We met at 7:30am to head out for breakfast, ironically at the same bakery I had gotten some pastries at the day before, before loading up in the three land rovers that we would be using to get to our base camp in Ikh Nart Nature Reserve in south Mongolia on the steppes north of the Gobi desert.  The ride out of Ulaanbaatar was very smooth; we were going against traffic and the roads were good.  The road actually paralleled the Mongolian section of the trans-Siberian railroad that stretched from Moscow to Beijing. The railroad also serves as the main transport to China for the Mongolian coal. As we left the city we were surrounded by a wide open green plain with gently rolling hills as far as the eye could see.  We also immediately started seeing cattle and horses and the occasional gers of the herders in addition to the occasional small city/village or settlement.

We stopped for gas and a toilet break at a roadside rest stop after about 2.5 hours of driving.  The sense of openness was incredible.  I could see clouds and thunderstorms way off in the distance but we never came near them.  Occasionally we would pass what looked like roadside memorials, a stack of stones with a pillar in the center, covered in colorful cloth.  Our driver, via a translation app as he did not speak English, said they were memorials to the elders and when family members passed they stopped to either add a stone or a piece of cloth.

After lunch at  another rest stop we proceeded another 30 minutes south before making a slight right turn and leaving the highway for a very rough dirt track (I really cannot call it a road) that lead off toward the nature reserve and our camp. Apparently because of the terrain, the remoteness and the low population density, people pretty much driver wherever they want (off road) to get places.  A few “roads”, such a the dirt track we were following, had been fairly well defined because of the frequency of the traffic.  Despite the fact that it was a dirt track, it still was not too rough (especially compared to the roads I experienced in Kyrgyzstan).  The further south we went the more rocky the terrain got and even occasionally we saw small trees, usually elms, positioned where springs were located.

We arrived at the camp late afternoon. The camp consists of 12 gers, including a large ger for the dining and meeting space.  As our team totaled 23, a combination of the Mongolian staff, personnel from their partners, The Living Desert Program in California, and the four of us who were Earthwatch volunteers, we had more than enough space. We got settled into our gers, our home for the next 12 days, then had an introduction to the camp, especially the toilet (compost) and shower (solar), dining hall, and kitchen. The camp is located near a spring so water is available and solar arrays power lights, electronics and other small requirements (with a backup generator).  After an introductory meeting with the whole team and dinner it was time for bed.

The first morning we had a training session to learn about the different types of projects that we were going to be involved in. The conservation work at Ikh Nart has been going on for 25 years and aims to track and manage the eco-system to balance the needs of the 150 families that live on the reserve and the wild life.  Mongolia has the largest population of Cisnerous vultures on the planet as well as healthy populations of argali sheep, Siberian ibex and gazelle. Our three main activities involved plant surveys, small mammal tagging and vulture tagging and we went over the different tasks involved in each.

We also learned a bit about conservation efforts across the whole country.  Currently 21% of the country of Mongolia is “protected” via a combination of national parks, wilderness areas and nature reserves. The goal is to have 30% of the country protected by 20230 (this is apparently an international goal of global conservation groups for each country).  There is, however, strong mining interests in Mongolia, a country very rich in minerals and especially coal, that is putting stress on conservation efforts and on the traditional herdsman nomadic lifestyle.   Some herding families are getting pushed off of their land to make way for mining. However, as Ikh Nart is a protected area the 150 families that live there are also protected.

After the training session, we settled into a rhythm for the next 11 days that only varied with the weather.  First task of the day was a 6:30am departure to check the small mammal traps that were baited with quinoa the previous evening. The research team has defined eight research sites covering different types of habitats to track and tag the small mammal population. The goal is to track the small mammal population in abundance, size and species. Of the eight sites, only two sites are active at a time, each with 100 traps.  When a small mammal is trapped it is measured and tagged before being released.  Apparently there is a thing called “trap happy” where some animals get used to the food being supplied in the traps and do not mind getting caught overnight and then released.  Of the 129 animals that were trapped over the 12 days, 56 of them were recaptures.  Most of the animals were species of hamsters and gerbils (all cute!) although we caught two birds and one hedgehog as well.

Some of the landscape we drove through. Always beautiful!

After checking the traps we returned to camp for breakfast and then headed out again for the morning activity. For the first two days we did plant surveys.  Researchers have defined 50 different plant sites (10m x 10m grid) that they have been tracking plant species and abundance for decades to understand the eco-system and the grazing behavior of both livestock and wild animals.  Each plant site has five 1m x 1m plots where we identified and  counted the plant species and the average height and coverage.  Thankfully we each worked with one of the Mongolian students who were quite knowledgeable about the plant life.  I am not much of a plant person but it was fun to learn about some of the native plants.  Unfortunately one of the plant species, which was everywhere (including in camp), had quite strong pollen and anyone with any hint of allergies appeared to be affected.

Lunch was usually at 1pm and afterward we would venture out for the afternoon activity.  The third day at the camp we started the vulture tagging exercise.  The vulture chicks hatch in spring and sometime between three and four months are ready to fly.  The tagging has to occur before they leave the nest and our goal was to tag as many as possible during the small window of time they are large enough but not yet flying.  The nests are located all over the nature reserve in trees and on rocky outcroppings so we roamed around the whole reserve visiting the nests and checking for birds.  Because of predators (wolves, foxes, ravens etc.) and weather, about 50% of the chicks don’t survive. Of the 113 nests we checked we tagged 45 birds, 30 were too small to tag and the rest were empty.  (More on this in a moment)

After the afternoon activity we typically return to camp around 5:30 and have a presentation on one of the conservation topics before a 7pm dinner.  Bedtime is usually at sunset since the day starts early.  The nights were quiet in a way I have never experienced before; there was no noise- no crickets, no birds, no sounds whatsoever (expect if there was a wind blowing, but that did not happen every night). I have never been anywhere so completely silent. In addition, at night the stars were very visible, including the plane of the Milky Way. It was remote and beautiful!  The camp is closed in the winter, but the caretaker, Uujgii, lives there year-round to take care of it.  I can only imagine the isolation in the winter, with snow and -30 deg temperatures!

The nature reserve is set on the Mongolian steppe that leads, eventually, down into the Gobi desert proper, which is hundreds of miles to the south at the border with China.  Even though the landscape is dry, it is not actually, per the definition, a desert. The plant species are low to the ground and desert hearty, and the landscape is quite green- in a scrub brush kind of way.  To get to any of the sites, whether it is the small mammal plots, the plant plots or a vulture nest, we had to drive to quite a ways; everything is really spread out. Thus we spent a lot of time on the “roads” (ie…dirt tracks) and were able to see various areas of the reserve.  We did quite a bit of four-wheel driving, going cross-country quite frequently, which included climbing ridiculous rocky slopes and wandering down sand filled dry stream beds.  The drivers were amazing and knew how to get everywhere, no matter how remote the location was.  I now know why Land Cruisers are famous off-road vehicles!

The landscape is very expansive.  The steppe area is rolling hills punctuated with rocky outcroppings of various heights and configurations.  Various shades of green spread blanket the ground, based on the type of plants present. The steppe transitions to flatlands as the rolling hills disappear into a seemingly never-ending plain extending in the distance to meet the horizon. Dry stream beds wind throughout defining where the majority of the water flows when the snow melts. Occasionally a lone ger dots the landscape indicating where one of the 150 families who live in the reserve are currently located.  Winter quarters are marked by animal pens and a cleared circular area that is clearly meant for a ger.  Mongolia reveres the “Blue Sky” and it is easy to see why- the sky is ever present and dominates every view.  One day while we were out vulture tagging a thunderstorm was rolling in and it was visible for quite a distance.  When it hit, it hit hard with thunder, lightening, hail and driving rain- we had to pull the vehicles up to some tall rocks to wait it out.  The storm passed by quickly and the sky was back to its tranquil beautiful blue; it was very dramatic.

Camels (!) finally. This was someone’s herd – still not clear to me how people find their animals…

Animals, both domesticated and wild, roam the landscape freely.  As we drive  from place to place counting plants, surveying small mammals and tagging vultures, we saw herds of horses, goats, sheep, and argali and ibex.  I had been told that camels also roam the park but did not see any until the last day.  There are also wolves but it is no surprise that we did not see any of them!  Apparently the herders are used to losing a few animals to the wolves and take it in stride as part of the balance of nature. Since the animals roam freely, it is a community effort to keep track of where the various animals are—the different herding families take note and when they go to find their particular animals, start by asking everyone else what they have seen around lately and use that information to start their search with.  It is not clear to me how well that works, but it is the system they have been using for well, centuries…..

Vulture tagging is quite an adventure.  The tagging is necessary to track the vultures, understand where the successful nests are and help manage the community to ensure the vultures can continue to thrive.  The first step in tagging is to get to the nests, which are mapped via GPS by the rangers and the conservation staff, who know where the vultures are by constant surveying and accumulated knowledge.  The nests, which range between 3-5 feet tall and wide, are either in trees or perched on high cliffs.  Chimdee, one of the Mongolian conservation staff, had to climb up steep rocks or a precariously positioned ladder to peer into the nests to make the determination if there is a chick there and if so, whether it was old enough for tagging.  If there is a parent on the nest when we arrive they fly off, but tended to circle to keep an eye on what was going on.  If the chick was old enough for tagging, Chimdee hooded it and put it in a bag to bring it down to the ground for measuring and tagging. The vulture chicks, which have to be at least 80 days old to be tagged, are remarkably docile once you have them hooded.  Only a few remain agitated and have to be held down a bit more forcefully during the measuring and tagging process.  The goal is to get the whole process finished in ten minutes so we established an efficient routine.  Our team of rookies (besides Chimdee) took a couple of tries to hit the ten minute mark, but we eventually got there!

The twelve days at camp passed by quickly! All too soon our time was up and it was time to head back to Ulaanbaatar, and eventually, home.  The experience was one I will not forget—the conservation work, the beauty of the landscape, the hospitality and friendliness of the Mongolians— it was very special!!!!