Shepherding School on Mount Strymba, Kolochava

The Kolochava Shepherding School is not a building with classrooms but a summer shepherds' camp (salash) on the slopes of Mount Strymba (1,719 m), one of the highest peaks within Synevyr National Nature Park. Locals in Kolochava created the format to introduce travellers to traditional Carpathian sheep farming: walk up to the flock with the shepherds, try milking a ewe, watch budz and vurda cheese being made and share a meal by the campfire more than a thousand metres up.

A day with the shepherds

The hike starts in the village: with a guide, the group climbs Strymba's slopes through forest and flowering meadows. Views open over the Tereblia valley and long, stretched-out Kolochava, and near the pasture you begin to hear sheep bells, barking dogs and the shepherds' calls. At the salash, guests see the fold and hundreds of sheep — locals tell them apart by fleece colour and have their own names for each.

• milking sheep — the shepherds demonstrate and let you try;
• cheese-making: fresh milk is strained, warmed by the fire and curdled — this is how budz is born, later turned into brynza;
• vurda — a soft, sweetish cheese cooked from the whey left after budz; the liquid left after vurda is zhentytsia, the traditional shepherds' drink;
• a shepherd's lunch — tokan (polenta) with sheep's brynza, soup, shepherds' stories and sometimes the sound of a trembita or sopilka;
• for the fit — the climb to Strymba's summit; for the keen — a night in a tent near the pasture.

The Carpathian shepherding tradition

Sheep herding is one of the oldest highland occupations. It was never taught in schools: the secrets of grazing, milking and cheese-making passed from father to son right on the pasture. A few decades ago thousands of sheep grazed every mountain pasture of the Mizhhiria area; today the flocks are much smaller and shepherds are few. Kolochava's shepherds gather sheep from the whole village and graze them all season: owners pay for grazing and get cheese in return. This living way of life is what you see on Strymba — no stage set, no script.

Season and practical information

• Season: the flock goes out to graze from mid-May; in July–August the shepherds are highest in the mountains, then gradually move down towards the village. Grazing lasts into autumn — traditionally until St Demetrius' Day (8 November).
• Format: a guided hike — reaching the salash takes several hours; bring good shoes, a rain jacket and water.
• Meeting place: the salash has no fixed address, as the shepherds move the flock between pastures, so agree the route and time with a local guide or Kolochava's tourism services.
• Organiser: the «Shepherd School» programme is described on kolochava.com, run by the Azhio tourist complex (81-A Shevchenka St, Kolochava, tel. +38 067 217 09 85). Call ahead to check whether it is currently running.
• Cost: sources give no set price; payment usually depends on the guide's services.

Information on the "Shepherding School" comes mostly from local tourism sources that are several years old, so be sure to check whether such outings run this season. The shepherding life on Strymba's pastures itself is very much alive — flocks still graze there.

Please confirm by phone before your trip.

Getting there

Kolochava is in Khust district (formerly Mizhhiria district), about 30 km from Mizhhiria. By car — via Mizhhiria and Nehrovets; from Khust — via Vilshany along the Tereblia valley. Buses run from Khust and Mizhhiria. Trails to Strymba start in the village; the summit climb is a full, moderate day hike.

Website and social media: kolochava.com

Photos: kolochava.com.