 1993, the carp in the number of juveniles that appeared was ahead of the native fish species - roach, ide and perch. The economic crisis of the 1990s led to the fact that the scale of stocking of the lake by the nursery was significantly reduced.
Fish stocks are now significantly depleted compared to the 19th century. For the first time, a reduction in catches of pike, crucian carp and perch was recorded at the end of the 19th century: “... before it was abundant in fish, there were pike weighing up to a pound, crucian carp and perch from 5 to 7 - 8 pounds. Now, for unknown reasons, its wealth of fish has become scarce and the fish themselves have been crushed.” In the 20th century, during periods of high water levels, fish catches reached 10 thousand tons per year, and during low water periods they dropped to 200 tons per year. During periods of low water, the bulk of commercial catches are made up of low-value fish species. Among the main reasons for the reduction in catches are the following:
- Decrease and sharp fluctuations in water level.
- Winter freezes.
- Freezing to the bottom of a significant part (up to 25%) of the lake in winter.
- Reducing the scale of fish stocking.
- Anthropogenic impact. Fishing with nets is officially permitted in the lake upon purchasing the appropriate license. The established fishing quota is 2,800 tons per year. Ichthyologists believe that actual catches significantly exceed official statistics; in addition, poaching has been taking place on a large scale in recent years.
- An increase in the concentration of phenols, petroleum products, nitrogen compounds and other substances. In terms of water quality in the village of Kvashnino, the water is extremely dirty (class 7), in the village. Tagan - dirty water (class 5).
- High mineralization of water in the lake. The highest mineralization of water was noted in the Chinyaikha (6 g/dm³) and Yarkovsky (2.5 g/dm³) reaches.
Part of the perch population is infected with gill mites. Opisthorchiasis has not yet been observed in fish from Lake Chany.
The lake plays an important role for the migration of many species of waterfowl: ducks, gulls, geese, waders, swans, terns, coots, shelducks. Rare bird species on the lake include the white-headed duck, the red-breasted goose, the Asian godwit, the lapwing, the avocet, the stilt, the black-headed gull, the blackhead, the steppe tirkushka, the golden eagle, the white-tailed eagle, and the Dalmatian pelican. There are significant concentrations of waterfowl on the lake during periods of migration and molting. During migration and nesting on the lake there are up to 220 species of birds, according to other sources - up to 300 species of birds. In the 1970s, ornithologists estimated that up to 1.5 million waterfowl visited the lake per season. During the 20th century, there was a steady decline in the number of waterfowl due to mass extermination. For example, in 1930, 9 million eggs were collected in the Chanovsky Lakes system and even more were destroyed. At the beginning of the 21st century, the main anthropogenic factors reducing the number of birds were the destruction of nests during grazing in the coastal part of the lake, and the death of birds in fishing nets.
Among the mammals on the lake, the muskrat lives; in the forest-steppe lands associated with the lake, there are foxes, hares, roe deer, badgers, corsacs, and weasels.
The lake is rich in both zooplankton and phytoplankton. As of 1983, 404 species of algae were found in the lake. In the Chinyaikha Reach, a high biomass of algae is noted; the strong development of phytoplankton negatively affects the number of fish. The species diversity of zoobenthos is low; chironomids predominate; mollusks, caddisflies, culicids, gammarids, oligochaetes, dragonflies, and mayflies are also found.
Birch, bird cherry, viburnum, aspen, hawthorn, rose hips, currants, raspberries, and ferns grow on the shores and islands of the lake. In the 1940s, oak and forest pine were planted on the northern shore of the lake. On some islands, for example, on Uzkoredky Island, wild peonies grow and bloom.
Recreation and fishing
Fishing on Lake Chany is a favorite recreational activity for residents of the Novosibirsk, Omsk and Kemerovo regions. There are several recreation centers on the coast, but most tourists highlight Lazurnaya Bay.
The houses are located in close proximity to the water, among trees and almond trees specially brought for landscaping. The territory is stylized as a pioneer camp.
The number of rooms is quite wide: there are trailers, a summer building with rooms for 4-8 guests, several family houses, as well as a comfortable building for year-round living.
On the territory there are 2 bathhouses, a place for barbecue, a sports ground, a children's play area, a banquet hall, and a cafe. In the summer, you can have a good rest on the beach next to the base and swim in the crystal clear Chanov water.
Other popular bases are White Swan and Chany. If you want to save money, you can stay in the private sector - local residents willingly rent out rooms, especially during the high season.
Ice fishing is especially popular on Chany; it is during the winter months that tourist attendance peaks. At some bases, fishing is paid, but the prices are very affordable. There is no time limit or limit on the number of fish caught; the main thing is to use only fishing rods and spinning rods.
The best place for fishing is considered to be Yarkovsky Reach. Fishing near bottom dumps will be successful. Locals feed the fish in certain places; if you find out from them where they are located, a good bite is guaranteed.
Fishing and recreation on Lake Chany
Chany is a real paradise for fishing lovers. In total, 16 species of fish can be found here. The most common species are perch, pike perch and pike. And despite the fact that the amount of fish in the lake has noticeably decreased in recent years, there is still plenty of it for everyone. By the way, fishing on Lake Chany is allowed all year round. Therefore, lovers of both summer and winter fishing flock here. The large number and variety of fish provide pleasure even for novice fishermen.
Bad weather on the lake causes the formation of high waves. This circumstance must be taken into account by fishermen who go fishing far from the shore.
For fans of fishing, comfortable recreation centers are located in the most beautiful areas of the lake coast. Hospitable residents of coastal villages offer guests to stay in cozy houses. In summer it is wonderful to swim in the lake. At the same time, the water is very warm and surprisingly clean and transparent. When the weather is calm and calm, the lake takes on an amazingly beautiful turquoise color. Safe sandy beaches and shallow water make Chany an excellent place for a family holiday with small children.
In addition, Chany is a great place for an active pastime. Many camp sites offer rental of ATVs, snowmobiles and boats.
How to get there
If you want to visit Lake Chany, it won’t be difficult. Buses run from the nearest railway station in Barabinsk to coastal settlements and tourist centers. By car you should drive along the M51 federal highway. Turn after 325 km, if coming from Novosibirsk, and after 301 km, if from Omsk.
A sea of positive emotions, unforgettable impressions and new acquaintances are guaranteed to every tourist who chooses Lake Chany as a vacation spot. Russia is huge and diverse, and it is stupid to go abroad without first seeing the beauty and greatness of your own country.
