The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 12: A “Salty” Surprise

April 9, 2014April 9, 2014 | foxstudio

Ovoo enroute to Altay. Notice the smooth, level earth road in the background…

The next morning we drove on to Altay, the capital of Gobi Altai Aimag. It’s a small city with all the services one might need, including an airport with regular flights to and from Ulaanbaatar.

We were treated to lunch at the home of an artist friend of Tugsoyun’s. More than lunch, really, a multi-course feast. Two hours later, we made our goodbyes and, after a short stop at a local temple, were on our way east again.

The last camels we saw on the Expedition.

The road was great going east from Altay until we reached the aimag border. It’s the main east/west route on the south side of the Hangai Mountains. I was shocked when not long after I took this photo it turned into some of the nastiest, most miserable road I’ve traveled on in eight trips to Mongolia. There is no way solid economic progress can be made in Mongolia or the people be able to make a good living , build up a company and send goods to bigger markets like Ulaanbaatar as long as the roads are so bad. Fortunately, every year there is more tarmac laid and the situation improves. But I’d pay not to have travel that stretch again and I love the earth roads.

As we bumped along and hung on, we came upon a car that had broken down out in the middle of nowhere. And in Mongolia, that’s saying something. We stopped, of course, and our drivers spoke to the people, a young couple with an older woman. It wasn’t a good situation because we had no room to take anyone with us, weren’t going near a town and it was clearly going to get cold that night. So we promised to stop at the first ger we came to and tell them where to find the car and people. We drove for quite a bit and came over a rise to see this lake and…two gers! One van drove off to the gers and ours headed to this well. In a very short time we saw a truck from the gers head back up the road towards the stranded car. So we knew they’d be ok. We looked around and decided that we’d come upon a perfect spot to camp. But first we filled our water container.

As is usually the case, someone spotted us and came riding over on this very nice-looking horse with a traditional saddle, so out came the cameras. Another man came within minutes on the motorbike.

The horse's owner and rider. — The horse’s owner and rider.

After a short visit, he went on his way.

The other man, it turned out, owned these two little gers near the lake. He was staying in one, but offered us the use of the other for our kitchen and dining room. It looks pretty tacky and was too tiny to get any interior photos, but it was comfy and cozy inside when the wind came up and the temperature dropped.

What could have been more perfect? Settled down for the evening, beautiful late light and this lovely herd of horses coming for water and to graze.

Packing up camp. The man in the white hat was the owner of the gers. A conversation with him the night before revealed that we were camped near quite a large salt deposit and that he was a salt miner. He offered to give us a tour in the morning.

After dinner, — After breakfast, Tseegii and Soyoloo made our lunch for the day, khuushuur (fried meat turnovers). One of my personal favorites that I never get tired of.

Fresh and hot, right out of the pan. Soyoloo, our cook, turned out three course dinners, including soups from scratch, using this single burner gas cooker.

sgaj — The man with his hands behind his back turned out to be the local official who supervised the salt extraction, issuing and checking permits and keeping an eye on things.

The salt deposit, with harvested salt ready to be bagged up.

The "miners" would fill a bag like this and carry it out to be sold. If I recall correctly, they would get $15 for a 50 kilo bag. Hard work, very hard, but pretty good money at this point. — The “miners” would fill a bag like this and carry it out to be sold. If I recall correctly, they would get $15 for a 50 kilo bag. Hard work, very hard, but pretty good money at this point.

We were shown the two versions of the salt. The white at the bottom has been washed. The brown at the top is unwashed.

Our host led us all the way out into the middle of the deposit. We really had to watch where we stepped. And three of us had expensive camera equipment to think about. But we wouldn’t have missed this for anything!

a;flj — One of the miners with sacks ready to carry back to the pick-up point.

I felt a little like I was in Yellowstone National Park, looking down into these colorful mineral pools.

Our hosts. The miner, on the left, is doing this work to earn money to pay for his daughter to go to the university in Ulaanbaatar. It’s very hard work, but because it pays pretty well he said it was worth it. On the right is the salt mine supervisor/manager from the local government office. I think they liked how interested we were and enjoyed sharing information about what they do. We really appreciated this unexpected look at one piece of life in Mongolia.

Finally, the miner demonstrated to us how the salt is washed. This simple homemade tool does the job.

Then he rinses it with vigorous shaking.

Salt has been valuable as the only means of preserving food for thousands of years, really until quite recently. It is still used for that, of course, and as a flavoring. It’s fun to imagine that salt from this place could have traveled the Silk Road to Europe and ended up on the table of a king. And it’s possible.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 11: Darvi Soum And More Saiga Antelope

April 1, 2014May 19, 2014 | foxstudio

Sunrise at Ihes Nuur with our excellent cook, Soyoloo.

We had a lovely evening by the lake, Ihes Nuur. Mosquitos weren’t a problem since it was now September. The next morning the light was wonderful. Off in the distance we could hear drumming. One of the Mongols remarked that they thought it was a shaman who was at one of the gers we could see from where we were camped.

The goal this morning was to find Batsaikhan, the coordinator of the Saiga Ranger Network. But first we had time to walk around the lakeshore and sketch, paint and take photos.

Soyoloo and Tseegii packing up the kitchen and food.

On our way into town, we passed a hillside with a lot of black kites.

Myself and Batsaikhan Baljiinnayam, the Saiga Ranger Network coordinator. He gave us an excellent briefing on the history and current status of saiga antelope conservation and offered to take us out to look for them.

To get an overview of the area, Batsaikhan took us up to this high point which had a large ovoo.

Batsaikhan briefs the group on saiga conservation. — Batsaikhan briefs the group on the local area and saiga conservation.

Back into town for a short stop where I got a photo of a local woman fetching water. Almost no one in the soum centers has running water in their home, so they must fetch water using metal or plastic barrels carried by these small carts. Needless to say, water conservation is a way of life.

A statue of a famous race horse. The Darvi and Sharga areas of Mongolia are famous for their horses. — Statue of a famous race horse, named Darvi. The town and soum are named after him. The Darvi and Sharga areas of Mongolia are well-known throughout Mongolia for their horses.

Batsaikan led us on a "game drive" and we again saw a lot of saiga. They were always a long way off, which is why this cropped-in close-up is a little blurry. — Batsaikan led us on a “game drive” and we again saw a lot of saiga. They were always a long way off, which is why this cropped-in close-up of a male saiga is a little blurry.

Spectacular landscape. — Saiga live here….

Getting information for the next leg of our journey. — Getting information for the next leg of our journey from one of the rangers. We would now begin the long trip back to the east and Ulaanbaatar.

The largest number we saw at one time was this group of five. They didn’t seem to notice the presence of the herders and their livestock at all.

Time to say goodbye and get a group shot. From left to right: Susan Fox, Tugsoyun Sodnom, Oidoviin Magvandorj, Batsaikhan Baljinnayam, Sharon Schafer, Soyoloo, I. Odna, local ranger, driver, Sendag, driver Batmaa. Photo by guide Tseegii.

On the road again... — On the road again…

We came to a sand dune area and got out to poke around and take a break. Here's our faithful Russian vans. — We came to a sand dune area and got out to poke around and take a break. Here’s our faithful Russian vans.

Camp all set up. — Camp all set up in Sharga Soum.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 9: Takhiin Tal, In The Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area

March 19, 2014March 19, 2021 | foxstudio

We had finally reached the main goal of the Expedition, Takhiin Tal, the second location where takhi/Przewalski’s horses were reintroduced to Mongolia in 1992. I had wanted to go here for years, having already been to the other two release sites: Hustai National Park (at least six times) and Khomiin Tal (in 2006, my second trip), which is in Zavkhan Aimag.

My friend, Anne-Camille Souris, a khulan/Mongolian wild ass researcher, had given me an introduction to the Director of Takhiin Tal, Oyunsaikhan Ganbaatar, He proved to be a most wonderfully gracious host, taking time out during a very busy part of the year when he and the staff were preparing for winter to give us a detailed briefing on the project and making one of his rangers available to us as a guide.

Everyone at Takhiin Tal went out of their way to make us feel welcome. We stayed in the guest gers and had the use of another for our kitchen and dining room. There were shower stalls in which we could use our pump sprayer to get clean for the first time in days. The camp managers took care of any problems, other members of the staff aided our drivers in doing badly needed repairs to our Russian fergon vans, which had just gone over some very rough terrain on the way. One repair required welding equipment, which was generously loaned to us as needed. To top it off, there was a party our final evening with khorhog (real Mongolian BBQ, a sheep roasted in a metal can over hot coals), side dishes from our wonderful cook. Soyoloo, and good Mongol vodka. I got coaxed into singing a Mongol song. I held everyone off for as long as I could, not knowing any that didn’t require having the lyrics in front of me, but finally remembered that I could probably get through “Zoolon, Zoolon Zambuulin” with help and that’s what I did. Magvandorj presided over the evening and led the toasts, of which there were, well, quite a few.

And….we saw the horses!

(Note: I was totally focused on seeing and photographing the takhi and other wildlife in the too short time we had there, so I didn’t get the names of the individual horses, the mountains or plants in the photos below. I hope to do so and will add them when I do.)

Four takhi mares — The four takhi mares from Prague Zoo, plus “their” stallion (darker horse on the left).

Wild harem — We went on a morning “game drive” and had a great encounter with this purely wild family group.

Gazelles — We saw this one group of goitered gazelles (*Gazella subgutturosa)* from a long distance. I think of these as my “I saw them.” shots.

Khulan — There are two wild equids in Takhiin Tal, the takhi and also khulan/Mongolian wild ass (*equus hemionus).* They are extremely skittish and we never got closer than this.

Khulan crossing river — The ranger with us hoped that we could do a closer approach by going to the river while the khulan were there to drink. But they must have heard the vans. The line of splashes are khulan dashing across the river.

Large herd of khulan grazing in the evening — We went back in the evening, trying a different approach direction, but once again by the time we were able to see them they had moved away, maintaining this distance. It was a huge herd of various family groups that had come together for water and grazing. I took a lot of photos and found when I reviewed them that I had recorded a variety of interesting interactions that will make good paintings. But I’ll have to use other reference to get their appearance correct.

Takhiin Tal scenery — So many….and no way to get closer.

On the way back to the reserve headquarters, we got one last treat…a small group of takhi right by the road. It was totally dark, no tripod and no time, but I got a few shots through the windshield of the van. Still, I think this has an interesting, perhaps a little mysterious feeling with these horses who came very close to extinction.

Mountain — Sorry to say that I didn’t get the name of this distinctive pink mountain. A hike was planned and I I started it, but realized that my legs just weren’t going to do it. I stayed down below with our drivers and guide and got in some good sketching time. We were told that snow leopards have been seen here, so this is the second habitat of theirs we observed.

Approach to mountain on road through steppe grassses — We passed through this stretch of lush grasses on our way to the trailhead.

Close-up of the mountain — A close-up of the mountain.

Juniper, a sacred plant to the Mongols, grew in profusion on the hillside; it’s considered an endangered plant since in many places it has disappeared due to harvesting for use in Buddhist ceremonies. I enjoyed having time to sit and do a study of it.

Location watercolor of juniper spilling over a rock in a picturesque pattern

We had been told that there were Lammergeier/bearded vulture on the mountain and, sure enough, while we were sitting around, this one appeared over our heads.

Group shot — Finally, it was time to depart. But not before the “traditional” group shot, this one taken in Ganbaatar’s office. From left to right: In back- Tugsoyun Sodnom, I.Odna, Oidoviin Magvandorj, Chinbat (ranger/guide), camp manager. Middle: Sharon Schafer, Oyunsaikhan Ganbaatar, reserve director, myself/Susan Fox. In front, our drivers Sendag and Batmaa

You can find out more about Takhiin Tal, which is supported by the Switzerland-based International Takhi Group, here.

Next stop: Sharga and Darvi soums for saiga antelope, we hoped.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 7: A Vegetable Garden In The Gobi

February 19, 2014February 19, 2014 | foxstudio

Off to see vegetables growing in the Gobi!

Batmaa, one of our drivers, who grew up in Gobi Altai Aimag, asked if we were interested in visiting a vegetable garden. I had heard on a previous trip that it was well-known that the sweetest vegetables grown in Mongolia came from from the Gobi. This might be my only chance to see something that, to say the least, is not associated with one of the world’s most famous deserts, so the answer was absolutely “Yes!”.

We turned back to the west and drove through an area where there were no gers, no people. Until this line of trees came into view.

A windbreak. (I was shooting through the windshield of the van, hence the reflections)

Then we saw this odd thing…and realized it had water pouring out of it.

An amazing sight in the deep Gobi....water. — An amazing sight in the deep Gobi….water. It turns out that there is a lot of water not far below the surface in many areas like this one. This was one of three spots where water was being brought to the surface to form ponds. We all grabbed scarves or handkerchiefs, soaked them and wrung them out on our faces and heads. It was so refreshing!

The vegetable garden covered a LOT of ground.

As a nice touch, a small flock of demoiselle cranes flew over.

Not sure what this is. — Not sure what these are, but I think they’re cabbages.

It was hard to get a shot that really showed how big this garden is. It goes all the way to the light-colored areas in the distance and extends to my right and behind me.

But this was the big treat...watermelons! — But this was the big treat…watermelons! We bought some to take with us and they were the best I’ve ever had.

There were also many rows of cucumbers. So the owners were successfully growing at least two very water intensive crops in one of the driest places in the world.

Between all the rows were these small irrigation ditches. Herbs like this dill were also being grown.

A last look. — A last look back towards the vans with the Gobi Altai Mountains in the distance.

Now it was on to the farthest point we would go in the west…Takhiin Tal.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 6: Hiking Eej Hairhan Uul (the Sacred Mother Mountain)

February 12, 2014February 12, 2014 | foxstudio

Our next destination....Eej Hairhan Uul — Our next destination….Eej Hairhan Uul

We now drove on to one of the most famous and sacred mountains in Mongolia, Eej Hairhan Uul. I didn’t know until after we left that this mountain may be as close to Mecca as there is in Mongolia. I was told that all Mongols want to go there once in their life. I’m so glad we did, even though it was not on the original itinerary since I thought it was too far out of our way for the time we had. But our drivers knew the distances and the area and said we could do it, so I was more than happy to go there.

The view of the main summit from our campsite.

I crawled out of my tent the next morning and was greeted with this incredible sunrise.

It turned out that Batmaa, one of our drivers, knew a hiking trail that he could lead us on. So after breakfast off we went.

Rosehips. We saw just a few rose bushes in one area. They were done blooming but the hips were lovely spots of color.

Soon we were among fantastic rock formations.

The lama's retreat. — A famous lama’s retreat from the destruction of the monasteries by Stalinist Mongols in the late 1930s. It is still visited and kept in repair. It was a tight fit and the ceiling was very low, but we all managed to fit inside and sit quietly for awhile.

Altar in the lama's house. — Altar in the lama’s house.

A short break before the next "interesting" bit. — A short break before the next “interesting” bit.

There was a long steep slope we seemed to have to go up. Batmaa, our guide/driver walked right up it. I’d done enough clambering around on rocks at Ikh Nart I thought I could do it, but…

Stuck — I got a little over halfway up the slope, which consists of defoliating granite, and suddenly couldn’t move. I thought about it and realized that I didn’t trust my boots and that if I moved and lost traction it was a long slide down to possible serious injury. I’d read about freezes like this happening, but it was the first time I’d gotten into a situation where it happened to me. Everyone else was still at or near the bottom except Batmaa, who you can see in the distance just standing there easily, and Magvandorj, who must have known what might happen and was ready with a sturdy cable, which he was able to toss to me. Once I had that I was fine and made to the top in less than a minute. A big thank you to Odna who got this photo and sent it to me! I was hoping someone had.

Magvandorj gives Odna a pull up the slope. — Magvandorj gives Tseegii, our guide, a pull up the slope. Only part of it was really, really steep and of course that’s where I got stuck.

I loved these fluted rock formations and wish I'd been able to photograph them in more interesting light. — I loved these fluted rock formations and wish I’d been able to photograph them in more interesting light.

adf — We arrived at one of the famous sites on the hiking trail, the Nine Pots, which are a series of descending pools in depressions in the rocks. It must be something after a rain to see all the waterfalls, which have left colorful mineral deposits.

That's our camp down there. — That’s our camp down there. You can just make out our blue dining tent and the two grey Russian vans.

Some of the type of rock terrain we hiked over, across and up and down. From bottom to top: Tseegii, Odna, Tugsoo

Tseegii and Sharon Schafer and A Big Interesting Rock

Above the first pool we found more of the series of nine.

Wildlfe at last! A Mongolian agama (Laudakia stoliczkana) — Wildlfe at last! A Mongolian agama lizard (Laudakia stoliczkana)

Mineral deposit "falls" — Mineral deposit “falls”

"Tonsil Rock" — “Tonsil Rock”. We descended through an area with rock formations that were reminiscent of a variety of things….an elephant and body parts among them. They are the focus of prayers and worship, so are festooned with khadag (the offering scarves), tea bricks, candy, empty vodka bottles, medicine bottles and more.

"Horse Hoof" rock — “Horse Hoof” rock, so called because the depressions resemble those that would be made by horses passing through.

Oncoming weather front. The wind was coming up fast and hard. On the right is our dining tent. The green enclosure was our shower. I was one of the lucky ones who got clean before the wind became too strong for it to stay up.

The wind kept blowing but it didn't stop Magvandorj from painting. — The wind kept blowing but it didn’t stop Magvandorj from painting.

Magvandorj got his set up done the previous evening, so he was ready to catch the short-lived intense morning light.

We were starting to pack when Tseegii came out of the kitchen tent holding a tablecloth asking what this was. She's never seen a scorpion before and, although I knew instantly what it was, I had never seen a wild one either. — We were starting to pack when Tseegii came out of the kitchen tent holding a tablecloth asking what this was. She’s never seen a scorpion before and, although I knew instantly what it was, I had never seen a wild one either. After the photo op it was set down and allowed to go about its business.

During a short stop as we drove on, I got a shot of the very top of the main summit of this very special mountain. — During a short stop as we drove on to visit an area in the Gobi with vegetable gardens and orchards, I got a shot of the very top of the main summit of this very special mountain.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 5: From Boon Tsagaan Nuur Through The Gobi Altai Mountains

February 5, 2014August 12, 2021 | foxstudio

Now the long run to Takhiin Tal in the west began. We traveled through the deep Gobi with the Gobi Altai Mountains to the south. No paved roads, but mostly good earth roads, a lot of it graded and well-maintained.

Famous ovoo — Memorial ovoo, well-known in Mongolia. It was built by a son in memory of his father, a very famous wrestler who died in a tragic accident.

The Five Snouts. This little ribbon with hand-drawn heads of the five species of livestock the Mongols herd was unlike anything I had seen at any other ovoo.

We finally turned south — We turned south in the late morning and stopped for lunch here.

The boundary of Chandmani soum and a photo op!

We dropped down into a very large valley between the mountains — We dropped down into a very large valley set between the mountains

We stopped in the soum center of Erdene. One of the drivers need a part for his van. And it turned out that our other driver had relatives in town — Our next stop was the soum center of Erdene. One of the drivers need a part for his van. It turned out that our other driver had relatives in town and we were invited to lunch! Which included all my favorites: buuz, aruul, urum, suutaitsai (steamed mutton dumplings, dried curds, clotted cream and milk tea). It was a feast.

Not only did we get an amazing lunch, but the women made buuz for us to take with us.

Finally, it was time to go. On the left is Batmaa, who relatives these are.

Dogs — A shot of Erdene with the typical mix of gers and permanent buildings. The Mongol dogs, called bankhar, are gathered around a female in heat. I got quite a few photos of this canine domestic drama.

On the road south again, we passed this very large herd of sheep and goats. Sustainable land use in a big issue in Mongolia. People can now have all animals they want, which was not true in socialist times. In many places the land is badly beaten up and overgrazed now.

Into the mountains again. At this point I was wondering what we would see. Would there be snow leopard habitat to photograph? These hills went on for miles and were definitely not what I have seen images of snow leopards in.

but very quickly — But rather suddenly, the landscape became much more rugged.

Now I knew. This had to be snow leopard country. I had our guide ask Batmaa, the driver who grew up in the area. He confirmed that the big cats are found here.

We stopped for a pee break and so Batmaa could look for a knife he’d lost three years ago. I had my camera with the 28-300 lens with me as I went off to find a large rock. Suddenly people called me back. I came running to them, looked up and, wow. there was a Siberian ibex nanny looking down at us.

I got — I ran to the van, got the camera with the 80-400 and got some pretty good shots like this one, considering they were way, way up on the ridgetop.

As we continued down the canyon, it was magic light time on the mountaintops.

There was a road of sorts, but with lots of rocks. The vans got us through just fine.

As we came out of the canyon, this gorgeous sight met our eyes. Our destination for the next day….Eej Hairhan Uul, the sacred mother mountain.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 4: The Birds Of Boon Tsagaan Nuur And Art In The Field

January 8, 2014August 12, 2021 | foxstudio

Our campsite near the shore of Boon Tsagaan Nuur; the dark square to the left is our toilet enclosure

My last post about the Expedition, which you can read here was about the leg of our journey that took us to the Gobi lake, Boon Tsagaan Nuur. Today’s post is an album of the birds we saw and that I photographed. We also had time to get our paints out and do some location work.

There isn’t a good standard bird guide yet for Mongolia, although one is being prepared, so I sent a batch of photos to Axel Braunlich, who is probably the leading expert on birds in Mongolia. He was kind enough to take the time to identify them for me. If you are interested in birds, and Mongolia is one of the world’s hotspots for birding with 427 species (you can find a list here), I highly recommend Axel’s blog “Birding Mongolia”.

All of these species, except the bar-headed geese, which I had seen on the Tuul Gol (river) near Hustai National Park in early May of 2005 on my very first trip, and ruddy shelducks, were new to me.

As we arrived within sight of the lakeshore, we spotted bar-headed geese

These geese are famous for their migration route...over the Himalayas at altitudes approaching 30,000 ft, the same as an airliner. — These geese are famous for their migration route…over the Himalayas at altitudes approaching 30,000 ft, the same as an airliner. One can imagine them landing on Mt. Everest (28,000+ feet) and waving as a plane flies over.

Once down on the lakeshore we saw, at a tantalizing distance this large group of birds on a sand bar — Once down on the lakeshore we saw, at a tantalizing distance, this large group of birds on a sand bar. Unfortunately the ground between them and us was ultimately too soft and there were also flood-fed streams. Sharon and Odna did their best, but finally had to turn back. I was able to make out great cormorants, eurasian spoonbills, gulls and terns, plus some ruddy shelducks in the water. Yesterday, as I looked over my photos to make my choices for this post, I saw that there were at least sixteen grey herons out there also.

Wild greylag geese flew by at one point.

It was interesting and a little odd, since I live on the north coast of California, to see shorebirds in the middle of the Gobi.

Common tern; adult and juvenile (who was begging for food to no avail)

We didn’t just birdwatch, but got out our painting and camera gear.

Magvadorj and Tugsoyun taking advantage of the afternoon light

Little did I know until he was done that Magvandorj was doing a painting of me painting.

Tugsouyn's expressive interpretation of the scene — Tugsouyn’s expressive interpretation of the scene

Sharon and Odna enjoy the sunset — Sharon and Odna took a stroll down to the lake to enjoy the sunset

The next morning, which was, shall we say, a bit brisk, found Magvandorj up catching the morning light.

A local dog showed up as we broke camp, hoping to find some food that had dropped to the ground. He’s the traditional herder’s dog, called a “bankhar” and is in his short summer coat.

Last photos of the lake before departure.

It wasn’t easy to leave this wonderful place. But, by golly, through flooded rivers and streams and a long detour, we got there and were able to have the best parts of the day, afternoon, evening and morning, when the light was the best for painting and photography and the birds were active. Now it was time to head west and farther west with the Gobi Altai Mountains paralleling us to the south. At some point we would turn south and cross over them through….snow leopard territory!

Merry Christmas!

December 25, 2013December 25, 2013 | foxstudio

(Photo taken at a Christmas tree lot, processed in Camera Awesome on my iPad, then caption added with Pixelmator)

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 2: Location Painting And A Special Naadam At Arburd Sands, Bayan-Onjuul Soum

November 20, 2013November 20, 2013 | foxstudio

You can read Part 1 here. The Expedition schedule was planned to coincide with the naadam (festival) that is held at Arburd Sands ger camp every year to celebrate the camp’s anniversary. Since we were going out to a part of Mongolia, the far western Gobi, where there were very few herders I knew this was the perfect opportunity for the participants to get a taste of Mongol culture and just have a fun time, which we certainly did!

We set up camp the afternoon before, having driven about five hours from Ulaanbaatar.