Mongolia Diary - 5th July

Hopeful start. The rain that went on all night had finally stopped. Lazily, we stirred from our tents, later than usual, uncertain as to the plan.

Breakfast was served. No 'mantou' today as the persistent rain the day before kept the flour from rising.

I decided to put on my socks and shoes that were still wet from the previous day's 'little excursion' to the glacier. The thought of wearing the still-wet trousers was unbearable. So I decided to hang these to the back of mt day pack and see if the sun might work its magic on them. I will have to walk in my shorts today.

We set off in the direction of the hill (relatively speaking of course since we were already above 2,000m). The initial ascent was tough but we were told that that would be it. And the rest would be downhill today.

But the distance... oh the distance. We seemed to be walking on without any end. The steppes were of course waterlogged from the rains. The uneven ground meant that we had to tramp through these endless bogs that were impossible to avoid.

We finally stopped for lunch at around 1.30pm. A simple picnic but most of us were grateful for the break. The late start this morning meant that lunch was not to be enjoyed next to the idyllic Blue Lake.

After lunch, we pushed on. Gana set a blistering pace. My shoes were completely wet through. It no longer mattered for us to try and avoid the bogs and puddles. We were just pushing on.

The end was nowhere in sight. Just as I thought the campsite would be over the next knoll, I would reach the top only to discover the lead group scattered about half a kilometer ahead. We were all individually spread out across this alpine plateau, each with our own single-minded agenda of getting there by the shortest distance possible. There were no trails to follow, so it was a case of setting out on a straight line from wherever you were to the group ahead.

First question to Ranjan when I arrive, "Can I swear now?" The campsite we settled on was at an elevation of 2667m, just below the pass that would take us into the Yamaatiin valley.

It was only when I finally had a chance to look around that I realised the surrounding was spectacular. But it was cold! And when the wind started, brrr! However, the sun was shining. And when everyone had had a chance to clean up a little, we managed to set ourselves down on the padding used to wrap around the camel's hump that was laid out to air. And we had a little picnic before dinner.

It wasn't so much the sunset but the glow from the setting sun that was incredible that evening. (That was when I took the picture which I started this blog with.) Spectucular does not begin to describe it.

The cold and the very long walk that day meant that we all retired early, about 10pm. Shawn and I were sharing a tent and the zip on his side was broken. At 2.30am, I had to answer nature's call. So he was ecstatic when he heard me shuffling about to get out, as he was actually prepared to hold on until morning. It was our good fortune that the wind had actually died down.

Outside the tent, I looked up and saw possibly the most beautiful night sky I have ever seen in my entire life. It was so clear that I thought I could see every constellation in the sky. The sky was so crowded with stars that there appeared to be different layers. I could even see stars that were further away than I have ever seen. Alas, it was freezing and we had to return to the relative warmth of the tent, content with the briefest of moments that I just had, once again completely in awe of nature.