Trip to Outer Mongolia

View Ulaanbaatar - Kharhorin - Hovsgol - Ulaanbaatar in a larger map Off for two weeks in the Outer Mongolia We headed off west from Ulaanbaatar with Eric and Marie and our driver Teleh, who can not speak any English. We had planned a 2,500km trip to see just a small part of Mongolia, but also a very pretty part. First stop after about 60km we arrived at the first National Park in search of the extremely rare Takhi horses (or Przewalski’s horses as we know them in England). We were told they would be in the hills but they are very difficult to spot. Looking though some binoculars a ranger pointed to where they were, and we could just about make out a tiny group of horses in the distance. What we failed to realise is the shire size of these hills, the boulders make the hills look smaller than they actually are so the scale of everything is distorted. We walked towards them, it was a long way, finally just Eric and Bryan headed up the hill an got within 20 metres of the horses before they galloped away. Bryan took Jody's camera and got some great photos of all the wild horses heading over the hill top. It was great to actually see them and which we were told is really quite a rare opportunity. We set up camp in the countryside, with just amazing views. This was to become pretty normal for our trip we were to discover. Every day was filled with just the most amazing scenery which went on for thousands of miles. We have camped in some of the most beautiful places and feel so extremely lucky. Back on the road the next day and we stopped at the sand dunes for a spot of lunch. Eric and Bryan went for a walk up the dunes where the temperature reached a cool 42c. You must remember the humidity is very low so it makes everything seem much hotter and dryer. A short drive across the rivers and unsealed roads we decided to pitch our tent at the bottom of a cliff. Again the cliff looked quite small but in actual fact the rocks where huge which gave the illusion that it was smaller. We played a few games of cards including one of the games Todoo taught us in the first ger we stayed in in Terelj. This turned out to be really useful as we could include our driver without trying to teach him an English game. Eric and Bryan then went for a walk up the cliff to the top while Jody and Marie cooked tea. Climbing over the rocks was quite treacherous, finally reaching the top they could see for miles and the sheer size of the countryside could be seen, it went on for ever. When they got back the girls were just putting up the tents, with a helping hand from the driver. Dinner was pasta in a sauce cooked on our small camping stoves. Yum. Tonight it was a full moon, and just as the beautiful moon came over the hills in the distance, we saw some people dressed in red capes an wearing double sided face masks arrive. Five women holding black ribbons in a circle and waving them up and down while chanting. Nothing too serious, however the driver was quite scared and was hiding behind his car beckoning us not to go any closer. So of course we did and we took lots of photos. Another night in a tent, something we were not expecting to do while traveling but this is keeping the cost down.