Varzuga – the miracle of remoteness

The historic village of Varzuga belongs to the oldest Russian settlements on the Kola Peninsula. Its' long history reflects the entire story of the Russian colonization of this severe frontier, gateway to the Arctic. Cold, yet rich sea, vast marchy taiga forest full of berries and mushrooms, scarce population, long winters with plenty of snow – all these specificities of the environment shaped the local characters. When we gathered to visit this place, we had some expectations based on our knowledge of the medieval and Early Modern history of the region. We knew that the settlement on the banks of the Varzuga river appeared probably in the 15th century, and has always had a reputation as one of the most productive salmon fisheries in the Russian North. The Soviet power did not alter this specific resource base of the local economy. Salmon, coming annually for spawning in the late summer and early autumn was the most important part of the annual cycle of economic activities.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, salmon became the core element of the local project of touristic development. Noticeably, the Varzuga administration from the very beginning intended to participate in the elite touristic market, offering expensive tours to the wealthy customers from Europe and America, and later also from Asia. Russian visitors were not considered as a target audience at least until quite recent time.

The effect of COVID 19 became very visible for the touristic industry of the Russian North. The borders were closed, and the regions of Russia became popular among wealthy travelers from Moscow and other big cities, interested in new emotions and impressions. Being relatively easily accessible for the capital dwellers by plane, train, or car, the Kola peninsula provided enough exotic nature and unusual experience. Varzuga occupied a significant niche in this process. The combination of an attractive resource for fishing, availability of natural and cultural heritage sites, and relatively well-developed hospitality infrastructure provoked the rapid growth of touristic flow.

Now the local community faces the challenge of protecting the traditional way of life while developing touristic services. The task is complicated by the ambiguous position of the river with its fish resources. Indeed, exploitation of this decreasing population of the wild Atlantic salmon is equally important for locals and tourists, and each group intends to get monopolistic rights for this activity. Our research aims to study the expectations and strategies of all the participants of this uneasy story.