Expedition to Yamal, Arctic Circle, Russia.

1-9 April 2021

2550 euro
minimum 4

Includes:
- Transfer to and from Salekhard airport
- Hotel in Salekhard and in Moscow
- All transport on the way: cars, snowmobiles, trains
- Stay with Nenets in chum
- Local guides
- Guide in English and Italian

Not included:

• Round trip Europe - Moscow-Salekhard (about 600 euro)
• Restaurants in Salekhard and Moscow (80 euros)
• Visa to Russia (155 euros)

Depart from Europe on 1 April. Meeting in Moscow airport, then at 3.15 a.m. flight to Salekhard on 2 April (airport code SLY).

2 Aprile
The same day we will go to the Reindeer Festival. A folkloric event most important in the tundra.
A village about 200 km from Salekhard. In the evening we return to the hotel.
Dinner.

We will participate in this most important folkloric event of the tundra and of the peoples who live in those areas. We will spend a few hours at the festival, we will see the competitions between the Nordic peoples - Nenets, Komi and others and in the evening we return to the hotel.

The traditional festival that is held only once a year: the reindeer festival. Indigenous breeders of the Nenets and Khanty clans from all over the surrounding area gather to meet friends, compete in strength and agility, as well as to share with everyone their unique culture, passed down from their ancestors, and practically unchanged over the centuries.

Usually the herders come to the festival with the whole family, with the chums and the reindeer. We will be able to move freely, even making friends and photographing various situations on the field at the time of the party. And of course, during the festival there will be many interesting moments: the reindeer race, the national competition for the most distinctive costume, a traditional wrestling fight and much more. The suspense will grow more and more, as the prize is very coveted: a snowmobile.

Temperatures can be around 0 degrees during the day and -15 degrees at night.

3 April
After breakfast we start our adventure to the camp of Nenets.

4 - 7 April
We will have an extraordinary experience living at the Nenets ' camp in the Polar Urals.

* Urals, are a mountain range that crosses approximately from North to South Russia, stretches for more than 2000 km with A N-S direction from the Arctic tundra of the Arctic glacial Sea to the Caspian steppe; traditionally it is considered the geographical boundary between Eastern Europe and Siberian Asia. Of modest height (culminates at 1894 m in Mount Narodnaja). The Urals have a real primacy as a mining district (among the most important in the world). In the area of the Yamal Peninsula there is a large Russian gas field where they extract 1/3 of all Russian gas.

In chum (the typical tents of the nenets) we will be their guests; there we must therefore respect their rules. The mistress of the CHUM, his wife, prepares food at least 4 times a day. We are free to get out of the chum when we wish to take pictures even at night when there may be the Northern Lights.
During the day inside the hut the fire is lit, instead of at night you need the comfort sleeping bag -20 C, because the fire slowly goes out and from midnight until 8 in the morning it is cold. We will sleep on the reindeer fur which is very warm, a unique experience.

Inside the chum there are curtains-partitions that lower for the night and create a mini "room" where you sleep all together. In these days we will live with the family of reindeer herders, in their camp. This is not a" playground " for tourists, it is a place where nomads live, so you need to be ready as we are very far from civilization. This is another reality, almost another planet or another dimension. You begin to understand that we are in the XXI century, is what is happening in Russia and that you are a protagonist of all this. There are no showers or the bath, there are no beds, there are no shops or the internet, sometimes people eat raw meat and drink warm reindeer blood to get vitamins, and the water comes from the melted snow.

But here the starry sky is extraordinary, the true unity with the nature and culture of the nenets who brought their traditions through the centuries to the present day. The cuisine is traditional in chum and is based on reindeer meat and fish. They also eat buckwheat, pasta and potatoes as side dishes and also drink black tea. During the stay with the nenets we will have the opportunity to understand how they live and carry out their daily life. We will go to the pasture of the main herd where we can feed and communicate with the reindeer, we will photograph the nenets as they take a reindeer from the herd using the special rope made of reindeer tendons.

Nenets women during the day prepare wood for the stove which is also used as an oven; they care for dogs; they prepare lunch (they go out to get reindeer meat for cooking); they make sewing of boots with reindeer fur. They go to get the snow and then use it for drinking and cooking. Each clan of about 2-3 families living together has a herd of about 1000 reindeer and therefore the men together with the tireless dogs take care of moving the herd to the best place for milking. And here very interesting photo situations are created. Their gestures and expressions tell of the struggle to live in those areas and with those temperatures. Inside the chum we can organize a photo set with the lights (of course if you take the lights with you). In all this we are always at the Arctic Circle where we can admire the phenomenon of the northern lights (if the weather conditions allow).

In total we will spend 5 days at the Nenets.

7 April
After the stay at the nenets, we move to Salekhard.

8 April
We leave for Moscow where we will make a PCR test if need and we will go to the hotel close by to the airport.

9 April
Return to Europe.

Tips for clothing.
During the day the minimum temperatures are around-10ºC degrees, during the night they can reach up to-15ºC, so it serves thermal and warm clothing.

You will need a front torch for night outings and inside the chum.
Electricity is not inside the chum. The batteries we charge when the generator is turned on.

You can bring some snacks (taralli, protein bars, dried fruits, chocolate).

For travel to Russia you need a visa and passport must be valid at least 6 months at the time of departure and PCR test 48 hours.

Cancellation and refund policy
If a participant decides to cancel the reservation, he or she must communicate it as soon as possible to the email address of one of the two organizers.
However, the sudden absence of a participant would create management difficulties in bookings, in addition to the risk of not reaching the minimum quota of participants for the photo travel.

Then:
• If the cancellation request is sent at least 60 days before the scheduled departure date, the booking fee can be refunded (excluding agency fees only).

• If the cancellation request is sent less than 60 days before the scheduled departure date, the reservation fee cannot be refunded.
The entire amount paid (excluding agency fees only) will be refunded if the event is canceled.

How to dress:
1. North Face / Montura / Canada Goose Himalaya down parka or jacket
2. Sweatshirts, fleeces, vests
3. Neck warmer. Balaclava
4. Snowmobile / ski goggles (better transparent)
5. Socks / thermal underwear
6. Big hat
7. Heavy padded pants
8. Trousers not-heavy to stay in the hotel and chums
9. Slippers to use inside chum (North Face or other are fine)
10. Sleeping bag or if you will rent at the place - sheet bag for the sleeping bag
11. Gloves fit those for a photographer HEAT https://www.theheatcompany.com/it-it/guanti/heat-3.... Foot warmer / hand warmer insoles if one is cold https://www.theheatcompany.com/it-it/scaldini/scal....
12. Oily hand cream (for those who suffer more there are specific creams to rebuild the skin after cracking: Avene Cicalfate, Bepanthol).
13. Cocoa butter for the lips.
14. Wet pads, personal medicines, earplugs, microfiber towel.
15. Usually we leave for children Nenets plastic cars or dolls / stuffed animals, balloons. For women colored fabric or chocolates from Italy is fine (they will be delighted).
16. Headlamp.

Photographic equipment:

• photo camera
• lens (wide-angle, macro, medium-long canvases)
• tripod
• batteries
• cards
• remote control
• lens and sensor cleaning kit
• polarizer, GND, ND filters

• computer to download photos or external disks.
• front torches