Page 40 - RADC 2016

Approaching our campsite in a storm
At the end of each day we set up camp. On one occasion this is done in the middle of a thunderstorm with erce winds – it’s all hands on deck to pitch the tents whilst stopping them from blowing away.
Nights are very cold with a frost quickly developing after sunset. With no light pollution to speak of in this part of the world, the night skies are crystal clear offering up some stunning starscapes.
The Namarjin valley runs north – south, parallel to the western anks of snow- capped Tsambagarav. The grassy meadows of the valley are interspersed with little
white round gers, pretty lakes and herds of wondering yak. We arrive at the valley with the sun shining, the sky blue and our spirits high. After about an hour of riding we see a small settlement of about half a dozen gers up ahead. There seems to be quite a party going on – Byamba (one of our researchers and lead botanist) and Prof Terbish ride
on up to investigate. On return they inform us that it’s a wedding party and that we’re invited.
A view of our campsite
Tying up the horses we wonder over
to the gers. The party’s in full swing – the women and children are wearing traditional pretty dresses and the men are walking around wearing colourful deels (a Mongolian robe tied in the middle) and wide brimmed hats. The kids clearly nd us a novelty as they gather around in a circle to stare at us.
I end up speaking to one of the wedding guests – Sam. He’s wearing a shimmering deep purple coloured deel and I’m surprised when he speaks English in a awless American accent. It turns out that the
family have owned gers in the valley for generations. The majority of them now
have moved to the cities and only return for holidays and special occasions. He himself works for the mining company Rio Tinto and is the head of environment and sustainability for their operations in Mongolia. He has
his work cut out I think. Mongolia is rich
in natural resources and these are being rapidly exploited by companies such as Rio Tinto through the practice of strip mining – the scale of destruction and blight on the
landscape caused by these open cast mines is astonishing.
We’re ushered inside a large ger which has been elaborately decorated for the bride and groom. At one end on a table is an impressive array of bottles labelled Genghis Khan Vodka. It’s traditional for the bride
and groom to serve their guests. Wearing matching white deels tied with an orange sash around the waist and white brimmed hats they walk in carrying a plate piled high with what looks to me from a distance to be Mongolian sweet meats. My excitement of getting a sugar x turns to disappointment as the plate is passed to me and I realise that it’s piled high with cold chewy pieces of mutton. Next comes the airag... Eventually it’s time to leave and we say goodbye to the wedding party – the bride and groom and their guests, line up to wave us off.
We arrive at our campsite where we’ll be staying for the next four nights and I survey the area. At an altitude of 2750m this is the highest campsite on the expedition. To the west is a narrow tributary valley strewn with
38 RADC BULLETIN 2016
A plague of mosquitos
ADVENTUROUS TRAINING