A traveller's reflection: Mongolia 2019: 04 Hustai National Park

“Distance tests a horse’s strength, time reveals a person’s character…” - Chinese proverb

(The Altai Mountain yaks of Mongolia)

Day-04: Wednesday 04/09/2019
Destination: Hustai National Park
Lodging: Mongol Normadic Ger Camp Hustai National Park

It was a refreshing cool morning. Probably the easiest and best thing to do in the Ger Camp, while waiting for breakfast to be served was to hike around and explore the area. There are no trails in the Ger Camp, which makes exploring all the more fun. The morning walk in the tall grass with scattered colourful wild flowers, led us towards the foot of the rocky hills. It was cool and breezy in the morning and the sun was barely up in the sky.

(Ready for the morning hike towards the rocks)

(Climbing the steep slope to the top)

(Pretty small wild flowers decorating the field)

(Colourful wild scented flowers along the path)

(We are nearing the top)

(Murals of deers on the rock)

(A short rest to catch our breath)

(A long way back to our camp site)

(Drying home-made cheese in the open)

Breakfast served was steaming hot vegetables soup, freshly baked bread and home-made butter and cheese. There were variety of jam to choose from. But I avoided those with blue berries as I am allergic to those and would not want my face to be swollen and itchy.

(A good spread of food on the table)

Before leaving the Terelj National Park, we had horse riding activity around the Turtle Rock which took us almost an hour for a round trip. There were a number of rules before mounting our horses and the entourage had to follow a senior leader horse. These horses were once wild Mongolian horses and often had their own mind and behaviour. They did not always listen to human instructions. At times during the riding trip they would wonder off into bushes or stopped and grazed at the steep mountain slopes. Fear not, they would eventually joined the herd and ended the trip at the same time as others.

(Horse riding in the morning)

(The start of an-hour ride across the grassland)

(Beautiful scenery along the riding route)

(The end of the ride near the Turtle Rock)

(Very discipline group of horses)

After the excitement of horse riding, we went to have photo opportunity among the grazing domesticated yaks. Mongolian Yaks descended from the wild yaks of the Himalayan region and the Tibetan Plateau. The colour varies greatly but black and brown are the predominant colours with black genetically dominant. Spotted and white yaks also exist. There are two types of yak found in Mongolia, the Hangai and the Altai mountain yaks.

(Vising a private Yak farm)

(Crossing a small stream)

(Some holiday cabins for rental)

(Multi -coloured yaks grazing peacefully)

(Do not disturb this huge black bull)

(Mr Gur, our guide, among the brown yaks)

(Hei lady, what are you doing on my turf?)

(Wildflowers of Terelj National Park)

(A butterfly and a yellow wild flower)

We made another brief stop at a view point on one of the two parallel bridges crossing the Tuul River. There is a new bridge built next to the old one which is used by pedestrian and a nice place to take photo shots.

(A nice viewpoint for photo stop)

(The Tuul River cutting across the Terelj National Park)

(The rustic colours of Autumn)

(Cool flowing water of the Tuul River)

(A sculpture of a yak)

(One of the many sculptures around the old bridge)

(A colourful marmot on the bridge)

A short distance away in Nalaikh District, we visited a Kazakh Village where we had a traditional lunch prepared by a Muslim Kazakh family and entertained by a talented young performer. The Kazakhs are the descendants of Turkic, Mongolic and Indo-Iranian indigenous groups and Huns who populated the territory between Siberia and the Black Sea. They are a semi-nomadic people and have roamed the mountains and valleys of western Mongolia with their herds since the 19th century. After a hearty lunch we stopped at a Turkish-Kazakh Mosque in the village to perform our jama’ prayers.

(Entering the Kazakh Village Settlement)

(A warm welcome by a Kazakh family)

(A Kazakh dish of beef and lamb stew)

(Biscuits dipped in milk for dessert)

The Jame Mosque in Nalaikh district was built and financed by a Turkey Islamic Foundation in 2013. The opening ceremony was attended by the Turkish Prime Minister R. Edogan. The two-storey mosque is equipped with class rooms and a dormitory for students. Nalaikh-Konisk Cultural Center and the local office of the Association of Muslims of Mongolia are located on the ground floor. The main prayer is situated on the second floor. Muslim literature are mostly in the Mongolian language. Presently there are two mosques in Nalaikh.

(The Mongolia-Turkish Jame Mosque in Kazakh Village)

(Performing our prayers)

(One of the mosques in the village)

(Intricate carvings at the mihrab)

(A small praying area for the ladies)

(Excellent acoustic sound system)

(Nice view from the top of the minaret)

Before heading towards Hustai National Park, we made an emergency stop at a local Hospital at Khan-Uul as some from our group need to get medications for upset stomach.

(A brief stop to buy mineral water)

(An easy rider taking a break after a long ride)

(An emergency visit to the clinic)

We were already behind schedule and it was getting dark. At one point of the journey, we drove off-roading taking a shortcut across the vast open steppes, crossing streams, marshland, railway lines and dusty gravelled road until we met the highway again. With our strong comfortable 4x4 mini-bus, the rough journey was made bearable.

(Off-roading crossing shallow river)

(Taking short-cuts on the off the beaten track)

(Crossing a few railway lines)

(Getting assistance from the locals)

(Two buses were on the right track)

(A bus had to make a u-turn)

(Looking for a way to get back to the highway)

(The eagles hovering overhead in the cloudy sky)

Finally, we reached the Mongol Nomadic Ger Camp where we will be staying the night. The camp is a very immersive nomadic lifestyle ger camp around the vast landscapes and rocky formations. The camp offers comfortable ger, toiletry and warm showers. The restaurant serves traditional or made-to-order delicacies.