This trip was led by Victor Emanuel nature Tours (VENT), in September, 2019. The main idea was to combine birding (with a focus on East/Central Asian specialties and species migrating from eastern Siberia southwards) with wildlife viewing, focusing on the elusive Snow Leopard (SL). Mongolia has become one the the main places people can go to have a fairly high likelihood of seeing these great beasts. This was actually my second trip to see SLs in the same year, and I feel so lucky to have had that opportunity. The other trip was to Ladakh in India (in Winter!), and you can see photos of that trip here. One of the advantages of Mongolia from the standpoint of seeing SLs is that both the lodging and viewing is much warmer than in Ladakh. But both places provide fantastic experiences, and the beauty of both is overwhelming.
After a warm-up day in and around the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, our Mongolia trip began in the Altai Mountains in the western part of the country. There were saw one snow leopard and several mountain specialties, as well as visiting some lakes and dune areas in the nearby valleys. As you will see from some of the photos, the mountain scenery was spectacular, almost dreamlike. After the Altai Mountains, we traveled east to two national parks that were lower down and less mountainous - Hustai National Park and Gun Galuut National Park. Those parks had great birdlife and also some very special wildlife. We had very nice views of argali, a huge herd of Przewalski's horses (the one true wild horse in the world), Mongolian Gazelle, Red Deer, and Corsac Fox, among others. Some of the most interesting animals were on the small side, including Pallas's Pika up in the mountains, and Mongolian Gerbils and Brandt's Voles in the eastern lowlands. The latter were abundant and confiding, which no doubt explained the healthy look of the foxes we saw! Even the domestic livestock was of interest. Bactrian camels with their two humps were common and picturesque against the stark Mongolian steppe, and horsemen (and women) are an integral part of almost any landscape.
And there were other, cultural, highlights. On our final night in the Altai Mountains, we were treated to a mini concert given by two very accomplished "throat singers". Mongolian throat singers are famous and a sight to behold/ sound to hear and marvel at. The singers produce an unbelievable sound by singing very low guttural notes and very high whistling notes, often simultaneously. The sound is very hard to believe. Pictures do this no justice, though their dress is rather special. I have posted a few videos on YouTube that may be worth viewing:
https://youtu.be/soTGLE-Vvqo (a bit of an intro with a short explanation, if you speak Mongolian :-))
https://youtu.be/FlAT8bH0shc (short throat singing clip)
https://youtu.be/L_2nps1gpE8 (short throat singing clip)
https://youtu.be/dy7ihrrKZSg (short throat singing clip)
https://youtu.be/ipjZWb2lrNY (in this one, the singers just play traditional instruments - no actual throat singing)
https://youtu.be/uGlESYVZ7G8 (in this one, the woman sings Amazing Grace - if you watch just one video, thus may be a good one since you will know the tune)
Overall, an amazing country and great trip!
After a warm-up day in and around the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, our Mongolia trip began in the Altai Mountains in the western part of the country. There were saw one snow leopard and several mountain specialties, as well as visiting some lakes and dune areas in the nearby valleys. As you will see from some of the photos, the mountain scenery was spectacular, almost dreamlike. After the Altai Mountains, we traveled east to two national parks that were lower down and less mountainous - Hustai National Park and Gun Galuut National Park. Those parks had great birdlife and also some very special wildlife. We had very nice views of argali, a huge herd of Przewalski's horses (the one true wild horse in the world), Mongolian Gazelle, Red Deer, and Corsac Fox, among others. Some of the most interesting animals were on the small side, including Pallas's Pika up in the mountains, and Mongolian Gerbils and Brandt's Voles in the eastern lowlands. The latter were abundant and confiding, which no doubt explained the healthy look of the foxes we saw! Even the domestic livestock was of interest. Bactrian camels with their two humps were common and picturesque against the stark Mongolian steppe, and horsemen (and women) are an integral part of almost any landscape.
And there were other, cultural, highlights. On our final night in the Altai Mountains, we were treated to a mini concert given by two very accomplished "throat singers". Mongolian throat singers are famous and a sight to behold/ sound to hear and marvel at. The singers produce an unbelievable sound by singing very low guttural notes and very high whistling notes, often simultaneously. The sound is very hard to believe. Pictures do this no justice, though their dress is rather special. I have posted a few videos on YouTube that may be worth viewing:
https://youtu.be/soTGLE-Vvqo (a bit of an intro with a short explanation, if you speak Mongolian :-))
https://youtu.be/FlAT8bH0shc (short throat singing clip)
https://youtu.be/L_2nps1gpE8 (short throat singing clip)
https://youtu.be/dy7ihrrKZSg (short throat singing clip)
https://youtu.be/ipjZWb2lrNY (in this one, the singers just play traditional instruments - no actual throat singing)
https://youtu.be/uGlESYVZ7G8 (in this one, the woman sings Amazing Grace - if you watch just one video, thus may be a good one since you will know the tune)
Overall, an amazing country and great trip!
