Khar Us Nuur

The 2015 WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 2: Maikhan Nature Reserve & Jargalant Hairkhan Uul

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Khar Us Nuur reedbeds with Jargalant Hairkhan Uul in the background
Khar Us Nuur reedbeds with Jargalant Hairkhan Uul in the background

The first leg of the Expedition ended in Hovd at midnight. But a hotel room was waiting for us and the hot shower was great. The next day Turuu, the Mongol student/artist who was participating in the first two weeks of the Expedition, and I, met with the guide and driver/cook who would take us on the next leg to Maikhan Nature Reserve and Jargalant Hairkhan Uul, a freestanding mountain which is part of the eastern tail end of the Altai Mountains. I had seen the mountain from a distance in 2006 and had done a painting of it at sunrise. I’d been curious about it and wanting to explore it ever since. Now I would get my wish, in ways I could never have envisioned. But first up was the nature reserve, about which I knew nothing except its location on a map.

We left Hovd the next morning heading south along the shore of Khar Us Nuur, stopping for photos along the way. The lake’s edge has the largest expanses of reedbeds left in Asia which are home to many species of birds and endangered wild boar.

Khar Us Nuur reedbeds
Khar Us Nuur reedbeds

There are very few access points to the lake. The one mentioned in the guidebooks is off the main road and has an observation tower, which is where we had lunch. What a view.

2a. KUN lunch stop
Lunch in the observation tower with a view of Jargalant Hairkhan Uul

We continued on until the turn from tarmac to earth road, going southwest toward the reserve. Good thing we had a driver who knew the area because there were no signs to indicate which road to take.

The road into the reserve
The road into the reserve

Our guide had told us there was a cave we could visit. That was something I’d never encountered before in Mongolia so definitely wanted to see it.

5. cave
The cave entrance is the black area to the right of the “v” shaped shadow
6. view from cave
The view from the cave entrance, looking up the valley in the direction we would be going
7. cave interior
The cave interior. Even with my wide-angle lens I couldn’t get more than a section. This shows the left side where the cave drops off to some unknown depth. I was told that there were petroglyphs and/or paintings on the wall down below, but without any equipment, not even a flashlight, and no way of really finding out what was down there, there was no way I was going to risk it
8. view from entrance
Here’s the cave entrance, looking out

After driving up a beautiful valley with a stream running through it and many aspen trees, we came to this place at the end of the road, our campsite for the night. Wow.

9. MNR stream
The driver asked if this place would be ok to camp at. What would anyone say but “Yes!”?
10. MNR tents
I pitched my tent so that I would have a view of the stream when I crawled out of it in the morning.

Turuu and I painted and sketched in the evening and the next morning and then it was time to move on. Back down the valley we traveled with our next destination in view….Jargalant Hairkhan Uul.

11. road to JHU
Back out the earth road through the reserve

I had only seen the mountain, as I mentioned above, from a fair distance. I really had no idea of its scale until we started to get close. But I did know that we were heading into snow leopard habitat, where the World Wildlife Fund Mongolia has been doing research for some years. In a later post, I’ll be sharing what I learned about snow leopards in this part of Mongolia.

12. JHU approach
The central section of the mountain, with what looked to me to be the highest point on the right
13. valley entrance
The entrance to the valley where we would spend the next two nights.
14. KUN reedbeds from valley
We drove awhile on the upland slope before we got to the mountain proper. Before we went into the valley we stopped and I got some photos looking back the way we’d come. This shows Khar Us Nuur’s open water on the right and the reedbeds we saw on the way to the nature reserve in the middle and left
15. JHU aspens
Once we got to the valley proper we found ourselves working our way up a very rocky dry riverbed dotted with aspen trees, some of them clearly very old
16. JHU end of the road
At the end of the road was one ger. We visited with the family for bit, learning that a snow leopard had killed another herder’s goat two days earler not far away from where we were, and then headed back down the valley to find a campsite for the next two nights
16.a JHU campsite
It was hot so we looked for a place that had shade in the afternoon. As it happened the best spot was here, right at the base of a sacred spring
17. JHU white poppies
On the valley floor and slopes wild flowers were blooming, including these delicate white poppies
18, JHU moonrise
All the early clouds had gone away and it was a beautiful wam summer evening. First the moon came up
19, JHU sunset with khadag tree
The the sun started to set and the mountain peaks and slopes of the valley glowed in the intense orange light
20. JHU sunset down valley
Looking west and somewhat south out the valley entrance the colors were more subtle

It was great having the whole next day to be in this place and have time to amble about and take pictures.

21. JHU valley road
The angle of the light let me get a photo of the “road” that goes into and up the valley
22. JHU painted inscription
Inscription painted on one of the rocks
23. JHU Turuu
It was a hot day. I managed to get in some painting time in the morning by finding a place in the shade. Turuu read and dozed. How he managed to stay on this tree limb for some hours was impressive.
24. ovoo
This ovoo was directly across from the spring

The second afternoon and evening it clouded up, so no evening light. I noted in my journal that at about 9:24pm bladder pressure reached the point where I had to go out and deal with it. It had already gotten quite windy and there had been a little rain on and off. I was back in my tent at (I checked) 9:27pm when a heavy downpour hit like someone had flipped a switch. Good timing.

25. JHU sacred spring
Turuu and our guide filling water bottles from the spring.
26. JHU khadag
Trees next to the spring festooned with khadag, the offering scarves
27. JHU with Flag
Since my WildArt Mongolia Expedition was also an Explorers Club Flag Expedition duriing which I was required to display the Flag, I had Turuu’s and my picture taken with it in front of the ovoo

As we headed back down the mountain after lunch, our guide said that the driver knew of another road that accessed the lakeshore, so of course we had to see that.

28. KUN reed enclosure
Khar Us Nuur in the background with something on the shore I’d not seen before…an animal enclosure made from dried reeds
29. KUN winter enclosure
This is a very nicely built winter shelter for livestock. The presence of these shelters tells one where a herder will spend the winter.
30. KUN unloading ger
We passed a family unloading their belongings, including their ger, from this truck. Imagine being able to drive to a lake-front location like this and set up anywhere you want to
31. KUN at the beach
The driver had mentioned something about a “beach” and near the end of the road, there it was…a real sandy beach

The beach was the last stop and then it was time to head back to Hovd.

32. Enroute sand road to Hovd road
Sandy earth road on the way back to the tarmac
33. truck with horses
We saw a number of trucks with horses over the previous days, a sure sign that there was a naadam happening in the area and there was going to be one the next day in Chandmani. Unfortunately, our schedule didn’t allow time to go to it
34. Ovoo
Comiing up over a last pass before dropping down to Hovd there was this quite elaborate ovoo
35. Hovd
Hovd in the distance

Back in town, Turuu had to catch a flight back to Ulaanbaatar to register for university. I was sorry he couldn’t stay for the rest of the trip, but very glad he was along for most of it.

The next destination for the Expedition was also a place that I had been to for a very short time in 2006, Khomyn Tal, one of the three places where takhi/Przewalski’s horses have been reintroduced. The journey there and the three days I spent with the horses will be the subject of my next post.

The 3rd WildArt Mongolia Expedition/Explorers Club Flag Expedition Has Returned!

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At Khomyn Tal with Flag 179 and takhi/Przewalski's horses in the background.
At Khomyn Tal with Flag 179 and takhi/Przewalski’s horses in the background

I’m back in Ulaanbaatar, tired after three weeks in the field (resting today at a comfortable hotel, the Bayangol) but very, very pleased with the Expedition and its results. There will be a series of posts on all aspects of the 3rd WildArt Mongolia Expedition once I’m home, but for now I’ll share some favorite images with you. Consider these the appetizer…

In chronological order:

Hokh Serkiin Nuruu and Kazakh horsemen
Hokh Serkiin Nuruu Nature Reserve and some of the Kazakh horsemen who were hired to find and drive the argali
Hokh Serkiin Nuruu Nature Reserve; argali capture site with nets
Hokh Serkiin Nuruu Nature Reserve; argali capture site with nets ready to unroll and set up
Countryside scene enroute from Hokh Serkhiin Nuruu to Hovd
Countryside scene enroute from Hokh Serkhiin Nuruu to Hovd
Khar Us Nuur reedbeds; we stopped here for lunch
Khar Us Nuur reedbeds; we stopped here for lunch
Turuu wading at the "beach" on the east shore of Khar Us Nuur; he's a student I met last year who is quite a good artist and he came along on the first two weeks of the Expedition at my invitation
Turuu wading at the “beach” on the east shore of Khar Us Nuur; he’s a student I met last year who is quite a good artist and he came along on the first two weeks of the Expedition at my invitation
Maikhan Nature Reserve campsite with aspens
Maikhan Nature Reserve campsite with aspens
Jargalant Hairhan Uul in Khar Us Nuur National Park campsite in valley; ovoo is across from a sacred spring
Jargalant Hairhan Uul (in Khar Us Nuur National Park) campsite in valley; ovoo is across from a sacred spring
Khomyn Tal and takhi
Khomyn Tal and takhi
Khomyn Tal takhi
Khomyn Tal takhi; I saw all 53 horses over three days
Khar Nuur campsite
Khar Nuur campsite
Khur Nuur moonrise over Jargalant Hairhan Uul
Khar Nuur moonrise over Jargalant Hairhan Uul
Dorgon Nuur at sunset
Dorgon Nuur at sunset
Viewpoint in Khar Us Nuur National Park from which one can see three sacred mountains, including Hokh Serkiin Nuruu
Viewpoint in Khar Us Nuur National Park from which one can see three sacred mountains, including Hokh Serkiin Nuruu
Chandmani street scene; we went into the soum center to buy groceries and other supplies
Chandmani street scene; we went into the soum center to buy groceries and other supplies
Statue in Chandmani dating from socialist times
Statue in Chandmani dating from socialist times
A woman named Tsendayush who I met in one of the shops
A woman named Tsendayush who I met in one of the shops (photo by Narankhuu Sukhbat)
The second valley on Jargalant Hairkhan Uul that we camped in; the mountain is snow leopard habitat with currently 37 cats
The second valley on Jargalant Hairkhan Uul that we camped in; the mountain, which has many peaks, is snow leopard habitat with a currently estimated population of 37 cats; this image was taken of the slopes above a winter livestock shelter
Two camels came past our camp on Jargalant Hairkhan Uul while I was sketching
Two camels came past our camp on Jargalant Hairkhan Uul while I was sketching
Drawing the rock falls in the stream that runs through the second valley
Drawing the rock falls in the stream that runs through the second valley (photo by Narankhuu Sukhbat)

And to give credit where credit is due…no one does a trip like this alone. Those of us who travel deep into the countryside of Mongolia have to rely on our guides and drivers to get us there and back again. To mine, show below, a heartfelt “bayarlalaa”.

My guide and driver who made the Expedition possible: Narankhuu Sukhbat and Damdin Birvaa
My guide and driver: Narankhuu Sukhbat and Damdin Birvaa (photo by Turuu)

Thank you also to Jan Wigsten and the staff at Nomadic Journeys, who have provided all my travel resources and logistics since 2006.

 

Mongolia Monday: The Five Snouts, Part 3

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I’ll have to be honest and say that currently I don’t know much about Mongolian sheep. I hope to learn more on the next trip.

I did find a United Nations FAO report that included the following information;
Sheep in Mongolia may be grouped into five types. The common native sheep are multipurpose and low in productivity. The other four are used more specifically for their meat (mutton), carpet wool, milk and good-quality lambskins. Grazing is on year-round pastures with no supplementary feeding, even under severe winter and spring conditions. The sheep are well adapted to the unfavourable ecological conditions of steep mountains and poor vegetation.

One distinctive feature of the native coarse wool fat-tailed sheep is noticeable when new grass grows on the pasture: at this time they grow rapidly, are easy to fatten and have a remarkable ability to store 4 to 6 kg of fat around the kidneys, mesentery and the tail bone. This fat is drawn on in winter and spring.

Sheep are reared according to the natural and economic conditions of the different regions in the country. Improvement achieved by crossing exotic, fine and semifine wool sheep breeds has been rapid in Mongolia and the results reasonably good. The average fleece weight of improved (cross-bred) fine and semi-fine wool sheep is two or three times higher than that of the native coarse wool of fat-tailed sheep. Wool quality has also improved.

There are five distinct sheep breeding zones:

· the northern mountain and grassland zone;
· the central steppe zone;
· the southern semi-arid zone;
· the southernmost, semi-desert zone of the Gobi;
· the Altay Mountains in the west.

The northern mountain grassland zone and the central steppe zone are given over to the breeding of fine and semi-fine wool sheep. In the southern semi-arid zone and the northern enclave, Mongolian fat-tailed sheep are purebred. Selection of breeding stock increases the quantity and improves the quality of the carpet wool.

In the extreme south, the semi-desert area of the Gobi has been allocated to Karakul breeding for lambskins. The production of mutton, fat and carpet wool takes place in the western part of the country and includes the Altay Mountains.

Here are some photos that I’ve taken of sheep.

A small flock at the market in Hovd, western Mongolia

“King of the Mountain” at Khar Us Nuur, also western Mongolia. Goats in the foreground, but that’s for next week.

Part of a large group of domestic livestock coming down to the stream to drink at Ikh Nartiin Chuluu Nature Reserve, south of Ulaanbaatar

Finally, for comparison, a wild argali, the world’s largest mountain sheep. This old ram with the amazing horns let me follow him around for almost 20 minutes. As you can see, he is very thin. It was late April and a lot of the animals, wild and domestic were in rough shape from the winter.

One of the main uses of the wool is to make the big pieces of felt which cover the gers. Depending on the weather, there can be one to three layers. I’ve slept in a ger in cold weather with one layer and the next night, one with two layers and the difference was quite noticeable.

One of my most useful souvenirs from Mongolia are my felt slippers. I also got a pair of felt boots. Both are amazingly warm and comfy. I would recommend them to anyone who gets cold feet!