There are no horse thieves at five o’clock in the morning

Day: 55

Sunrise:
06:53

Sunset:
19:25

As the crow flies:
20,47

Daily kilometers:
26

Total kilometers:
691

Soil condition:
Meadow

Temperature – Day (maximum):
24°C

Temperature – day (minimum):
20°C

Temperature – Night:
minus 5°

Latitude:
49°14’576”

Longitude:
101°19’527”

Maximum height:
1451 m above sea level

Time of departure:
11:45

Arrival time:
17:50

As the amount of pictures that need to be labeled and archived is enormous, I extended my watch shift this morning from 2:00 am to 5:00 am. At the same time I relieved Bilgee a little. A strip of light on the horizon heralds the coming day as I crawl out of the tent to wake Bilgee. “Bilgee! Get up!” I shout, but nothing moves. Bilgee! Bilgeee! Get up!” I repeat my daily wake-up call to change the guard. All I get in response from Bilgee’s tent, however, is a snore. It’s only after the fourth time that I hear a low-pitched “Okay.” Shivering, I slip back into the tent to catch another two or three hours’ sleep. I listen for a while to see if I can hear the zipper of Bilgee’s tent, but it remains silent. Only the dogs from a distant yurt bark at the morning. As Bilgee has drunk quite a bit of vodka and at least two cans of beer after yesterday’s exhausting day, I can understand why he finds it difficult to get up at this time of day. I let it go and allow him to sleep. “There won’t be a horse thief at this hour,” is my last thought before I flee to the land of dreams.

Tanja, Bilgee and I have already dismantled the camp, put the horse and cart away and are just saddling the horses when Ulzii turns up at 11:00 with his policeman friend. “Oglooniimend! (Good morning) “Did you have a good night?” I greet him in a friendly manner. “Oglooniimend!”, yes it was wonderful. I was even able to take a hot shower,” he says, making us a little envious as we haven’t had such a pleasure in almost two months.

The thermometer climbs to a whopping 39 degrees in the sun. When you consider that it was minus 12 degrees the night before last, that’s a temperature difference of 51 degrees. “Unbelievable,” I say in surprise, staring at the thermometer for a long time.

We cross a hill on which a pile of stones announces the highest point. I ride around him and take a few photos. A skeletal bovine head stares at me from its empty eye sockets. Someone put this head down as an offering. I pause for a few moments and look at the horse-drawn carriage passing below me and the three riders. A beautiful picture. For me, this sight means a little bit of security at the moment, a little bit of home. A shepherd drives his 15 cattle in the opposite direction. Perhaps he wants to go to the cattle market in Erdenet or even to Ulan Bator like other shepherds we have met? You probably get more money for your animals in the capital than in a provincial town. “Come on Sar. We have to go after our humans,” I whisper to my horse. Just a gentle push with the heels and my well-trained horse starts moving. Tanja is waiting for me at the foot of the mountain. “Whoever is quicker to the horse-drawn cart!” I call out challengingly. “Whoo-hoo!” we shout and gallop around the track. “Sar is faster after all!” I triumph. “No way. I was there earlier than you!” laughs Tanja.

Together we reach the village of Rashaant. Our entry into the nest reminds me of the Wild West movies. Not much has changed here except that there are also a few cars and a few motorcycles. Otherwise, horses, cattle, sheep and goats are part of everyday life. None of the residents take any particular notice of the wayward horse-drawn train entering their settlement. Only when they discover Europeans in Tanja and me do some of them laugh and wave while others look shyly to the side. We tie our horses to a wooden fence and head for the store. We are surprised at all the things you can buy there. When we rode through the country in 1996, there was almost nothing in the simple stores. So today we get ten kilograms of flour, five kilograms of pasta, three kilograms. Rice, two pairs of knitting gloves, chocolate, cookies, yeast, a kilogram of mandarins, four apples, three kilograms of potatoes, a sieve for Bilgee’s Boortsog to drain off all the fat and much more. However, there are no axes or saws that we have to replace because they have broken. Horseshoes, halters and bridles are also not available at this location. We have to get this in the town of Mörön.

As we leave the settlement, we cross a narrow river. We can hardly believe to see children bathing there. A land of extremes. First you almost freeze to death and then it’s so warm in the sun that the little ones use the last days of fall to splash around.

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