The research work of an expedition of pupils, which was organized in the village Spasporub within the framework of the project “Forest village”, is finished at the end of this week.

Senior pupils from two schools – Obyachevo and Spasporub – participated in the expedition with their teachers M.H.Nizovtseva, N.P.Miheyeva and M.V.Startseva.  During ten days they studied business activity history of different generations of Spasporub and neighboring villages’ population.

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Another educational workshop devoted to rural tourism (the second workshop this year) was held within the framework of the “Forest Village” project in Udora region in June.

The first two-day workshop on the topic “Rural Tourism as a Branch of Economics Sustainability” was held in February. The discussion was held by the owners of guest houses, regional ethnographers, tourism coordinators, experts on traditional business, and representatives of municipal government from different parts of the region – Glotovo and Butkan, Politovo and Pyssa, Koslan and Mezchdurechensk, Muchkas and Chernutjevo. The first experience demonstrated that the topic discussed aroused much interest; therefore, 35 people took part in the second workshop instead of the expected 15-20.

It can be explained by the fact that Udora region is the only region in Komi where people do not only speak about the possibilities of the rural tourism, but also actively work on it. Moreover, common people work as well as the executives. Together, they worked out and accepted a municipal programme for tourism development, and even made their own brand – “The Necklace of Udora”. This name was given by the initiators of tourism development to the river Mezen which makes a loop of 577 km through the region.

So, in this Mezen “string” the villagers included natural, historical, and cultural sites of their region. This “Necklace” is decorated with virgin woodlands, particularly, by famous Korabelnaya chasha (literally, Ship midwood) eternalized by Michael Prishvin, and with unique lakes, some of which are solution lakes, as well as cult objects and ancient villages covered with legends and tales.

Rural tourism is based on natural and historical value of this particular place, and the locals are so involved. Preserving this beauty makes it more attractive for people, as well as the fact that rural tourism doesn’t need huge investments and brings profits directly to the locals.

There are already more than 10 guest houses ready to receive guests in Udora settlements; all of the houses were prepared by villagers themselves, and some of them already welcomed the first groups of city-dwellers last summer, for example, Dina Ivanovna Chuprova in Patrakovo village.

The members of the meeting in February decided to continue such kind of workshops, and on the 19th of June another training of the owners of guest houses there was organized. The workshop “A Guest House is the Prime Element of the Rural Touristic Production” united 15 owners of the guest houses. Among them were people who already operate in rural tourist industry and those who are only planning it.

The leader of the workshop Nina Nesterova, a professor from Syktyvkar State University, threw light on numerous details of business which were new for the villagers and answered the participants’ questions.

Due to the touristic potential of Udora region, as well as enthusiasm and energy of the locals, who eagerly assimilate a new type of business activities, we can hope that in the coming years rural tourism focused on nature may become an important source for the local budget.