We hosted quite an unusual festival on one of the most distant islands in Russia, located a few hundred meters from the Norwegian border.
Truth be told, it’s hard to say what was more unusual about it – Whether it was the fact that it was on the hardly reachable island or the fact that a wooden terrace of a cottage served as the stage and visitors walked on the yellow-green pasture instead of shiny tile floors. This was a 100% outdoor event and the first ornithological festival surrounded by white and black birches, which are so typical of the Russian nature. The festival was themed “The birds of Pasvic,” and this was also chosen in relation to the nature.
For those who don’t know, Pasvic is an extensive16 640-hectare reserve of nature located on the territory of two countries – Russia and Norway along the Paz River. This reserve features rich flora and fauna and is one of the main tourist attractions in this part of the world.
It’s quite an interesting challenge to visit the Varlama Island from either the Russian or Norwegian side. The right shore of Paz river belongs to Russia and the left to Norway, whereas the island is located in the middle.
Non-Russians coming from Norway need to get through customs control first, which is located 100km away from the island. However, even Russians need to get through the customs control because this location is beyond the border, despite the fact that it is officially Russian territory. Consequently, we can call all visitors of this unusual festival heroes.
The first “Birds of Pasvic” festival was attended by approximately 50 international guests. Due to safety measures, a larger number of participants would not be possible to accommodate. Despite being one of the biggest tourist attractions in the region, Pasvic is still a preserved territory.
The festival can be considered as a result of conscious and ecology-oriented behavior of the local people, supported by Nornickel. Considering that Nornickel is a mining company, its management has made an executive decision to counter balance its business by supporting all ecological activities and incorporating eco-friendly methods of production.
A new motto which states that “safety of our nature depends on every individual” has motivated a lot of people to become more responsible and organize activities aiming to save the natural treasures of the region.
The original purpose of the Pasvic nature reserve is to preserve birds. It’s also interesting to add that Norwegian and Russian scientists regularly meet twice a year for watching birds and studying.
Hopefully, the festival will be repeated in the following years and more people will have a chance to experience the peace, wealth, and wilderness of the Polar nature.
