Lake Pleshcheyevo is the place where Peter the Great developed his obsession with the sea. As a young man, he studied navigation and built a ‘toy flotilla’ of more than 100 little ships by age 20. You can explore some of this history at the Botik Museum, situated in Veskovo 4km along the road past the Goritsky Monastery.
Its highlight is the sailboat Fortuna, one of only two of Peter the Great’s boats to survive fire and neglect. It occupies a whole building in the premises. There is also an interesting history exhibition in another building known as White Palace.
