Nenets herders, the last nomads of Siberia

For: Juan Ramon Morales (text and photos)
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We continue to expect .....

After 3 days wrapped in a veil of snow and wind prevented the takeoff of helicopters that transport us beyond the Obi; not only wait. Three days at the border of a uniform world without details, beyond which the vastness of Siberia is deployed to the Pacific coast over 10000 miles of the airport lost.

Suddenly a warning; nervous glances from the airport liaison officer , calls in a Russian distorted by fatigue and, After several careers and several trips to the ice runway, we rise above the tundra, little by little, Seats open at our feet. A white landscape, infinite, studded with dark patches of melting, where frozen lakes and groves, that as tiny specks around the banks of Obi, huddle into the mouth of the huge river, to the Arctic Ocean. And down, as a disorderly swarm coalesces and breaks elastically without any order, reindeer, reindeer and reindeer; herds of the Nenets.

Nenets reindeer herders, one of the best Siberian nomads has managed to maintain their culture and way of life throughout the Soviet period, move with their herds along the Yamal Peninsula, next to the Urals. With the advent of the Great Winter herds move, some over 10000 heads, beyond areas of tundra north of Obi, to the coniferous forests of southern.

On the banks breathe tension; an image similar to that of the wildebeest on the banks of the Mara African

As we approach Yamal, one of the highlights of the migration is happening below us. The moment you cross the icy runway Obi is for pastors all a lottery. A bad choice of date and the ice could give, swallowing or seriously injuring animals. On the banks breathe tension; an image similar to that of the wildebeest on the banks of the Mara African.

The helicopter lands on the frozen wasteland, an endless expanse of white that is lost in the distance to a darker blue strip of the sky, on the horizon, that reveals the open waters of the Barents Sea. Before us rise five "chums", identical to the teepees of Native Americans, in a surreal scene as unreal as, since the first living thing that comes out of the shops is a reindeer ..... I could not be otherwise ..... Gradually the true inhabitants of the chums come, like the most normal thing in the world, to greet. Dressed in furs, are members of the Brigade 39, Seroteta family, in charge of 4000 and heads 2000 km behind the last 3 months.

The inside of a chum is a clear example of the kind of life of Nenets. Nothing in the store spare reindeer hair articulated around a stove, once a fire, where, whispers, the spirit protector of the family crouches by the fire. Small glasses of vodka swirling around this cosmic axis, always served by the householder who is watching with curiosity and sympathy we do here and wondering where our flocks. A question we repeated several times during the four or five days we share with them. Moving through the bare tundra in search of lichens and wood and hope that time does not change and the rains or spring frost frozen soil, preventing animals dig the layers of hard snow and find food.

And so, after several days, our translator tells us that we must start. Will slow the brigade and the weather is about to change.

As the helicopter that will take us back is about, in a sea of ​​reindeer, pastors dismantle the chums and leave without saying goodbye. The word "goodbye" makes no sense for them, and "thank you". In this world nothing is hard and harsh calls, everything belongs to everyone and is dismissed because the security of the reunion is general for all.

And so, as the helicopter gains altitude, the mass of animals in the Nenets is blurred to form an irregular and confused stain against the background of the horizon, as if the last time would have been nothing but a dream.

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Comments (5)

  • sandra

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    What a luxury reporting! Congratulations Juan Ramon

    Answer

  • gerard

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    That last post!!!! It's nice to read stuff like. Congratulations bloggers

    Answer

  • Arcadi

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    Hola Juan Ramon,I am extrem Arcadi of Lleida, we are interested in the next spring following a few days in the Nenets reindeer displacement in their migration to the north. We found very little information, date (I think it's in April), until airport fly, (Nadym, Salehard), how to contact someone to take us and pick up area the Nenets (I read that you were in helicotero) how to find someone to lead us into tribes, etc., etc..
    Best regards and congratulations on your reports.

    Answer

  • Juanra

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    Hello Arcadi.
    You fly to Salekhard. Mandame un mail a umbarak2gmail.com y mas te Doy detalles. Greetings

    Answer

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