Charsky Sands - an incredible desert landscape in the middle of the Siberian taiga

The nature of Russia is hardly associated with sand and dunes, and the combination of taiga and sand seems incredible at all. Nevertheless, such a place called Char Sands exists, and it is located in Transbaikalia.

In the Kalarsky district of the Transbaikal Territory, surrounded by taiga and swamps, there is a unique place - the Charsky Sands tract. A small stretch of terrain, approximately 5 × 10 kilometers, is occupied by sand and dunes, which move under the influence of wind, as in this southern desert. The landscape itself is very reminiscent of the desert landscapes of Central Asia, only on the horizon you can see not the saxaul thickets, but the real larch taiga.

The site of sand is located in the interfluve of the Chara, Middle Sakukan and Upper Sakukan rivers, and the tract gradually moves towards the Middle Sakukan river, and taiga sets in on the sands, so the total area of the massif remains constant.

In this unusual mini-desert, there are streams that make their way to the surface through the thickness of the sand. It turns out that under Charsky sands there are no permafrost rocks that are under the arrays of taiga. For this reason, underground waters accumulate and exit under them.

In space images, this place is clearly distinguished from the green background of taiga massifs. Due to its unique geographical characteristics, the Charsky Sands tract was assigned to the list of nature monuments of federal significance. These sands are very popular among tourists, and many who travel across the Trans-Baikal region make their route in such a way as to visit this amazing place.