Berdyuzhskiy District: Nature, pilgrimage sites, and fish soup festival

Near the village of Okunevo lies Lake Solenoe, with an area of about 1.1 km². Its shoreline is designated a natural monument and a protected natural area of regional significance; its regional protected status is recorded in a 2023 government resolution. The “Peganovskaya ukha” festival takes place annually in Berdyuzhye.

The lake combines a specific landscape size with a designated protected area: it covers approximately 1.1 km², and its designation as a natural monument includes the lake and its shoreline. For orientation, it is in the vicinity of the village of Okunevo in Berdyuzhskiy District. The protected nature and the history of the area are two distinct aspects of the same lake.

During the Second World War, salt was extracted from the water of Lake Solenoe and sent to the front or sold. Water from the lake was also sent for the treatment of wounded soldiers. These accounts describe historical uses; they should be distinguished from the present-day designation of the shoreline as a protected natural area.

The Church of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, the Great Martyr, dating from the 18th century, stands in the village of Istoshino. It is a pilgrimage site in Berdyuzhskiy District. Another religious landmark is the Church of the Nativity of Christ: it is the only Orthodox Old Believer church in Tyumen Oblast and is considered a pilgrimage site in Berdyuzhskiy District.

A 2022 report describes an open-air museum created by residents at the building of the local administration in Okunevo. A thatched-roof house, a wooden well, a windmill, and a cart with chests illustrate peasant life and activities there.

The gastronomic festival “Peganovskaya ukha” takes place annually in Berdyuzhye. At one edition held in the territory of Peganovo, teams from rural settlements and businesses cooked fish soup and took part in competitions. At the sixth festival in 2026, the main dish was cooked over an open fire.

Historical excursions also reflect a range of interests: during an excursion in Istoshino reported in June 2022, visitors went to the “U krestika” pilgrimage spring; they tied ribbons and made wishes. Another excursion reported in 2022 in the Okunevskoye rural settlement area included Lake Solenoe and observing Australian emus.

At the level of the broader destination of Tyumen Oblast, there are other distinct cultural themes. The white-stone Tobolsk Kremlin is an open-air architectural monument on a high plateau at the confluence of the Tobol and Irtysh rivers. In Ishim, the P. P. Yershov Museum preserves the world’s largest collection of the fairy tale “The Little Humpbacked Horse.” The “Gorodskaya uprava” museum there covers the Nikolskaya Fair, the development of merchant life, and city life during the war years. This regional context therefore ranges from historic architecture to literary and urban history.

Discover more destinations: Dedovichsky District, Kunyinsky District, Velikoluksky District, Gdovskiy District, Bezhanitsky District, Pechorskiy District, Pskovskiy District and Sebezhsky District.

Where is Berdyuzhskiy District?

It lies in the southeastern part of Tyumen Oblast and borders the Republic of Kazakhstan.

How large is Lake Solenoe?

The lake near the village of Okunevo covers about 1.1 km². Its shoreline is designated a natural monument and a protected natural area of regional significance.

What is known about the “Peganovskaya ukha” festival?

It takes place annually in Berdyuzhye. At one edition held in the territory of Peganovo, teams cooked fish soup and took part in competitions; at the sixth festival in 2026, the main dish was cooked over an open fire.

For the broader travel overview: Pskov Oblast.