fishing and hunting are important sources of food in yakutia
because it's simply impossible to grow fruits and vegetables due to the harsh climate
in the late autumn before the cold winter comes yogurts are preparing for their annual
traditional fishing event known as munkha munkha is a traditional ice fishing using a seine net
the whole village gathered together to take part in this massive fishing activity
yakuts are always helping and supporting each other especially when it comes to food they
know that without each other's help it's difficult to survive in this cold icy land
every autumn during manhattan annual ice fishing locals can get several hundred kilograms of fish
at a time fishing under the ice demands a lot of effort and coordinated teamwork
the process itself turned into a mass festival
every village has a wise elderly man who knows the local terrain well
and gather all the locals together
believe in the spirits in animals trees lakes and fire before fishing starts local feeds by an eye
the spirits of the forest and lakes by putting pancakes on the fire to ask for successful fishing
everyone feels excited locals make teams of up to 20 people
with one the most experienced person usually the oldest to be the leader he is acting on
his intuition and experience and deciding where to place the net
one of the teams then gets the net ready while the other prepares
two large holes in the eyes in which to be placed the nut
a series of small holes are then made between the two big ones
to allow the knife to be pulled from one end to the other using wooden sticks with hooks
as the nuts get into the water the other team
used their long sticks in the water to make the fish move towards the net
as a result the net runs along almost the entire perimeter of the lake guaranteeing the catch
the strongest pull the net faster prevent the fish from escaping today woman can take part in
traditional ice fishing but in ancient times only man could participate in it
locals also believe that a black crow circling in the sky is a good sign
they know that they will not be left without food and are frequent guests during the ice fishing
everyone holds their breath when the fishermen pulled the net
they hope this year is favorable for ice fishing and they won't be left without food
when the fishermen finally put the net out everyone feels excited
luckily this year was great for fishing locals have enough food to survive the long
cold winter and that's why Yakutsk great moon high fishing like a big day
another exciting and long-awaited part is sharing the fish
the main role is to share the catch with everyone even if they are not taking part
they share several bags filled with fish and freeze them to eat during the whole winter
locals are always taking care of the lakes they won't do any fishing in this lake for three years
in order to not disturb the ecological balance of the lake
this is how Yakuts are living and enjoying their life in the coldest inhabited place on earth
we believe that life is hard but so very beautiful