Prime Time Travel

Days Eleven & Twelve 08.08.2012 & 09.08.2012 Tsagaan Nuur National Park

Day Eleven…

We are delighted by the arrival of Jargah & Batbold’s 17y.o. at 6.30am this morning to relight our stoves before we get up. Breakfast al fresco on the edge of the lake as we prepare for our full day hike over the hills to our far-away camp further around the lake. Leave the lovely, smiling Jargah at 9.30am to climb over two passes, enjoying the views both of the lake and the rolling hills beyond, as well as passing time alternately with each other and/or ourselves, as we are wont. Graeme, who hasn’t been bushwalking for about 12 years, is striding up the hills and loving it!

Our protector during this time is Batbold, who, on his trusty motorbike, is following our progress and ensuring our safety albeit from a distance. He joins us for lunch – which he has strapped to the back of the ‘bike. He appears again at a river crossing which will necessitate getting our feet wet, with or without shoes and socks! Aha!! Arriving in their little white car is a local couple who are out for a day’s marmot shooting. They kindly offer the back seat to a couple of people and ferry them across the water…the front seat is taken by the wife and the gun!! Now the wife gets out, leaving the gun, and the husband returns to the other side of the water to collect more people. He makes three crossings and we are all safe and dry – even Richard who crosses over before the arrival of the ‘taxi’ but manages to keep his feet dry anyway, wearing boots and gaiters as he is, and John wearing his lovely Goretex-lined boots.

As we near camp, Turuu meets us for another, deeper, crossing and takes us to the campsite, all in the one truck…because Sandag’s truck is missing the back axle! The need has arisen to replace the bearings in the differential, so there on the edge of the lake, the job is done…these people are extraordinarily skilled and versatile. (John’s description…”bloody great!!”) To add to our amazement, they have also put up our tents! We are all tired but satisfied with our day’s walk…I start to unpack our sleeping gear while “Dug” does what he does best, but manage to fall asleep, so deeply that I miss the call for a cuppa!!!

Tonight Turuu and Sandag take time-out from their machinations to prepare and cook Khorhog, the traditional way of cooking goat and/or mutton on hot stones. We quite enjoy chewing our way through our meal, Mongolian style. The sun sets, the horses, sheep, goats and yaks wander closer to the gers which dot the valley, sometimes aided and abetted by herders, sometimes just by themselves. We don’t spend long around the fire tonight – it’s been a long day.

Day Twelve

Turuu and Sandag continue major servicing work this morning – dust removal, oil change, checking wheels and tyres – while people wash clothes and selves. Some swim, others wander, snooze, or do nothing at all. There is some cloud around but it’s mostly a very pleasant, sunny day. After lunch, John and I walk to the winter yards to sit and relax in the shade. Horses are sheltering from the sun, but the stallion takes exception to our presence and calls his ladies together, nipping the tardy ones, and chasing down any who have the audacity to disobey, to take them away down the valley.

I decide to return for a ‘nanna-nap’ and Richard comes for a chat. We feel a couple of spots of rain and start to gather washing and bags from outside tents. I ask Richard if he has anything left outside…he replies, “Only Graeme,” who happens to be sitting nearby! John arrives and we collect boxes and food to stow under the big, white tarp, along with our dinner in Jess’s African cooking bag (more about that later), close up Jess’s tent, then retire to our own tents as the rain begins. There is strong wind and heavy rain for about half an hour…Meaghan and Janine are both caught outside, and Jess and the boys are collecting water and having a swim.

It is now quite cold so it will be dinner and bed with possibly more rain. However we do have a lovely fire which makes it very tempting to sit around for a bit. Two quite young children arrive on a motorbike with the intention of taking advantage of our Mongolian hospitality – always offer a visitor food and drink. We are having our after-dinner cuppa so a biscuit each suffices and they are off down the valley from whence they came. Shortly afterwards we have another visitor – a gentleman on a horse which he (and his ingested vodka) is having difficulty controlling. He leaves empty-handed, encouraged by Turuu. And when only Janine and Jess are around the fire, a truck carrying a number of Mongolians arrives looking for “action”…they are also given short shrift by Jess!!

Jess’s African Cooking Bag – a bag full of styrene foam beads which accommodates a cooking pot in which the meal has been par-cooked. Jess prepares a meal early in the day, pops it in the bag, and by dinner-time, we have a yummy stew!