Lake Topozero

Topozero is a large lake in northern Karelia, with wooded shores and many islands. Kiestinki, first mentioned in 1547, stands on its northern shore and was recognised as a local centre in 1628. A monastery operated by the lake in the seventeenth century, while Old Believers later found refuge in a hermitage on one of its islands. The lake's waters form part of the long Kovda system leading towards the White Sea.