1 00:00:09,440 --> 00:00:11,440 I'm travelling through the Arctic. 2 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:13,480 The land of the midnight sun. 3 00:00:13,480 --> 00:00:15,440 Most amazing view. 4 00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:22,200 For thousands of years, only the hardiest hunters and herders lived in this inhospitable land. 5 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:28,160 But now the Arctic is warming faster than anywhere else on Earth. 6 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:33,560 As it thaws, new riches are being revealed. 7 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:35,560 This is what it's all about, the oil. 8 00:00:35,560 --> 00:00:38,440 All eyes are turning north. 9 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:43,520 For one bright summer, I will live with the people of the Arctic. 10 00:00:43,520 --> 00:00:45,000 Absolutely loving it. 11 00:00:46,400 --> 00:00:47,840 This is the real thing. 12 00:00:47,840 --> 00:00:50,480 I want to understand how their lives are changing 13 00:00:50,480 --> 00:00:55,400 and discover what the future holds for this great wilderness. 14 00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:02,320 I think we might be there. 15 00:01:07,320 --> 00:01:10,640 It's summer, and I'm in Siberia. 16 00:01:17,120 --> 00:01:23,680 This vast untamed wilderness of the Russian north stretches far into the Arctic. 17 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:30,800 It's a place of extremes and it's home to some of most resilient indigenous peoples on the planet. 18 00:01:33,480 --> 00:01:37,640 It's almost 20 years since the iron rule of the Soviet Union ended 19 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:43,840 and the people of this region are once again beginning to rediscover their ancient traditions. 20 00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:53,360 I am travelling from the centres of civilization to the most remote 21 00:01:53,360 --> 00:02:00,240 encampments in the wild Verkhoyansk mountains, to see how the old ways are forging a new future. 22 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,240 It doesn't get more scenic than that. 23 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:06,400 Is he fully trained yet? 24 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:19,280 There is also a personal reason why this journey is so important to me. 25 00:02:19,280 --> 00:02:22,040 I have spent years living with tribal people 26 00:02:22,040 --> 00:02:25,560 and have become fascinated by their healers or shamans. 27 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:33,920 This wild region of Russia is where the word shaman actually comes from. 28 00:02:33,920 --> 00:02:40,040 What, if anything, will I discover of their ancient beliefs? 29 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:56,120 Russia has the largest landmass in the Arctic. 30 00:02:56,120 --> 00:03:02,680 Stretching across nine time zones, the north is home to 40 different indigenous peoples. 31 00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:07,080 I'm on my way to meet the Sakha, the horse people of the north. 32 00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:10,720 They live in the Sakha Republic. 33 00:03:10,720 --> 00:03:15,520 The size of India, it has a population of fewer than one million. 34 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:25,160 I'm arriving at the high point of the Sakha festival season. 35 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:29,360 It's almost summer solstice, which is one of the most important times 36 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:34,640 for all of the peoples of the far north and represents the longest day of the year. 37 00:03:34,640 --> 00:03:40,040 And here, in Siberia, is a time that was actually suppressed a little bit 38 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:42,920 but now there's something of a revival. 39 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,800 Under Soviet rule, all religious beliefs were outlawed. 40 00:03:55,800 --> 00:04:02,800 For the Sakha this meant the loss of their pagan sun festivals and the persecution of their shamans. 41 00:04:04,640 --> 00:04:12,200 I'm in Balakta, a Sakha village that today is more famous for its fish than its horses. 42 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:24,520 I'm meeting Alexander Sergeevich, or Kulan, as he's known to his followers. 43 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:28,120 Alexander! 44 00:04:28,120 --> 00:04:30,080 Alexander? 45 00:04:30,080 --> 00:04:32,840 Bruce. Nice to meet you. 46 00:04:37,880 --> 00:04:40,400 How are you? I'm Bruce, nice to meet you. 47 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:44,960 He's one of the new wave of spiritual leaders to emerge in recent years. 48 00:04:44,960 --> 00:04:50,800 He's an apostle for the new Sakha spirituality but also works as a healer. 49 00:04:50,800 --> 00:04:58,120 With only a rudimentary National Heath Service, Kulan offers his patients an alternative diagnosis. 50 00:05:03,600 --> 00:05:06,240 KULAN PLAYS HIS MOUTH HARP 51 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:30,560 The vargan mouth harp conveys the emotion of its player by imitating the sound of nature. 52 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:36,360 This ancient instrument was banned under Stalin because of its links to Shamanism. 53 00:05:54,760 --> 00:05:59,720 In the modern Russia, Kulan is now free to speak vargan to me. 54 00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:09,680 Just the sound of that so close to my ear 55 00:06:09,680 --> 00:06:12,880 just sort of surged through, 56 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:19,200 like, um, almost like you could feel the vibration, even though it's such a small vibration. 57 00:06:19,200 --> 00:06:23,920 It's like it went, went all up through my nasal cavity and down through my throat. 58 00:06:23,920 --> 00:06:29,840 I could really feel it. It's quite a powerful little moment. 59 00:07:12,320 --> 00:07:17,160 It all seemed a little unorthodox, but he's strangely perceptive. 60 00:07:28,680 --> 00:07:32,880 Throughout the Russian north, the solstice is a time of festivals. 61 00:07:32,880 --> 00:07:37,280 One of the biggest of these is the Easach. 62 00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:42,240 Under the Soviet era, this fertility festival was banned, and was used 63 00:07:42,240 --> 00:07:47,760 instead as a showcase for the athletic prowess of the Soviet Union. 64 00:07:47,760 --> 00:07:53,440 It was only in the 1990s that the villagers were once again allowed to perform it. 65 00:07:53,440 --> 00:07:56,880 CHANTING 66 00:07:56,880 --> 00:07:58,880 Today Kulan is the master of ceremonies. 67 00:08:01,080 --> 00:08:03,640 CHANTING 68 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:13,840 This cultural revival might appear a rather eclectic mix of old and new. 69 00:08:13,840 --> 00:08:18,920 And it would be easy for me to question this reinvention of tradition, 70 00:08:18,920 --> 00:08:26,240 but what I have to remember is, little more than a generation ago, all this spiritual life was illegal. 71 00:08:41,160 --> 00:08:44,320 Kulan invites me to join his family's picnic. 72 00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:50,360 Good morning. Good morning. Wow. 73 00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:54,640 Tell me, how has this festival changed in your life time, that you remember? 74 00:09:49,520 --> 00:09:53,880 It's the solstice eve, the day before the longest day of the year, 75 00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:57,520 and I'm celebrating it with Kulan and his family. 76 00:10:01,680 --> 00:10:02,720 Chai, please. 77 00:10:09,480 --> 00:10:14,280 Kulan is a deeply spiritual man and I've been moved by his reverence 78 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:17,240 for the natural world around him and his family's warmth. 79 00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:38,520 It's the dawn of the longest day and Kulan is taking me to a remote village. 80 00:10:42,320 --> 00:10:49,960 Here, he says, I will really experience something of the ancient shamanic connection with nature. 81 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:20,040 This is the welcoming of the sun festival and the beginning of a new year. 82 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:31,000 Well, it's 3.30 or so in the morning 83 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:34,800 and we're waiting for the sun to come up. 84 00:11:34,800 --> 00:11:37,600 And it's a ritual that 85 00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:43,000 has happened all over the world for tens of thousands of years. 86 00:11:43,000 --> 00:11:46,880 And these are all modern people, they could easily be tucked up in bed 87 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:49,680 or watching late-night TV, but they've chosen to be here. 88 00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:54,640 And I couldn't think of anywhere I'd rather be. 89 00:11:54,640 --> 00:11:58,240 KULAN PLAYS HIS MOUTH HARP 90 00:12:15,440 --> 00:12:20,200 As I stand reaching out for the sun, it's impossible not to be moved by 91 00:12:20,200 --> 00:12:23,600 the devotion of the Sakha people around me. 92 00:12:23,600 --> 00:12:26,520 Kulan might not call himself a shaman, 93 00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:31,440 but there's more than an echo of the ancient spirituality in his work. 94 00:12:55,720 --> 00:12:59,800 When I leave you and carry on with my journey, what advice do you have for me? 95 00:13:39,560 --> 00:13:41,520 Thank you, amazing, really. 96 00:13:41,520 --> 00:13:43,960 You taught me a great deal. 97 00:13:49,160 --> 00:13:52,760 I feel a great sense of peace in your presence. 98 00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:54,280 Thank you. 99 00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:28,200 I'm travelling north, 800 kilometres into the Arctic Circle and the Land of the Midnight Sun. 100 00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:32,320 For the next few weeks I will inhabit a world of endless daylight. 101 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:49,360 Even this remote part of the Arctic was once controlled by the Soviet Union. 102 00:14:49,360 --> 00:14:57,080 20 years on from its collapse, and the Sakha who live here are returning to their roots to prosper. 103 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:03,200 The Sakha horse must be one of the world's toughest animals. 104 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:08,000 Over the centuries, it has become acclimatised to this harsh landscape. 105 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:12,200 And it has enabled the Sakha people to colonise the Arctic. 106 00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:19,760 I'm here to meet Sergei Lukin in the remote northern town of Sakharia. 107 00:15:19,760 --> 00:15:23,240 He's one of a new generation of Sakha entrepreneurs. 108 00:15:23,240 --> 00:15:28,840 A horse breeder who now manages a private herd of over 100 animals. 109 00:15:28,840 --> 00:15:35,160 Even this far north they love their festivals and there is one event in the Sakha calendar that Sergei 110 00:15:35,160 --> 00:15:38,680 cannot afford to miss - the annual horse races. 111 00:15:43,720 --> 00:15:45,400 Nice to meet you. I'm Bruce. 112 00:16:01,880 --> 00:16:05,360 So tell me, Sergei, how important is this race for you tomorrow? 113 00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:21,120 I'm only here for a few days but, if there's anything I can do to help you, 114 00:16:21,120 --> 00:16:23,320 I'm very happy to lend my services. 115 00:16:26,440 --> 00:16:28,440 No, I'm not a good rider at all. 116 00:16:28,440 --> 00:16:31,360 You know, I can ride. 117 00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:36,520 That wasn't really what I was thinking when I said that. I was thinking more stable boy. 118 00:16:36,520 --> 00:16:38,520 But, er, yeah, I can ride. 119 00:16:41,440 --> 00:16:46,720 Up here, where the permafrost begins just below the surface, there is no real agriculture 120 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:52,040 and animals have traditionally provided all the means of survival. 121 00:16:52,040 --> 00:16:56,040 Under the Soviet Union, all livestock was state-owned 122 00:16:56,040 --> 00:17:00,600 and herding became less of a way 123 00:16:56,040 --> 00:17:00,600 life and more like a job. 124 00:17:02,240 --> 00:17:06,920 In this modern era of private ownership, Sergei now generates 125 00:17:06,920 --> 00:17:11,000 part of his income looking after horses for a new class of owner. 126 00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:20,120 There's a lot riding on these races and Sergei's keen to find out if he's landed himself a prize jockey. 127 00:17:20,120 --> 00:17:25,200 I've been asked to demonstrate my horsemanship on an old, rather unruly Sakha horse. 128 00:17:29,160 --> 00:17:30,360 You've got to be kidding. 129 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:56,320 Getting to the start line is proving difficult enough on a horse with only one rein, 130 00:17:56,320 --> 00:17:58,000 but finally we're ready. 131 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:32,560 That's what happens when you've no idea what you're doing and you hit the water obstacle! 132 00:18:34,560 --> 00:18:37,120 I think that has sealed my fate. 133 00:18:37,120 --> 00:18:41,080 There was an outside chance of me racing tomorrow. 134 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:45,160 I think they've all seen what I'm like now. 135 00:18:45,160 --> 00:18:49,560 There's no way in a million years they're going to let me loose on their lovely horses. 136 00:18:58,000 --> 00:19:01,200 Yes, it wasn't good. 137 00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:04,360 I take it you don't want me to be racing in your team tomorrow? 138 00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:09,080 Oh, well, I tried. 139 00:19:35,560 --> 00:19:36,680 Thank you, Sergei. 140 00:19:44,720 --> 00:19:48,560 I get the feeling that there's more to this than just medals. 141 00:19:48,560 --> 00:19:55,240 It's something of a tradition and I've been invited to join Sergei and his family for a special meal. 142 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:03,680 What is this one? 143 00:20:06,120 --> 00:20:08,920 Reindeer? Reindeer. OK. 144 00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:10,480 And this... 145 00:20:12,960 --> 00:20:16,240 So there's reindeer inside as well? OK. 146 00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:18,280 And the soup? 147 00:20:21,160 --> 00:20:22,880 Soup is reindeer, too. 148 00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:24,440 I love reindeer. 149 00:20:24,440 --> 00:20:26,640 Never have enough. 150 00:20:26,640 --> 00:20:31,800 Sergei's son Misha has just returned home from his studies in the city. 151 00:20:38,240 --> 00:20:39,920 Are you racing tomorrow? 152 00:20:41,120 --> 00:20:43,200 Yes? Which one? Which race? 153 00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:52,800 Wow, busy day tomorrow. 154 00:21:01,120 --> 00:21:04,280 Little more than a generation ago, and the state would have allocated 155 00:21:04,280 --> 00:21:08,640 all the resources necessary for a new teacher like Misha. 156 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:13,680 He's decided to return to the village to teach Physical Education but, 157 00:21:13,680 --> 00:21:18,480 in the new Russia, it falls very much to his father to help him succeed. 158 00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:26,040 And Sergei's got his eye on first prize. 159 00:21:33,480 --> 00:21:35,440 Ah... 160 00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:42,240 Well, now... Now I get it. 161 00:21:42,240 --> 00:21:47,840 It feels very Soviet, it's a...you know, it's another, um, tool of productivity. 162 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:51,600 It's er... it's not a crate of champagne. 163 00:22:13,040 --> 00:22:18,600 Good luck, my friend. I'll be with you and your family cheering on your team, and let's hope you get it. 164 00:22:18,600 --> 00:22:21,320 This one especially. Good luck. 165 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:30,080 It's race day, and the entire town has turned up. 166 00:22:36,640 --> 00:22:39,160 Sergei is too heavy to be a jockey, 167 00:22:39,160 --> 00:22:44,400 so it'll be up to his son Misha to ride his team to victory and win the tractor. 168 00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:54,800 My job will simply be to look pretty and try and stay on the horse for the procession. 169 00:23:09,800 --> 00:23:13,640 With the shorter races run, it's time for the final, epic, two-lap race. 170 00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:18,080 Sergei's done really well - the first one he came first and third, 171 00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:19,920 the next one he got a third place - 172 00:23:19,920 --> 00:23:24,840 so this is the important one. And if he gets this, he gets the tractor. 173 00:23:26,880 --> 00:23:29,520 As the horses are led out to the start, 174 00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:33,720 Misha, with the headband, looks like he's in third position. 175 00:23:36,120 --> 00:23:38,400 THEY CHEER 176 00:23:51,960 --> 00:23:55,040 SERGEI TALKS TO HIM 177 00:24:03,160 --> 00:24:04,640 Go, Misha! 178 00:24:06,680 --> 00:24:08,960 Misha, Sergei's son, 179 00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:12,080 was in fifth place as he came past, but now he's in fourth place. 180 00:24:12,080 --> 00:24:14,840 So he's edging up slowly. 181 00:24:14,840 --> 00:24:16,560 CROWD CHEERS 182 00:24:30,840 --> 00:24:33,680 Oh, here's Misha coming. Come on, Misha! 183 00:24:33,680 --> 00:24:35,600 That was super-exciting. 184 00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:38,520 Even though Misha didn't win the tractor, 185 00:24:38,520 --> 00:24:40,880 Sergei is not going home empty-handed. 186 00:24:40,880 --> 00:24:43,680 He still picked up a clutch of prizes. 187 00:24:43,680 --> 00:24:46,000 CHEERING 188 00:24:57,760 --> 00:24:59,400 He may not have won first prize, 189 00:24:59,400 --> 00:25:03,120 but Sergei's performance has cemented his reputation 190 00:25:03,120 --> 00:25:06,240 as one of the region's top Sakha horse breeders 191 00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:10,040 and he wants his son to share in this success. 192 00:25:10,040 --> 00:25:13,800 In the new aspirational Russia, 193 00:25:13,800 --> 00:25:17,600 he's going one better than the traditional Soviet gift. 194 00:25:30,840 --> 00:25:32,800 Wow. Congratulations. 195 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:12,960 'Misha gives me a tour of his new pad. 196 00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:20,240 'Upstairs, Sergei has built a window so that he and his son can look out over this vast landscape.' 197 00:26:22,760 --> 00:26:26,800 And that is where I'm heading next, to meet the Eveni people 198 00:26:26,800 --> 00:26:30,680 and one of the most iconic of all the Arctic animals. 199 00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:54,000 BRUCE LAUGHS 200 00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:54,000 Oh, my God! 201 00:26:55,440 --> 00:26:58,440 And this is my transport to the hills. 202 00:27:02,560 --> 00:27:04,520 'I'm travelling up with Innokenti, 203 00:27:04,520 --> 00:27:09,400 'a local council official, in the community tank. 204 00:27:09,400 --> 00:27:11,800 'It might seem an incongruous way to travel, 205 00:27:11,800 --> 00:27:13,840 'but it's one of the few vehicles 206 00:27:13,840 --> 00:27:16,760 'that can actually manage in this vast, boggy terrain.' 207 00:27:23,400 --> 00:27:27,720 It's a new acquisition and the drivers are still getting used to it. 208 00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:07,280 We'll be in the tank for a couple of days as we journey 209 00:28:07,280 --> 00:28:08,480 to a remote valley 210 00:28:08,480 --> 00:28:12,200 where I'm hoping to meet an encampment of Eveni herders. 211 00:28:25,040 --> 00:28:27,840 'Perhaps it's not the greenest way to travel.' 212 00:28:37,720 --> 00:28:40,840 Six hours from the village and we make a stop. 213 00:28:40,840 --> 00:28:43,360 Here on the shores of a lake, 214 00:28:43,360 --> 00:28:47,600 my personal journey is reignited once again. 215 00:29:04,960 --> 00:29:06,680 Shaman? From here? 216 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:07,800 OK. 217 00:29:11,160 --> 00:29:12,200 OK. 218 00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:13,240 Oh, from... 219 00:29:18,320 --> 00:29:19,560 Here? 220 00:29:23,680 --> 00:29:25,120 And this? All of it? 221 00:29:27,080 --> 00:29:28,240 All of it, OK. 222 00:29:37,120 --> 00:29:38,520 Oh! 223 00:30:15,280 --> 00:30:16,480 The track's come out. 224 00:30:16,480 --> 00:30:19,680 I've changed a few tyres in my time, but nothing like this. 225 00:30:26,960 --> 00:30:28,280 Now we're talking! 226 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:34,160 Like I said, I've changed a few tyres in my time, but now... 227 00:30:34,160 --> 00:30:35,920 but I've never changed a track. 228 00:30:44,040 --> 00:30:47,600 There's one village where I came from, which is over a day's journey, 229 00:30:47,600 --> 00:30:50,760 and the nearest next village is 250 miles away. 230 00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:57,080 What? Oh! 231 00:31:09,400 --> 00:31:12,440 'A few carefully delivered blows from a hammer 232 00:31:12,440 --> 00:31:15,840 'and we've removed the broken link. It's then just the tricky job 233 00:31:15,840 --> 00:31:19,320 'of joining together the two ends of the track.' 234 00:31:32,960 --> 00:31:34,480 There you have it. 235 00:31:34,480 --> 00:31:36,000 One fixed track. 236 00:31:40,880 --> 00:31:42,720 Living out here, 237 00:31:42,720 --> 00:31:46,600 you've got to be able to light a fire, ride a horse, fix a tank... 238 00:31:46,600 --> 00:31:49,200 You name it, you've got to be pretty resourceful. 239 00:31:55,440 --> 00:31:58,760 These are the foothills of the Verkhoyansk - 240 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:03,000 a mountain range that stretches for 1,000 kilometres. 241 00:32:03,000 --> 00:32:07,160 This is the coldest inhabited place in the world - 242 00:32:07,160 --> 00:32:09,280 minus 60 in the winter. 243 00:32:09,280 --> 00:32:14,080 In the summer, temperatures soar into the thirties. 244 00:32:14,080 --> 00:32:16,600 It's home to the Eveni people. 245 00:32:18,120 --> 00:32:20,040 These are reindeer herders 246 00:32:20,040 --> 00:32:24,200 who, for millennia, have inhabited this extreme landscape. 247 00:32:24,200 --> 00:32:27,320 There are fewer than 20,000 Eveni. 248 00:32:31,040 --> 00:32:34,280 After the fall of the Soviet Union in the early '90s, 249 00:32:34,280 --> 00:32:37,440 the herds almost totally collapsed. 250 00:32:38,800 --> 00:32:41,600 'I'm here to find out how one group has struggled back 251 00:32:41,600 --> 00:32:46,240 'from the brink of extinction and with it saved a unique way of life.' 252 00:32:46,240 --> 00:32:48,240 BRUCE GREETS THEM 253 00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:50,720 'This is Brigade Eight.' 254 00:32:50,720 --> 00:32:52,640 BRUCE INTRODUCES HIMSELF 255 00:32:53,760 --> 00:32:57,000 Bruce. Yegor. Hi, Yegor. 256 00:32:57,000 --> 00:32:59,840 'I've come at the busiest time of year - the count - 257 00:32:59,840 --> 00:33:04,440 'when the herders will discover the exact number of new calves born.' 258 00:33:15,200 --> 00:33:16,680 For me? 259 00:33:16,680 --> 00:33:18,240 Into the fire. 260 00:33:18,240 --> 00:33:20,520 Oh, put this in there! 261 00:33:20,520 --> 00:33:23,800 'It's traditional for new arrivals to feed the fire 262 00:33:23,800 --> 00:33:25,880 'in gratitude for a safe journey.' 263 00:33:25,880 --> 00:33:27,760 Just throw it in? Yeah? 264 00:33:29,120 --> 00:33:30,360 Yay! 265 00:33:29,120 --> 00:33:30,360 THEY CHEER 266 00:33:30,360 --> 00:33:32,520 BRUCE LAUGHS 267 00:33:32,520 --> 00:33:38,160 'These men work shifts around the clock while there is 24-hour daylight. 268 00:33:38,160 --> 00:33:41,480 'The reindeer need to feed continuously at this time of year 269 00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:45,960 'so they can lay down enough fat to make it through the long, harsh winter.' 270 00:33:58,960 --> 00:34:00,240 THEY LAUGH 271 00:34:26,120 --> 00:34:29,520 Tomorrow the Eveni will migrate to new pastures, 272 00:34:29,520 --> 00:34:32,600 some five kilometres further up the valley. 273 00:34:41,800 --> 00:34:45,280 The specially trained reindeer who will help with the migration 274 00:34:45,280 --> 00:34:49,040 are called Uchakh and we need to catch 25 of these big males 275 00:34:49,040 --> 00:34:52,520 out of a herd of almost 2,000 reindeer. 276 00:34:52,520 --> 00:34:55,720 I'm with camp leader Vassili. 277 00:35:30,880 --> 00:35:34,480 The entire camp must be packed up onto sledges for the migration. 278 00:35:38,560 --> 00:35:42,200 'The Eveni are one of the few peoples in the world who ride reindeer 279 00:35:42,200 --> 00:35:44,800 'and they do it in a unique way, 280 00:35:44,800 --> 00:35:47,560 'by sitting high up on the animal's shoulders 281 00:35:47,560 --> 00:35:50,440 'and using a stick for balance.' 282 00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:23,080 It's absolute bliss being on this. 283 00:36:23,080 --> 00:36:29,040 It's just so peaceful, calming, it's sort of therapeutic in a way. 284 00:36:29,040 --> 00:36:30,760 You let your mind go blank 285 00:36:30,760 --> 00:36:33,920 and the scenery all around is so spectacular. 286 00:36:33,920 --> 00:36:35,920 It's heaven. 287 00:36:40,560 --> 00:36:45,200 Under the Soviet Union, the herds became the property of the state 288 00:36:45,200 --> 00:36:48,560 and the Eveni were compelled to send their children to school. 289 00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:51,120 With no women or children left, 290 00:36:51,120 --> 00:36:55,440 the camps became dominated by bachelor men who would never marry. 291 00:36:55,440 --> 00:36:59,840 It was to mark the end of a truly nomadic way of life. 292 00:36:59,840 --> 00:37:03,560 With the collapse of Communism, many of the brigades failed to cope 293 00:37:03,560 --> 00:37:06,000 with the transition to private ownership. 294 00:37:06,000 --> 00:37:09,880 Only now, with some state subsidy and hard graft, 295 00:37:09,880 --> 00:37:12,480 are the herds growing once again. 296 00:37:28,480 --> 00:37:31,400 'One of the herders I'm getting on with best is Yegor. 297 00:37:31,400 --> 00:37:35,480 'He's in his forties, but only joined the brigade a year ago, 298 00:37:35,480 --> 00:37:39,240 'though he spent much of his youth as a herder.' 299 00:37:42,680 --> 00:37:48,280 Someone told me that the reason that you face the tent this way 300 00:37:48,280 --> 00:37:49,840 is to do with the spirit world. 301 00:37:49,840 --> 00:37:52,360 Is this true? 302 00:38:15,440 --> 00:38:18,000 'I'm learning that the legacy of the Soviet Union 303 00:38:18,000 --> 00:38:21,480 'is as much about ideology as it is economics. 304 00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:25,680 'For the Soviets, the Shaman was the living embodiment of superstition 305 00:38:25,680 --> 00:38:27,240 'and had to be eradicated. 306 00:38:27,240 --> 00:38:30,560 'Even today it's a sensitive subject.' 307 00:38:33,200 --> 00:38:37,720 On the migration today I felt... I felt something. 308 00:38:37,720 --> 00:38:40,560 It's almost like the mountains were... 309 00:38:40,560 --> 00:38:42,320 were telling me something. 310 00:38:42,320 --> 00:38:47,120 Do you think I'm mad or do you think there might be something in that? 311 00:39:26,640 --> 00:39:29,400 The boggy terrain and soaring summer temperatures 312 00:39:29,400 --> 00:39:34,360 provide the ideal breeding conditions for mosquitoes - billions of them 313 00:39:34,360 --> 00:39:36,080 that plague the reindeer 314 00:39:36,080 --> 00:39:39,800 and it's the job of the herders to try and reduce their impact. 315 00:39:39,800 --> 00:39:44,880 I'm heading out with Piotr, one of the most experienced herders, 316 00:39:44,880 --> 00:39:46,920 on my first evening shift. 317 00:39:56,960 --> 00:39:58,280 The herd. 318 00:39:58,280 --> 00:39:59,920 Wow. 319 00:40:01,000 --> 00:40:02,520 Wow. 320 00:40:04,200 --> 00:40:07,440 Sit here and take it all in 321 00:40:07,440 --> 00:40:10,000 because it doesn't get more scenic than that. 322 00:40:17,920 --> 00:40:20,400 PIOTR WHISTLES 323 00:40:23,640 --> 00:40:26,440 It's a totally different sensation, 324 00:40:26,440 --> 00:40:30,960 being with the herd when you're on the back of a reindeer. 325 00:40:30,960 --> 00:40:34,360 It's like being on safari, on horseback or something. You just... 326 00:40:34,360 --> 00:40:35,560 It gives you an extra... 327 00:40:35,560 --> 00:40:40,640 extra sensation of sort of being with the animals. 328 00:41:34,560 --> 00:41:36,400 PIOTR WHISTLES AND SHOUTS 329 00:42:20,920 --> 00:42:24,880 Domestic life in the camp is run by Anna, a full-time cook. 330 00:42:24,880 --> 00:42:28,720 She also oversees the young Eveni who come up in the summer months 331 00:42:28,720 --> 00:42:33,040 to learn about the traditional way of life and to help with this, 332 00:42:33,040 --> 00:42:35,440 the busiest time of year. 333 00:42:38,520 --> 00:42:40,440 Whenever the herd returns to camp, 334 00:42:40,440 --> 00:42:43,560 we are back on the job of earmarking all the new calves. 335 00:42:46,600 --> 00:42:48,440 OK. 336 00:42:48,440 --> 00:42:50,240 How many animals do you have? 337 00:43:11,920 --> 00:43:13,520 Yegor has got a day off, 338 00:43:13,520 --> 00:43:16,200 but he doesn't strike me as a guy to sit around. 339 00:43:16,200 --> 00:43:17,640 How are you? 340 00:43:18,920 --> 00:43:20,000 Yeah, all good. 341 00:43:26,800 --> 00:43:27,840 Up there? 342 00:43:32,760 --> 00:43:36,200 I don't know if I know what you're saying. Go up here? 343 00:43:41,040 --> 00:43:42,160 OK. Yeah. With you? 344 00:43:43,200 --> 00:43:45,640 I think I understand. I'm shaking on something. 345 00:43:45,640 --> 00:43:48,360 I'm not too sure, but I think I know what you're saying. 346 00:43:48,360 --> 00:43:51,120 Can someone tell me what I've just agreed to? 347 00:43:51,120 --> 00:43:54,240 Yes, you have agreed to have a competition with Yegor 348 00:43:54,240 --> 00:43:56,160 who is first on the top of that hill. 349 00:43:56,160 --> 00:43:58,880 Oh, you're kidding! I didn't know that's what... 350 00:43:58,880 --> 00:44:01,080 BRUCE LAUGHS 351 00:44:58,080 --> 00:44:59,840 GUN FIRES 352 00:45:27,920 --> 00:45:30,720 He's still ahead, but he's taken a different route. 353 00:45:33,000 --> 00:45:35,920 I can hear squeals from below. 354 00:45:35,920 --> 00:45:37,480 He's overtaken me again. 355 00:45:47,960 --> 00:45:49,760 BRUCE BELCHES 356 00:45:54,880 --> 00:45:57,880 CROWD CHEERS 357 00:46:07,720 --> 00:46:09,720 Well done. 358 00:46:09,720 --> 00:46:11,160 Thank you. 359 00:46:11,160 --> 00:46:14,040 'Clearly I am no match for Yegor, 360 00:46:14,040 --> 00:46:17,280 'but maybe there's another reason why he's got me up here 361 00:46:17,280 --> 00:46:20,280 'and I think it's got something to do with my quest.' 362 00:46:20,280 --> 00:46:22,920 Wow. 363 00:46:22,920 --> 00:46:25,400 Wow, yeah, amazing. 364 00:46:25,400 --> 00:46:31,000 'I had taken the challenge to be simply a macho Soviet-style contest, 365 00:46:31,000 --> 00:46:35,800 'but standing up here, I now realise it's much more about the Eveni 366 00:46:35,800 --> 00:46:38,760 'and their deep relationship to the world around them.' 367 00:46:40,040 --> 00:46:42,080 That is quite special. 368 00:46:42,080 --> 00:46:44,680 I'm so pleased to be up here with you today. 369 00:46:44,680 --> 00:46:46,720 Thank you for the challenge. 370 00:46:46,720 --> 00:46:48,760 Thank you for dragging me up here. 371 00:46:48,760 --> 00:46:51,080 No mosquitoes, 372 00:46:51,080 --> 00:46:53,320 the most amazing view. 373 00:47:12,200 --> 00:47:15,400 In the camp, supplies of meat are running low. 374 00:47:24,160 --> 00:47:26,520 I'm quite used to this following around 375 00:47:26,520 --> 00:47:30,080 while Piotr is trying to find a certain type of reindeer, 376 00:47:30,080 --> 00:47:33,360 either one for milking, one for riding, one for pulling a sledge, 377 00:47:33,360 --> 00:47:36,000 one to cut the ear that belongs to a certain family. 378 00:47:36,000 --> 00:47:40,920 But this is the first time I've been with him when he's been looking for an INDIVIDUAL reindeer. 379 00:47:40,920 --> 00:47:47,760 Somewhere in here, the next animal that we're going to slaughter for the camp is a reindeer. 380 00:47:47,760 --> 00:47:51,240 And so, quite rightly, he's hiding! 381 00:47:57,040 --> 00:47:59,560 Have we found it? I think we've found it. 382 00:48:03,200 --> 00:48:05,520 Is it the right one, is it the right one? Yes? 383 00:48:16,520 --> 00:48:19,960 The stake's there, I left the stake there. He's got it, he's got it. 384 00:48:35,040 --> 00:48:37,920 Not all reindeer are destined for the table. 385 00:48:50,600 --> 00:48:52,200 The biggest male reindeer 386 00:48:52,200 --> 00:48:55,320 are frequently kept as Uchakh, or riding deer. 387 00:48:55,320 --> 00:48:58,840 The process of breaking them in takes several weeks... 388 00:49:05,000 --> 00:49:07,240 ..and today is day one. 389 00:49:07,240 --> 00:49:10,040 MAN LAUGHS 390 00:49:24,480 --> 00:49:26,920 Does he... Is he fully trained yet? 391 00:49:28,200 --> 00:49:29,320 He's not trained? 392 00:49:33,600 --> 00:49:35,560 BRUCE LAUGHS 393 00:49:35,560 --> 00:49:36,600 OK, I've got you. 394 00:49:44,960 --> 00:49:46,800 BRUCE LAUGHS 395 00:49:46,800 --> 00:49:48,720 MEN LAUGH 396 00:49:52,800 --> 00:49:55,440 MEN LAUGH 397 00:50:07,640 --> 00:50:11,640 Your turn. I think I've proved that I can't do that very well. 398 00:50:11,640 --> 00:50:13,400 Exhilarating as it may be, 399 00:50:13,400 --> 00:50:16,720 I'm not the guy to train this... this lovely animal. 400 00:50:18,920 --> 00:50:20,720 It might look rather gruelling, 401 00:50:20,720 --> 00:50:24,320 but, once trained, this reindeer will have a long life ahead of it. 402 00:50:40,560 --> 00:50:43,480 'I've been with the Eveni for a fortnight now 403 00:50:43,480 --> 00:50:45,840 'and, though their skills are formidable, 404 00:50:45,840 --> 00:50:49,440 'it's their reverence for the sacredness of nature 405 00:50:49,440 --> 00:50:51,200 'that I find most inspiring.' 406 00:51:30,760 --> 00:51:32,960 THUNDER RUMBLES 407 00:51:37,560 --> 00:51:42,160 It's the final tally after several weeks of ear marking. 408 00:51:47,680 --> 00:51:49,520 Council official Innokenti 409 00:51:49,520 --> 00:51:53,400 records the number of new calves born to each private owner. 410 00:51:56,680 --> 00:51:58,520 It's also a chance for the herders 411 00:51:58,520 --> 00:52:00,840 to find out how much their personal wealth 412 00:52:00,840 --> 00:52:03,360 has grown in the new privatized Russia. 413 00:52:05,960 --> 00:52:08,840 And how many, er, new calves do you have this year? 414 00:52:14,360 --> 00:52:16,120 36 just for you? 415 00:52:21,240 --> 00:52:24,200 OK, so Piotr has five, six, seven, eight... 17. OK. 416 00:52:24,200 --> 00:52:26,760 How about Yegor? 417 00:52:26,760 --> 00:52:28,440 Yegor. 418 00:52:28,440 --> 00:52:31,240 None? None at all? 419 00:52:31,240 --> 00:52:32,760 So far. 420 00:52:43,760 --> 00:52:46,040 It's been a good year for Brigade Eight. 421 00:52:46,040 --> 00:52:50,280 The herd has grown by almost a fifth and that means more work. 422 00:52:58,600 --> 00:52:59,920 OK. 423 00:52:59,920 --> 00:53:03,400 'It's my final day with the Eveni 424 00:53:03,400 --> 00:53:07,080 'and I'm going out on a full night shift with Yegor.' 425 00:53:14,160 --> 00:53:15,760 I know so little about him. 426 00:53:15,760 --> 00:53:18,280 Yegor was brought up a herder, 427 00:53:18,280 --> 00:53:21,360 but only returned to this way of life a year ago. 428 00:53:21,360 --> 00:53:23,240 I was wondering where he had been 429 00:53:23,240 --> 00:53:26,880 in the dark years following the collapse of the Soviet Union, 430 00:53:26,880 --> 00:53:30,360 when the herds teetered on the brink of extinction. 431 00:54:46,640 --> 00:54:48,880 Thanks, my friend. 432 00:54:48,880 --> 00:54:52,120 'Yegor, who had so roundly beaten me on the mountain, 433 00:54:52,120 --> 00:54:57,040 'was now showing me something of the fragility of the indigenous people of the Arctic. 434 00:54:57,040 --> 00:55:03,200 'It's all too easy to think of supporting these traditional ways of life 435 00:55:03,200 --> 00:55:05,600 'almost out of a nostalgia for the past, 436 00:55:05,600 --> 00:55:09,840 'like keeping something valuable in a museum for future generations. 437 00:55:09,840 --> 00:55:11,320 'In reality, however, 438 00:55:11,320 --> 00:55:15,320 'what I see around me is not the past but the future. 439 00:55:15,320 --> 00:55:20,880 'Support for the Eveni way of life is simply good, modern social policy. 440 00:55:23,520 --> 00:55:27,760 'It's the Eveni's skill with reindeer and their intimacy with nature 441 00:55:27,760 --> 00:55:30,120 'that enables them to be productive. 442 00:55:30,120 --> 00:55:35,160 'Once that link is broken, the consequences are often catastrophic. 443 00:55:35,160 --> 00:55:38,880 'And perhaps it is this - their relationship with nature - 444 00:55:38,880 --> 00:55:41,960 'that also answers my own personal journey.' 445 00:55:43,080 --> 00:55:45,400 The spiritual revival that I experienced 446 00:55:45,400 --> 00:55:47,600 at the beginning of my journey 447 00:55:47,600 --> 00:55:49,400 isn't present here. 448 00:55:49,400 --> 00:55:53,640 And at first, er, I was a bit bemused, maybe even disappointed, 449 00:55:53,640 --> 00:55:58,080 especially having come to a place where the word "shamanism" 450 00:55:58,080 --> 00:56:00,800 first arrived, first came about. 451 00:56:00,800 --> 00:56:04,600 But the Soviets have got rid of all the shamans, there are none left. 452 00:56:04,600 --> 00:56:10,240 But the interesting thing is that there's no need for a revival here 453 00:56:10,240 --> 00:56:13,680 because the herders are so in tune 454 00:56:13,680 --> 00:56:17,760 and aware of their animals and this landscape 455 00:56:17,760 --> 00:56:22,960 that the spirit world, that the shamans were only ever a pathway to anyway, 456 00:56:22,960 --> 00:56:25,600 is as alive today as it ever has been. 457 00:56:37,320 --> 00:56:41,360 It's time for me to leave the Eveni and head home. 458 00:56:47,640 --> 00:56:49,040 Really? 459 00:56:53,040 --> 00:56:55,520 Wow, thank you. 460 00:57:03,200 --> 00:57:04,400 Thanks, man. 461 00:57:11,720 --> 00:57:14,360 It's too much. It's such a big thing for me. 462 00:57:14,360 --> 00:57:16,640 Amazing. All right, good luck. 463 00:57:24,280 --> 00:57:27,080 Next time, I'm in the far north of Greenland. 464 00:57:29,880 --> 00:57:32,240 This is the Arctic of the imagination - 465 00:57:32,240 --> 00:57:37,200 a frozen world that's home to the last Inuit hunters. 466 00:57:37,200 --> 00:57:39,520 Weapons at the ready. 467 00:57:39,520 --> 00:57:41,360 This really is a hunting trip.