FestRider Photo Blog

Bear Lake Fun: A Mud Festival Adventure

Novo‑Ilyinskoye (Kurgan Region)
Full Story: 129 photosQuick Impression: 45 photos
The festival is held for the fifth time, this year in the village of Novo‑Ilyinskoye
The Dead Sea of the Trans‑Urals — that’s what they call Bear Lake because of its high mineralization
Cool weather cuts down the number of tourists on the shore, but never to zero!
The table is all set for the presentation…
The rich broths come with all kinds of snacks on the side
True to the name, teams cook fish soup — each with its own secrets
Mikhail Kozlov’s repertoire is built around patriotic feeling
The crowd is welcomed by performers from the Petukhovo Cultural Center
Together with Olga Shevel, they form a strong vocal duo “Milya” (Kurgan)
The baton passes to the Russian homestead
It’s Petukhovo (Rooster Town literally), as the photo zone props make easy to guess
The local women are elegant and charming
Visitors can even turn the millstones of an old hand‑cranked mill
For a second, it might seem like there’s no festival bustle around…
…but that’s not true: this homestead with its flags is perhaps the most interactive of all
The tour through tradition ends with round dances
The mini‑exhibition by local artist Vladimir Dudko, an art school teacher, is worth a look
Moving on, we reach the “Oktyabrsky Stan” venue
By the way, they design and sew those bright outfits themselves
This isn’t the first time the performers have drawn on Romani culture
And in between dances, it's so great to meet the friends once found at Bear Lake
Kids are probably the stars of this foam party — but definitely not the only ones
At the attendees’ request, the foam cannon “fires” not just in a parabolic arc, but also in a direct line
We can never have too much foam!
Preparations are set on the shore of the salt lake for several rounds of mud games
The first challenge: “decorate” and present the captains. Time’s on the clock!
The opposing team has made serious progress with their camouflage too
The third challenge: cross the slides under one key rule
The main thing is to keep the competitive spirit high and not be afraid to get covered in mud from head to toe
The next team member’s moves must not copy the previous one’s
The fourth round is all about… irrigation work
In simple terms: connect the mud slides to the water body
Teams get to show off their towers built from a very tricky material
Team posing takes on more and more new shapes
…setting a personal example and inspiring everyone to embrace a little daring adventure
To upbeat music, the teams set off on a “round‑the‑world” trip
The “round‑the‑world” journey keeps going for quite a while
In the same playful style, they also show the Eiffel Tower and other landmarks
Teams move from 3D figures to flat ones
The final, ninth battle is a tug‑of‑war. On your marks… Get set… Go!
No matter what, they’re not about to give up so easily
Soon the sides switch places and adjust their tactics
With that, the mud games come to an end
The results are announced…
The last keepsake photos are taken

Continuing with the Theme

It all starts with a procession on the square near the House of Friendship78 shots

Nowruz will Bring the Spring

Omsk, House of Friendship Square

The jury’s next tasty stop is Ilyinskoye village (Kataysk District)90 shots

Trans‑Urals: Where Tea Tells a Story

Kargapolye (Kurgan Region)

Meanwhile we can admire the master’s fine work in every detail48 shots

Fire Miracle of the New Year Night

Omsk, Omsk Fortress

With the fire going strong, the dish will be ready in just a few minutes90 shots

Red Hill: Heralding the Arrival of Summer

Yalutorovsk (Tyumen Region)

And in the meantime, there’s time for a photo session — the kind you can only get at Winter Farewell!132 shots

Say Goodbye to Winter, Say Hello to Pancakes

Omsk, Krutaya Gorka Neighbourhood

The intricate patterns on the costumes add a touch of magic to every movement84 shots

Nowruz: Calling Spring with Tradition and Creativity

Odesskoye (Omsk Region)

All photo stories: 16