It's hard not to feel like James Bond stepping off the hovercraft on the crunchy ice of frozen solid Lake Baikal in Siberia.
One of my travel companions was less keen - "I'm British, we don't walk on the ice!" she had insisted - but it was that or get left behind.
We were staying at Listvyanka on the banks of the world's oldest and deepest lake.
The 25-million-year-old lake is 1700 metres at its deepest and holds 20 per cent of the world's fresh running water supply.
It's said Lake Baikal could provide fresh drinking water for the world's entire population for 50 years if all other supplies dried up.
The lake was our first real taste of Siberia after a long four day and four night journey on the Trans Siberian Railway from Moscow.
Its frozen surface in winter is desert-like in its vast empty appearance, but offers plenty of activities for adventurers, from ice skating to ice fishing and driving trips.
Our own hovercraft experience began at the pebbled beach outside the local food market where the aromatic smell of steamed fish and rice dishes filled our noses and made our stomachs grumble.
After a diet of powdered mashed potato and two-minute noodles every meal for four days it was something to look forward to on our return.
It's a white knuckle ride of high speed twists, turns and spins that takes just minutes to reach the far side of the lake.
The bright coloured houses and shops at our starting point look tiny but stand out above the pristine white surface of the lake.
Despite the freezing temperatures, which can reach minus 35C in the middle of winter, the sun shines brightly and reflects off the lake making sunglasses a must.
On the lake I explored the surface, brushing aside the soft "snow-cone" ice to see how far below the water ran fresh.
As a trickle of freezing cold water bubbled to the surface I quickly decided that was a very bad idea.
Closer to the shore, leaves have settled on the surface, leaving perfect leaf-shaped holes as they melt through the layers of ice.
For the adventurers there's the opportunity to hike up the side of the hill, climbing around the side of a railway tunnel to reach a rocky outcrop that hangs high above the jagged ice at the edge of the lake.
Hunger - for food, a traditional sauna and a comfortable bed - draws us back to our home for the night, an almost Austrian looking chalet part way up the mountain where we're looking forward to enjoying a traditional Russian sauna.
But not before a few last photos of the stunning lake that captivated our attention from a popular lookout that does not disappoint.
After emerging from the 80C temperatures of the sauna, where tradition dictates you must be thrashed with birch tree leaves before having a bucket of ice cold water dumped over you, snow started to fall.
Overnight the mountains around Listvyanka were blanketed with a beautiful dusting of crisp white snow.
The lake was different too.
Where the centre of the lake had been seemingly frozen solid only hours earlier it was now an open expanse of water, small waves peaking on the surface as the wind blew.
"That's why we don't walk on the ice," said my travel companion, with a justified smile on her face.
GETTING THERE:Listvyanka is located 5000km from Moscow or 70km from Irkutsk in the heart of Siberia.
There are multiple flights a day between Moscow and Irkutsk, taking five hours.
The Trans Siberian Railway offers a longer, picturesque journey taking four days, four nights.
Source: AAP
