A quiet reach of the upper Volga

Sterzh is a textbook "Seliger-type" reach (ples): a long, slender stretch of open water that the upper Volga threads through on its way north. The lake sits about 206 metres above sea level, runs some 12 km from end to end, and at its widest is only about 1.5 km across, with an average depth around 5 metres and a maximum of 8. The shoreline curves into several headlands and bays, and at the south a deep inlet, the Khatizha bend, reaches eastward.↗↗

The character is gentle rather than dramatic. Banks are fairly high, especially at the northern end where the water is deepest, and they are built up of sand and shingle, as is much of the lake floor. The water is famously clear and transparent, and the whole lake is described as the cleanest of the Upper Volga cascade, holding a near-mirror surface through most of the year. Pine and spruce forest closes around the shore, dotted with small villages such as Kovokino and Vorovskoye on the left bank and Alekseyevskoye and Ivanovskoye on the right.↗↗↗

The Volga itself is both inlet and outlet: it flows into Sterzh along with smaller streams including the Runa, then leaves at the southern end, where the lake shoals, silts up and narrows into a winding river that widens again into the next lake, Vselug. In earlier centuries this chain was navigable, and a passenger steamship route once ran some 60 km along the lakes.↗↗

Where the river begins, and an old Rus' town

The lake's name is traditionally glossed as "quiet lake," though its exact origin is debated—some linguists connect it instead to the root behind sterezhen, the main channel or deep fairway of a river. Either way, water and passage are at the heart of Sterzh's story.↗↗

At the north-west shore, where the Volga enters the lake, archaeologists have excavated the Sterzh gorodishche—the hillfort of the chronicled town of Sterzh, one of the "far and near Russian towns" listed at the end of the 14th century. The settlement occupied an oval hill with steep slopes, fortified with an earthen rampart raised in the 13th–14th centuries, and holds occupation layers spanning the 9th to 15th centuries before the town faded in the early 15th century.↗↗↗

Sterzh belonged to the Novgorod lands, and in 1133 the Novgorod posadnik Ivanko Pavlovich raised a cross here to mark the water route from the Volga toward Lake Seliger. That carved cross survives today in the Tver museum. A short distance away, on the shore at the old Sterzh pogost near the village of Novinki, the weathered ruins of a church of Sts Peter and Paul still stand, worth a careful look rather than a climb.↗↗

The most moving nearby site lies just off the lake: at Volgoverkhovye, the very source of the Volga, a small wooden chapel stands on the spot where the great river first sees the light, with a font inside and a wooden walkway leading down to it. Beyond the chapel the Volga is so narrow a person can stand with one foot on each bank, and here too are the first two bridges across the river, plus the quiet Olga women's monastery on the hill.↗

Fishing the stony ridges

For many visitors the lake itself is the destination, and Sterzh has a formidable reputation among anglers. The waters are rich and varied: perch, pike, zander (sudak), bream, ide (yaz), roach and rudd bite across the season, with eel, burbot and ruffe turning up too.↗↗

The secret is the lake's submerged stone ridges. Off Ivanovskoye, beyond the island, several named shoals cross the water—the "Ivanovskaya" and "Tserkovnaya" ridges among them. They are nearly invisible from the surface but easy to find with an echo-sounder, and it is over these hard, sandy bottoms that the biggest fish gather, including zander that can run to several kilograms. Perch hold over the firm sandy patches and bite from late summer deep into autumn and under the ice, while pike lie in the weedy inlets.↗↗

Local advice: bring or hire a motorboat, since craft with engines are permitted, and use the flocks of gulls hovering over the water to find feeding fish. The thick shoreline weeds snag tackle easily, so weedless or floating lures are the sensible choice, and bream and zander reward absolute silence from the boat. The peak bite is generally in August and September, before the fish drop to deeper, harder-to-locate water.↗↗

Staying on the shore

Sterzh's remoteness keeps visitor numbers low, which is part of the appeal—fishing in primeval pine forest with no crowds is the draw. There is plenty of lakeside accommodation, mostly modest and nature-focused. Log-built holiday cottages, hotel rooms and guest houses line the shore, while camping spots and trodden-in tent sites suit those who simply want a fire and a stretch of empty water.↗↗

Around Ivanovskoye village there are a couple of established bases, including one that offers separate log cottages with their own little yards set up for outdoor living, alongside cottage-style lets and organised retreats on the shore. Waterside walking, swimming on sandy stretches and boat outings round out the stay.↗↗↗

On the way back toward Ostashkov, a curiosity stop is the so-called Golod pyramid, a latticed structure of folk-reputed "energy" properties, beside a small roadside market where locals sell what they gather from the surrounding forests.↗

Getting there and when to go

Sterzh stays uncrowded because it is genuinely hard to reach. The shore is broken by streams and deep gullies and the road network is thin, so access is easiest at the upper (northern) end around the villages of Kovokino, Vorovskoye, Alekseyevskoye and Ivanovskoye. By car, the usual route runs from the Ostashkov–Molvotitsy highway, turning toward Svapushche or Khitino and then down along dirt roads past Volgoverkhovye to the lake; a high-clearance vehicle is strongly advised.↗↗

Without a car, bus no. 150 from Ostashkov toward Moseyevtsy calls in at Kovokino on the left bank, running only a few times a week—so check the timetable before you plan around it. The lake is a genuine slow-travel destination rather than an easy day trip.↗

The climate of this forested, elevated lake district is changeable: sun can be hot, rain and a cool breeze off the water can arrive within a few hours, and nights turn cold even in midsummer. Pack layers, a raincoat and rubber boots, and warm gear or a sleeping bag if you are camping. The most reliable window for comfortable visits and the best fishing is late summer into early autumn.↗↗