The excursion continues: Ol'khon Island

[Blog post for Monday, 15 August]
    Our two boats, the Kozhov and Diamant, moored overnight at the Gates of Ol'khon. We awoke, breakfasted, and stopped in at the small island called Ogoi, where a Buddhist shrine was erected several years ago. Our next stop was Khuzhir, the largest town on Ol'khon Island. There we visited the Ol'khon Regional Museum and Cape Burkhan, where Shamanka Rock (a familiar image from the back of our Wellesley-Baikal t-shirts) towers over the shoreline. We then steamed northeast, along the coast of Ol'khon, until we reached the beautiful rock formation known as Tri Brata (Three Brothers), near the northern tip of the island. We pulled up to the lovely beach just beyond the Brothers, in a cove surrounded by cliffs and natural rock walls. Everyone disembarked to explore the beach area.
    Unfortunately, one of our intrepid Wellesley students, Lena Mironciuc, slipped and fell into some rocks at the shoreline and broke her leg. The entire team banded together to help Lena onto the deck of the Diamant, and both cutters returned south at full speed to Khuzhir, then to MRS (Little Sea Fishery Station), to obtain medical help for her. Vasia Shupruto (one of our Russian students from Irkutsk State University) and I parted with the group at MRS and escorted Lena overland all night via ambulance and minivan for first aid and x-rays at the regional hospital in Elantsy, then on to Irkutsk, where Lena was checked in to the Third Municipal Hospital, on Timiriazeva Street. Dr. Aleksei Krasovskii, head of Orthopedics there, performed surgery on Tuesday afternoon (16 August) to repair the damage, and Lena is doing fine, resting comfortably and cheerfully taking it all in stride. The surgery was successful, and a full recovery is expected. Lena was heroic in spite of the discomfort, and our evacuation insurance company did a marvelous job approving her care at the hospital in Irkutsk. Liudmila Riapenko (at Bol'shie Koty) and Tatiana Pribyleva (in Irkutsk) worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure that Lena received the finest care, and Vasia offered crucial help at every turn. I will stay with Lena here in Irkutsk until she is discharged, and at this point it seems likely that she will then fly home early, ahead of the rest of the group.
     This incident, the first serious mishap since the founding of the Baikal course ten years ago, reminds us that exploring this magnificent place is -- like spending time outdoors in any rugged terrain -- not entirely risk-free. All our thoughts are with Lena as she prepares to leave the hospital and head home to the U.S.
     Meanwhile, a few hundred miles north of Irkutsk, the Wellesley-Baikal group is continuing its exploration of Cape Holy Nose, Chivyrkuiskii Bay, the hot springs at Snake Cove, and the Ushkanii Islands, where Baikal's famous freshwater seals can be seen basking on the rocks. Cellular connections around that part of the lake are spotty, so it's possible that blog posts for the next few days (until 19 August) will be delayed.
               Tom Hodge, Co-Instructor