Mike Laird, a British explorer who has skied full distance to the North Pole, spent time in the Bering Strait and who traversed the entire 640 kms length of Lake Baikal, solo, in 2019. He has been awarded Fellowships to both The Royal Geographic Society and The Royal Asiatic Society. He was a Trustee of the Scientific Exploration Society for over ten years, is a PADI Scuba Diving Instructor and works in Risk Management.

We will aim to walk for 12 hours per day. This will be split into 6 x 2 hour time blocks with a short pause between each.

For safety reasons we will not be walking in the hours of darkness. We will use the twilight hours at each end of the day to break camp / strike camp and daylight hours for walking.

We will aim to walk approximately 18-20 miles (30-32 kilometres) per day. Some days may be slightly longer or shorter depending on various factors such as the prevailing weather conditions. (If the weather is too severe for a prolonged period and reduces the amount of time available for walking, a decision would be made to exit the lake at an alternative location.)

Expect the average daytime temperature to be between -10C and -20C. At night time and on windy days this can drop significantly. There could be days where it also rises, close to 0C.

You should wear boots appropriate to the temperature and terrain. Take time to visit a reputable outdoors store and discuss options. Your choice of socks is also important. Be sure to break them in and wear them for long duration walks before we set off.

We will definitely take micro-spikes. It is likely that we will also take skis and poles as a preference over snow shoes. This is because they are faster to travel with.

You will have hot food pouches in the morning and at night. During the day you will have put together a ‘grazing bag’ to eat from. Typically this will include chocolate, sweets, nuts, dried fruit, cheese and salami. It is exceedingly difficult to manage individual food preferences. Please share allergies and any cultural / religious food requirements as early as possible so we can do our utmost to accommodate these.

You need to be able to walk 20 miles per day over mainly flat terrain, for 10-12 days. We may encounter ice fields where kit needs to be lifted or carried short distances. You do not need to be an athlete but you do need to be active and healthy. Go on long walks, do plenty stretching, attend to any ‘niggles’. Positive mental attitude and solid team work will also be vital to the success of the expedition.

There will be a training weekend. Most likely this will be in the Lake District. It will be arranged when the team members are confirmed. Our aim is that this will take place in November. It will cover equipment, expedition preparation, well-being, emergency procedures, camp craft, tent life, navigation, communication systems and first aid amongst other topics.

A comprehensive risk assessment has been carried out. The expedition leader has traversed Lake Baikal before and has engaged Russian ground staff to support. The group will carry a satellite phone, locator beacon and a medical kit. Extraction from the lake would, most likely, be by hovercraft and onward transportation to hospital (if required) would be by road.

The sunlight on Lake Baikal can be very intense even on cloudy days. Having good eye protection is essential. Goggles v glasses is a personal preference. If you bring glasses please ensure they provide sufficient cover and fit close to your face. If you bring goggles they can fog up and this fog will eventually freeze so bring glasses as a back-up.

Yes, a comprehensive kit list will be provided and further advice on what to buy will be given at the training weekend. Certain items of kit will be provided for you / lent to you, and are included in the expedition joining fee.

The sledges move very easily over smooth ice and snow. The traces (pulling ropes) have a bungee attachment to absorb and reduce jolting to your hips and lower back. Used correctly with walking poles it is usually very comfortable even for prolonged periods. The sledge will behave differently depending on whether the wind is in our faces, coming from behind us or from the side.

We advise against this due to the duration of the expedition. Over time the talcum powder will build up and turn into sludge which will start to trap moisture rather than dry your feet.

There are two arguments here. Some people suggest you pop them, others tell you not to. My preference is to pop them, dry them and dress them with Zinc Oxide tape each morning. Small plasters rub off and become annoying. On a trip of this length you can expect to get multiple blisters. Be sure to pack several rolls of tape.

You don’t. We will only have sufficient fuel for melting ice for drinking water and preparing hot food. Personal hygiene needs to be managed. Wet wipes can help but usually freeze. Alcohol based wipes can be better. Having clean socks at least every second day (preferably daily) is vital. Remember that all rubbish needs to be carried off the ice and cannot be disposed of until we are back in Irkutsk.

It is possible to keep walking in snow flurries. In certain rare circumstances it might be more prudent to cease walking, put up the tents and wait for improved conditions. Such situations are infrequent but could be encountered.

In places around Lake Baikal it is possible to get a signal for mobile phones though this should not be relied upon. If you wish to take a phone to take photos it may be best to wait until back on wifi to send images. An alternative would be to acquire a Russian SIM card before we depart. Also bear in mind that all batteries deplete more quickly than normal in very cold temperatures.

Yes, there are health conditions that would require consideration, such as (but not limited to) previous frost bite, acute asthma, other respiratory problems, recent surgery (especially back, abdomen or limb), addictions or dependencies etc. Overall we will take a common sense approach with safety at the forefront of all decisions. We embrace diversity and inclusion and would equally happy to take a person who, for example, has visual impairment, so long as we know and can make the right considerations. There are other situations which some people might consider a challenge but which we would be happy to manage.

Base costs are £3,500. Flights at present are £690 which allows everyone to take 2 x23kg bags plus 7-10kg hand luggage which is better than paying excess baggage charges later. Flight prices are likely to rise so the sooner the team is assembled and tickets purchased will help keep ticket costs as sensible as possible. Personal kit requirements very much depend on what a person has already. The required sleeping bag will probably cost more than £200, but if you already have a thick down jacket, boots and so on £500 might be OK. Trekkit do an appropriate sleeping bag at the moment for £192. If people can buy kit out of season in the sales they will save a lot. Buying it as we approach winter means the price will rise. It is not advised to skimp on good kit!