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IRKUTSK, RUSSIA - MARCH 17: After severe winter conditions, the frozen surface of the famous Lake Baikal in Siberia began to thaw.Anadolu Agency Video News (AAVN) drone captured ships slowly breaking the ice and making their transfers in the Angara region.The iconic lake near the Mongolian border charms its visitors with its splendid landscape.Especially, in the winter season, the lake is the first choice of fishing enthusiasts and nature lovers.The lake offers its visitors opportunities such as fishing, riding a snow scooter, and spending time in the natural park.The lake is located in the south-east of Siberia between Irkutsk Oblast and the Buryatia Republic.The 3.15-million-ha Lake is the oldest (25 million years) and deepest (1,700 m) lake in the world.Known as the 'Galapagos of Russia', it contains about 5,521 cubic miles of water (23,013 cubic kilometers), or approximately 20% of Earth's fresh surface water. This is a volume of water approximately equivalent to all five of the North American Great Lakes combined.Baikal is home to a large number of animal and plant species that cannot be found anywhere else. One of the most remarkable is the Baikal seal (also called the nerpa), the only species of seal in the world to live exclusively in a freshwater habitat. The growing popularity of Lake Baikal contributes to the development of tourism in Buryatia, which claims to be one of the most ecologically clean regions of Russia. (Footage by Tatyana Stepanova/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)