Dukha
The Lords of the Taiga
The Lords of the Taiga
fall camps are typically on forest edges, in tighter valleys, and offer more protection from wind, snow, and rain.
Chechek (Flower), my host, was a single lady and the shaman of the taiga.
teepee, or 'alajy og' (pole house) as they call it.
it's usually the ladies who take care of the reindeers.
there is a stove right in the middle of every teepee.
this is as techno as it can get in the taiga. solar panels right out of the teepee charge the battery.
the leader of the tribe is traditionally the oldest male. Gombo is the current respective one.
community frequently come together and chat, nuts of the pine cone is the ultimate snack.
most of the kids stay in the nearest town (8 hours by horse) to attend the school.
Davaajav is a brave one.
for transportation, the horses are as important as reindeers.
Davaajav throwing a lasso.
antlers have to be cut before the migration, otherwise its impossible to proceed in the wild forest.
twice a day ladies milk their reindeers. yogurt-like milk is 4 to 5 times more fat than the cows'.
till very recently reindeer skin was used as covers for teepees. today replaced by canvas.
collective work and getting ready for the move.
when pitching a teepee, three pine trunks are tied together and placed on the ground. then ten or twelve pine trunks are balanced together around them.
canvas is thrown over the structure, overlapping each other on a gradient, so that rain water will always run along the seems of the canvas in a circular motion.
Dukha benefit from reindeers' milk, skin, antlers and most importantly utilize them for transportation.
Dukha moves 6 to 10 times within a year. it's a festive moment when the reindeer herds appear from the forest.
inhabitants of the east taiga.
