(Source: http://perfilovu.narod.ru/foto)

Now, out of the eleven Kargopol churches, only two are functioning. The rest either are being restored or were turned into museums.

The Church of Zosima and Savvaty is topped with a drum with columns used as a concert and exhibition hall. On major holidays or by the request of a tourist group, the folk choir "Svetilen" performs here surrounded by ancient icons and sculptures. Touching hymns blow the soul up to heaven, where no fuss, suffering and petty problems. The concept of "heaven" in the Russian North is often used figuratively. This is how the church ceilings with paintings of trumpeting angels and singing seraphims, winged archangels and evangelists with books in their hands are called.

The "Heaven" in the village of Saunino, five kilometers away from Kargopol is preserved the best. Entering the Church of St. John Chrysostom and pointing the flashlight at the ceiling, you get struck by the color scheme painting on gesso, by the harmony of shades on the red, blue and purple tunics, brightly shining golden nimbuses.

It was a tragedy when the Pokrovo-Vlasyevskaya Church with multi-figure paintings under the arch, burned off in 2013 fire in the village of Lyadiny. At the spot where the temple stood and the belfry towered, there remained only a small snow pile, surrounded by the crosses of the church graveyard.

The founder of the school’s ethnographic museum Nadezhda Voroschuk preserves the traditional northern way of life in Lyadiny. The exhibition exposes peasant mid-calf stockings with twines; round sarafan with embroidered calendar; flat-bottomed washstand; beer scoop from birch burl; indigo print handicrafts, already forgotten in Russia. Three years ago the school was transferred to another village, but before Lyadiny kids used to raise flax with their own hands, to spun, to dye and to sew folk costumes from fabrics.

The village of Lyadiny stands on Pudozhsky highway in 37 kilometers from Kargopol. After driving another 53 kilometers you will find yourself in the village of Morschihinskoye, the location of the welcome center of Kenozersky National Park, which is famous for its numerous lakes and rivers, mossy boulders, Hizh-mountain covered with forests and the unique natural monument called Northern Equator. Esker ridge formed by а glacier ten thousand years ago separates the two lakes – Maselga and Vilna. The waters of the first lake flow into the Baltic Sea through Onega and Ladoga and then into the Atlantic Ocean. In turn, Vilna connects with Kenozero, which flows into the White Sea and goes out into the Arctic Ocean. This way, from the narrow shaft – the border of the Baltic Shield and the Russian platform – can be seen the two oceans at once. Nothing else like Northern Equator exists in Russia. 

In winter, in an ancient Russian town one can play ice bowling, see painted "heavens", learn about the art of modeling clay toys, go for fishing, listen to the magnificent church chants and visit the Northern Equator separating two oceans. In Kargopol every sound is clear and defined: the crunching snow outside the window tells about the frost, the sound of an ax about heating the sauna, snorting horses about riding the sleigh.

Melodic polyphonic ringing that spreads from the high Cathedral tower heralds the coming noon. Three-tiered bell tower was erected in 1778 to meet the procession of Yekaterina II with music, but the Empress never arrived to Kargopol. The reason why the highest visit was canceled had been forgotten long ago, but the architectural gem, decorated with gilded cross and the faces of wooden angels remained. A narrow spiral staircase goes up to the observation deck. The stone stairs were polished by the feet of ringers, pilgrims and tourists.

From 50-meter height everything seems a bit toyish:  houses with carved trims sprinkled with snow powder, helmet-like domes and spreading tree branches. On the square you will see Lenin's figure, little squatted, bending his arm as if he was getting ready to go for a dance. Behind the revolutionary leader locates the former building of the Public Assembly, where once entertained reputable Kargopol merchants: they played roulette and watched the performances of provincial theater.

The ice slightly covered the Onega River. Dark blurs at the river bank are framed by yellow, frosted grass. The silhouette of a fisherman with the long rod is highlighted on the bright background. Judging from his static body posture, the nibble is clearly not coming out. Winter fishing is good in the middle of the river, but the ice is flimsy, walking on it is risky. In early January, when Onega finally freezes, fisherman will take the fisher jig, drill a hole away from the coast and will return home with a bucket full of the catch. Long wooden barn by the ice-free spring is a rinse house, functioning since time immemorial. Clothes, rinsed in clear spring water and dried in the frost, keep the scent of natural freshness for long.

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