Lake Seliger is of glacial origin. Its coastline is indented by bays, channels and numerous islands (there are more than 160 of them). Khachin is the largest island of this lake. A special nature protection regime applies to the entire territory of the island, although there are 4 small villages and guest houses on its northern shore.
The area of Khachin Island reaches 30 square kilometers. In different parts of the island there are 13 lakes connected by narrow channels with Seliger. There are a lot of fish in them. There are not only fish on the island, but also animals. In addition to the usual for such places: moose, wild boars, hares and beavers, some guidebooks write that there are bears on the island of Khachin. However, this is unlikely.
There are hiking trails around the island. You can walk on them deep into the island, but the distances on the island of Khachin are quite large. The length of the island from north to south is 9 km, and from west to east – 6 km. There are a lot of mushrooms and berries in the forest.
Khachin Island can be visited with a short excursion by boat, which is most convenient to rent at the pier of the Island of Svetlitsa, near the Monastery of the Nilo-Stolobenskaya Hermitage. Skirting the monastery, the boat sails along the southern shore of the Island of Khachin, completely overgrown with tall reeds. Here you will see numerous places for camping on the shore of the island. They are occupied by people with tents, who have boats.
Then the boat sails along the channel to the largest inland lake on the island of Khachin. It is called the White Southern Lake. Its territory reaches 35 hectares. Along the shore of the White Southern Lake, many water lilies grow in the water. This indicates the purity of the water. Pine trees grow on the shore of the lake. Many people come here for fishing.
Then the boat sails through Kopanka. This is a small channel that the monks of the Nilo-Stolobenskaya Hermitage dug in the narrowest part of the island of Khachin. Kopanka divided Khachin Island into two parts, which are now called Large Khachin and Small Khachin. This channel made it possible to shorten the boat journey between the eastern and western shores of Lake Seliger by 20 kilometers. The Kopanka Canal on Khachin Island is maintained in good condition, as it is needed by all fishermen and boat travelers.
There are four villages on the northern shore of Khachin Island. People live there only in summer, when tourists come to Seliger. In some houses of the village of Volokhovshchina, people live all year round, but every year there are fewer of them. In this village there are a famous cafe Khachin House and glamping Cone. There are also two summer guest houses on the northern shore of Khachin Island.
