Frost and friendship on the Trans-Siberian Railway

As the legendary railway marks its centenary, Richard Green finds a kindred spirit in the vast snowy forest

Lake Baikal, 70 miles from Irkutsk
Lake Baikal, 70 miles from Irkutsk: one stop on the Trans-Siberian Railway
(Image credit: Alexander Nemenov/Getty)

As birch trees and patches of spring snow flicker past the train window, I realise that this ever-changing, never-changing scenery has become the surprising highlight of my time on the Trans Siberian Express.

This is slow travel at its best. The chief thrill is the journey itself: the cosy carriages, the on-board camaraderie and the constant edging forward across the vastness of Russia. A hundred years since the line was opened, today's travellers still feel like pioneers.

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