Our train departs from St. Petersburg Finlyandsky Station. It was the only railway station in Leningrad that operated during the World War II. It was the starting point of the rail route “the Road of Life” that connected the besieged city of Leningrad to the Ladoga Lake ferry and the Main Land. Our train is moving exactly towards Ladoga.
This line runs along the ancient narrow-gauge Irinovskaya railroad. It linked Petersburg to the peat exploitation sites around the village of Irinovka and operated from 1892 till 1926.
The Irinovskaya railroad was used not only for transporting peat, but also for the passenger rail service. Four years after its launch, the line was extended till the Sheremetyevka village (nowadays, the village is named after Morozov). The road’s total length has reached 34 miles (55 kilometers). Since the train speed was quite low, the passengers could jump into the carriages and get off at any place and any moment they desired, so the Irinovskaya route was very popular among travelers.
Well, we are driving along the Vyborg side. It is one of the oldest districts of St. Petersburg with many manufacturing factories traditionally located here.
On the right, we pass the buildings of LOMO – the first optical plant in the Russian Empire, then the blocks of Karl Liebknecht Leningrad Mechanical Plant, dubbed “the Mine Factory” early in the 20th century for its production of sea mines and torpedoes, along with the buildings of the former St. Petersburg tram factory. On the left, along the way, there is the Klimov Machine Building Plant, known at the beginning of the 20th century, as the “Russian Renault”, where they assembled the cars of this global brand under a French license. Today, the plant produces gas turbine engines, helicopters and jet engines for fighter aviation.
There are a lot of transport arteries in this section of the road, so the overpass bridges were constructed for the railroad traffic. After passing through one of these overpasses, our train turns right and crosses Lesnoy Avenue. The trees of the Forestry Engineering Academy Park will flash on our left. This Victorian style park was developed in the 30s of the 19th century, after the Forest Institute moved to the city from Tsarskoye Selo (which means Tsar’s Village). The famous gardener Joseph Bush was its plan designer.
Right after the Forestry Engineering Academy Park, we enter the territory of the first railway station on our route - Kushelevka.
Kushelevka railway station was introduced in 1914. Two hundred years ago, these lands belonged to Count Ivan Kushelev, Major General, Freemason and Senator. History does not include him in the official list of Catherine The Great’s favorites, but his eminence had been very high!
