MONGOLIA | We went to meet the Tsaatans, the last nomad reindeer herders

WHAT YOU FIND IN THIS ARTICLE
→ The story of our five-day adventure to meet the Tsaatans: from the journey to Uaz in the snow-covered plains to horse-riding to immerse in the forest, from meetings with families to immersion in their daily lives.
→ A link to our practical article: « How do I meet the Tsaatans? Tips & info for a responsible experience » which brings together organization, advice, practical information and contact details of an independent guide so that this experience is built in the respect of hosts and sustainability.

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MONGOLIA, TAIGA, KHOVSGOL, TSAATAN?
WE'RE IN THE CONTEXT.

09 October 2018 – It's been more than a week since we moved to the extreme north of Mongolia. We realize our first Workaway, namely work for a Mongolian family in exchange for meals and... adorable private yurt.

In this respect, the name « yurt » is used only by foreigners, the correct name is « gre » (pronounced « guir »), the premises only use it.

For this beginning of October the colors should be autumnal but a thick white coat has made its appearance and an amazing wave of cold reigns over the region (-15°). It is in these exceptional conditions that we are about to leave our ger and its burning stove to venture even higher into the land, to the discovery of this wild and snowy mountainous region populated by the vast forests that mark the border of Siberia: taiga.   

There lives a nomadic tribe that has developed a way of life unique to the world, so harsh that they are only a small handful to perpetuate it. Today there are about 40 of them all over the planet. And they're all here. They survive in these mountains under the canvases or tarpaulins of their tipi that resemble those of the American Indians. Their rudimentary existence depends exclusively on the nature surrounding them and the particular animals they raise. They're called Tsaatans. : extraordinary solidarity and nomadic families, the last people on the planet to perpetuate a thousand-year tradition which is the essence of their identity, the breeding of reindeer.

But enough talk! Our van is already ready. All you have to do is start. Are you coming?

DAY 1 – ORDER OF OUR expedition to meet the Tsaatans

The journey is a full adventure.

9.30 a.m. - It's time to say goodbye to the family who welcomed us almost 10 days... And to leave the sweet city of Khatgal to go in search of this mysterious reindeer breeder tribe. Last smiles, last games with children, last look at the large ice lake and its small houses on which the snow still shows some colorful walls. A van awaits us at the entrance of our camp and a small man with a burin complexion is already loading our things. He sends us a big smile and a « Well-bain-uu! » enthusiastic (which means hello). Further a young woman arrives with an energetic step. At this distance, her small 50-foot and her two brown duvets on the side barely give her the air to be 16 years old. She actually has 35 and is the mother of two children. She is called Zaya and will be our guide during these 5 days of adventure to visit reindeer herders.

A driver and a guide are essential to meet the Tsaatans. They alone are able to steer on these steppes that do not count signs or paths (and you will soon see that even they have some difficulties). But above all, only your guide will be able to find the Tsaatans in the mountains: these nomadic families are cut off from the rest of the world and never stay in the same place for a long time, it is difficult to know their location alone. If you want to know more practical elements about organising an expedition to meet the Tsaatans, this Article is made for you.

10h00 - The vrombit engine and our hearts pack them We're leaving. Heading north, far north, to land where no vehicle will be able to move. Let us introduce you to the one who will lead us there: our van, a van manufactured by the Soviet Empire in the 1965s whose use was of military origin. They are called the Uaz. Don't trust her cute little ball and her rather rudimentary appearance: this device is indestructible and passes wherever you think « It will never pass », from experience in Russia ! 

The program of the day is simple: not less than 9 hours and more than 200km in plains, mountains, rock, mud, snow and river beds. We will have to reach before night the camp of a nomadic family in the middle of nowhere so that they will give us our mounts and the next day we can continue our journey to meet the Tsaatans.

For the time being, the steppes follow a route worthy of a Paris-Dakkar. Nothing seems to disturb our pilot Bor (at this level we can use the term « Pilot ») which sneaks through bumps, slopes, holes and rie when our Uaz has to continue moving on three wheels. We're trying to sit back. For this, we stand by the handles that they no longer hold on to the walls of the vehicle. Zaya laughs when our business leaps to come and kiss the front seats, us with.

Behind the windows, Mongolia contrasts with the agitation in our van. Imperturbable, calm and wise, she offers us these paintings imbued with a deep calmness of which she alone has the secret. The steppes are huge and autumn gives them a nice golden complexion. There is absolutely nothing anywhere, only plains and forests, sometimes spotted with white or black depending on the nature of herds (mounds or yaks). From time to time, we see isolated yurts. The sky is clear, the snow has already settled under the conifers, it is cold outside but one cannot stop to capture some shots:

We're getting closer to northern Mongolia, it's almost noon..

Our Uaz swallows the kilometers and on the horizon a yurt not like the others is emerging: we have the chance to meet a Mongolian family building its new home Hey! The vehicle stops, Zaya sparkles with enthusiasm and turns to us with a huge smile and this unlikely phrase: « She's my cousin! ».

We're all excited about this mysterious assemblage. Who's been intriguing us a lot since we got here! We are entitled to a guided tour of the half-yourth and observe this nomadic couple doing business. The man paints calmly while the woman unfolds a thick cloth of felt: it is the one that will be used to isolate the roof.

Not derogating from Mongolian custom, the activities stop at the second we approach and we are expressly invited to have tea at the « inside ». The yurt is still only a assembly of wooden trusses forming a circle, but no matter: we all have to pass in the small frame that marks the future entrance then to sit on the few furniture and carpets arranged in order to receive the precious milk elixir.

Minute culture: Did you know, according to Mongolian beliefs, that you must always enter a yurt from the right foot? In fact there is an infinity of rules to be respected in a yurt, we prepared a small top 5 of the ones you'll face most.e. This is also one of the reasons why we particularly enjoyed this trip in search of Tsaatans: it allowed us to learn a lot about Mongolian culture.

We are invited to taste Mongolian treats (all made from milk: dried milk cakes, fermented...). Zaya is our interpreter. We eat our « cookies » Homemade and we ask a lot of questions. Did you know that an hour is enough to build a yurt? The family will dismantle it again in two months: for the many nomads still living from breeding in Mongolia, migrating is an obligation to survive the different seasons, it is not uncommon to have to mount and disassemble his yurt at least 4 times each year.

Well and if not and technically, how does a yurt come about?
Step 1: assembly of 6 « khanas » Of wood which form the circular structure.
Step 2: The central structure is installed (a crown supported by two pillars, all made of wood also).
Step 3: the many sticks (« Hunnus« ) both on this structure and the khanas: they will support the roof, i.e. the felt canvas for insulation then the waterproof cotton canvas. They are traditionally painted in 2 different colours.

No watches, no phones. Just swapping on a carpet and now a sheep's head to snack on (it's a nice present here). Time passes quickly and after scratching three last small pieces of front Zaya makes us understand with all the sweetness that characterizes it that we will have to go. Here we go again with our land. We mustn't drag too much so we trace through the golden hills. The Mongolia is grandiose.

On board, discussions go well Uaz (Uaz / train... You got it?). Zaya is the perfect embodiment of Mongolian benevolence, with this prick of modesty that characterizes his people. She is also this young, lively woman, in love with both her profession and her country, whose eyes sparkle when you talk about adventure. We ask him mountains of questions and outside the snow gradually takes over the steppe. At windows the landscape changes, peaks appear, you climb, you descend, the path becomes more and more icy. We're getting closer to Tsaatans land.

3 p.m. - It's really getting cold in the Uaz.

No heating if it is not the engine that lies between the two front seats, but it is not enough in view of the size of our vehicle and the cold that has seized everything around us. Snow fell a few days earlier and this does not facilitate progress in this already difficult region. Zaya explains that the next snowfall will make it impossible to cross this region, we are the last people she will take to Tsaatans this year.

« That's for sure, we're not going through. ». This sentence comes out of our mouth ten times. We drive through seriously snow-covered hills or pass through river beds completely filled with mud or ice, but the 4 drive wheels combined with the Soviet engine and the skill of our driver are furious. Bor is driving at the pace and no minute is flowing without it operating a whole bunch of levers. Every time we are wrong to worry. Except one.

You see the tool muffler? Bor uses it at this precise moment: we are stuck in the snow after slipping over a hundred meters, stuck in our uncontrollable metal box slipping on the slopes of an overly steep hill. The slide lasts for a long minute and then the Uaz moves still. A quarter hour in the snow, two magic keys, and we're going back. More fear than evil!

It's almost dark. and we still haven't reached our base camp

We have never been so close to the goal, soon we will be warm in an authentic Mongolian ger. But after a phone call we learn that our nomadic family whose yurt will serve us as a base camp to explore Tsaatans lands just migrated. They have neither map nor GPS position to provide, it is impossible for us to guess their new location.

How were we to find ourselves before, without our mobile phones, GPS, google and myriad applications?

We are currently in the last small village before the taiga. One of the sisters of the nomadic family takes the initiative to leave the family camp to come and find us and to guide us: one hour's journey, which she will have to go back and forth on her bike, in the night and the freezing cold.

8.30 p.m. - We arrive in the nomad yurt thanks to our motorcycle savior.

The engines stop, it's dark night and we absolutely don't know where we are. Close by the ember light escaping from the duct of a stove guides us: we rush inside the ger. The one who braved snow and iced rivers to lead us here has purple lips but she laughs with her mother at the corner of the pan, a cup of milk tea burning in her frozen hands.

We are welcomed as kings, Mongolian hospitality is amazing. We look forward to leaving us the best places and after a minute inside we also have our cup of tea with in addition to homemade products all around us: the big bread cooked the same lunch and the butter made by the mother with the milk that she harvests each morning. On the incandescent stove, liters of tea are still being prepared. Could we hope better?

We meet the whole family and spend the rest of the evening enjoying the simple pleasures that this country offers. Women soon get up and move the small coffee table on the side to spread large blankets on the floor: these are our beds, Tonight we're getting a place in the family ger. To our left: the mother; right: the girl; Our driver. On us: two duvets plus our downs.

We're exhausted. Our eyes close and we think of tomorrow's day, when on horseback we intersect in the high-altitude forests, where these mysterious inhabitants of the tipis, the Tsaatans, for whom life between two horns has no more secrets.

DAY 2 – MEETING with nomad reindeer herders

There are no moments stronger than those expected

7:30 - We wake up slowly with a surprise guest knocking at the ger door. We open, discover its snout and the daylight fills the inside. She reveals what our eyes could not perceive the day before in the darkness, the ton of dried milk above our heads.

Living from herd involves a daily routine with many tasks throughout the day. After new bread and butter spreads we decide to follow the women for milking and by chance discover the landscapes that surround us.

The milking takes place every morning. Each woman can harvest more than a dozen litres of milk. The young are put in a separate enclosure and then released one by one where the mothers wait: they then head down towards the one they recognize among all and begin to suck without delay. The nomads then remove them, tie them firmly (it has strength, a hungry Yak baby), and then start trafficking.

What about us in this? It is 9.30 a.m., we find Bor thawing his car. A few minutes later, we board. The purpose of today's trip? Join the father and brother who keep the horses in a pen in the middle of the steppes, a few kilometers away, then ride until they find the Tsaatan tribe. This will be the first step of the day, at most half an hour. It seemed simple. But it hasn't really been.

We've been driving for almost an hour. It has been at least 30 minutes since we circled in a huge plain. Apart from the ridges of the mountains to the north, the place is so vast that we do not distinguish anything on the horizon. After the various hesitations of our driver and a stop for several minutes in the middle of nowhere, we ask the fateful question:
« - Zaya, are we lost? » (Zaya, are we lost?)
She responds to us with her soft and posed voice, punctuating her sentence with a shy smile:
« - Yes. »

Do you see the scene? A driver, a guide and us, lost at the end of a country where the number of inhabitants is estimated to be 0.5 per square kilometre.

We cannot help laughing at the situation and Zaya looks at us without understanding why. In reality she's just happy that she's Don't get upset. Finally we get the help of a nomad passing through and finally find our famous horse guide : His name is Barna.. There he is, near his little pen in the middle of nowhere (it is really the case to say), accompanied by his 4 horses.

All we have to do is gather our stuff, prepare our mounts and put on the outfits we will not leave in the next three days.

We carry deels, these traditional Mongolian outfits that look like huge upholstered coats, crossing on the front to tie on the side. They were loaned to us by the mother of the family, afraid that we were too cold on our journey. Suffice to say that they weigh quite heavy, but that it is good to wear them at this icy beginning of October.

10.00 - Our little Mongolian horses are heading for the Tsaatans tribe.

These Mongolian horses are half wild. A first experience worthy of this name for Maxime, who had never before laid her butt on a saddle! We have left for 4 hours, immersed in the middle of the taiga and riding a semi-wild horse in search of Tsaatans tipis lost in the mountains.

Did you know that?
Like any nomadic people, the Tsaatans live at the rhythm of the seasons. The latter are often forced to change their homes for the good of their flock and their survival under these harsh conditions. It is impossible to know exactly where they are when we leave, only Zaya knows their habits and can guess the probable location of their camp in the mountains. We trust him blindly.

We're moving forward in a virgin nature any man's intervention. The feeling of adventure and escape grows at the pace of our horses, sometimes at the pace sometimes at the trot. Plains, rivers, forests... We cross landscapes of a unique richness and our eyes are not big enough to appreciate the vastness of the decor. The air is fresh and the silence dizzying. It's like an immense tranquillity permeates the mountains.

14.00 - On the Tsaatans reindeer and tipis road, short break.

Our buttocks thank us (the legendary comfort of Mongolian stools). You lie in the sun in the tall grasses, close your eyes for a few minutes, discuss. Then we get back in the saddle: the day is already well advanced and Within two hours the night will begin to wrap the forest. It is at the gallop that the recovery takes place, with the snowy mountains in sight that we must reach before the fall of the day.

15.30 - We've been away for over 5 hours looking for Tsaatans in the heart of Mongolia.

The woods are deeply calm and we sneak between the trees as the forest becomes denser and denser. In the midst of the great conifers time seems suspended and there is a strange silence. For several minutes now, the only sound background is the step of our frames. Their hooves trample the ground covered with orange thorns, when suddenly... A tipi emerges in the plain.

Tsaatans are where we didn't expect them. In the midst of silence, where there was nothing to predict the presence of any population.

We discover in this thick wood a plain, three tipis and about twenty reindeer, like a mirage in the mountain. A fantastic vision we weren't preparing for. In the middle of all this, a little man watching us calmly.

The white coat of the animals is detached from the burnt soils of the taiga. The reindeer are this kind of animals that belong to the world of children's tales, seeing them evolve in their natural environment, this country where they were not imagined to be present, is... You're so disgusting.

We were told that a handful of men lived with them in the mountains, But until we see them... This reality is more like a legend.. Now it comes to life in front of our blissful eyes. It was like this in the air there was a little magic.

Barely the time to realize, that we are already invited by our hosts Enkhtaivan, Odongoo and Urttsaikh to come share a moment under the tipi. These Tsaatans have lived all three for years. Their wives and children live in the nearest village (a day of travel) and visit them from time to time to avoid these harsh living conditions.

Homemade bread, tea and milk (from reindeer!), a cabin that every child has always dreamed of and in front of us the members of one of the most remote nomadic tribes in the country.

This trio Tsaatan lives exclusively from his flock. The reindeer provide milk, cheese, more rarely meat and even serve as a means of transport. They make their clothes with their furs, use their excrement as fuel, sculpt tools with the horns and serve as a currency of exchange. Milk and bread are their only diet. They don't have breakfast or lunch, they only take one real meal a day: in the evening, where they may eat some meat.

17:30 – In the middle of reindeer and tipis, the sun begins to be low and with it the temperature too.

Tonight it will be -15°. Everyone comes out of their tipi and everyone is tying to cut wood. They cut three times more for us than for them. After helping them, we take advantage of the last rays to appreciate still a little the atmosphere that reigns in the clearing. The sun gives its last effort but it is really getting cold, it is not long to warm up at the corner of the fire. Dinner time is approaching and our Tsaatans hosts don't know that we have a surprise for them!

Tonight under the tipi a very special touch we will invite, guess who we have preciously since we left France?

The only, the real, the inimitable: the Handcrafted sausage. And you know what? They loved it! Around the stove the discussions are going on. The three Tsaatans seem happy to see new faces and are interested in us, our adventure, our country and much more. We learn a little more about their daily lives, their lives, their families... The difficulty of dialogue is filled by simple gestures and a good mood dose that warms even more the atmosphere. They love our language and ask us to sing a song. This is how we end up singing Francis Cabrel under a tipi, lost with the last ethnic group in northern Mongolia.

21.00 - It is time to join the tipi that the three Tsaatans have mounted for us.

We Share it with Barnaa, Zaya and... a burning stove that can defeat any temperature! That's so good, because according to Zaya this night will be the coldest of the season, we'll have to arm ourselves accordingly.

For this we can count on our faithful horse guide which in addition to being an exception guide is reveals being a man of immense goodness. Once in our duvets, he hastened to tuck us under a mountain of duvets and despite our protests, promises to watch all night over the fire so that we never get cold.

DAY 3 – TOTAL IMMERSION BY TSAATANS

We are taught that learning is remembering, we forget to say that sometimes it is also forgetting.

7:00 a.m. – The day rises on the Taiga. The reindeer are standing and It's already time for trafficking.. The plain is as still asleep, so quiet that it is only heard the noise of the small quantities of milk that fill the metal bucket. Then slowly... The first rays appear and almost forget the 0° which icing the atmosphere. We walk in the middle of the herd and the plain that awakens.

Back inside. A hot bowl in your hands, you can still enjoy the morning view. It is time to respond to the invitation of reindeer farmers: Head for breakfast.

Usually the Tsaatans don't eat lunch, but happy to have guests we are expected on firm foot for milk tea! What they don't know is that they bring a new surprise: spread paste (mongol). We know it's a product they usually don't have access to, so for the first time under tipi the sweet bread gets married with the hazelnut.

Breakfast is extended. These men seem definitely happy (and curious) to receive guests. They show us the animals they sculpt in the horns of their reindeer. They explain that when they go to town, they sell these small sculptures on the markets. They laugh at trying to teach us how to speak their language.

We let them go on their daily business. For us, it will be the occasion of a (very short) river water toilet. We will certainly remember our entire life of this moment: Not because of the ice water of the river, but because of the reaction of this nomad when he sees our pocket mirror.

Thes Tsaatans live only with what surrounds them, and a mirror is not the kind of thing that one finds in nature. He signs us to borrow us and we give him willingly, without yet understanding the excitement that enlivens. He expressly carries it to his face, and to his eyes we understand: for the first time this man can see the scars that mark him. His gestures are now very slow, he spends long minutes scrutinizing. But time does not flow anymore. In reality, everything seems to be hanging around this look that we will never forget. The one of someone who hadn't discovered what he'd been like for a long time...

Enkhtaivan will explain to us, with great reinforcement of mimes, that he was made These scars when falling on a motorcycle several months ago : while he was rolling down the mountain his vehicle slipped, the fall was rough and his roll roll was stopped only by a tree, which he caught in the face. But he laughs by telling us this story. It's one of the last moments we spent with reindeer breeder.

For us it is already time to say goodbye to these first nomads and to leave them a last little gift: the ribbon that symbolizes our fight against charcot disease and the association for which we collect donations. Zaya explains our fight, tells them about my mother's death and our sporting challenges to make talk about this unknown disease. Touched by our cause, the three Tsaatans hung our ribbons in their tipi. A pinned up near his heart. If you go back, you might see him, who knows.

The hour of farewell is there and with it, that of the last photos. The three men lend themselves to the game with enthusiasm. Actually, they look like kids. They take a most serious pose in front of the lens, and then they rush back to laugh at their appearance. We promise them that one day, in one way or another, we will send them these photographs.

10.30 a.m. - We ride our mounts to meet a somewhat different Tsaatans family.

Today we are continuing our progress and looking for a new Tsaatan family. She lives higher in the mountains. We are currently at 1,400m altitude and will climb to 2,000m. If everything goes as planned, we will not ride for more than 2 hours.

The weather is rolling and you keep climbing. Now we sink into the snow. Our eyes are on the lookout for any tipi... But were not ready, at the turn of a tree, to fall on it:

A child raising a reindeer in the middle of the taiga. We try to calm our horses (also surprised by this appearance) but at that time we are Probably as excited as they are..

This little man high like 5 apples is the youngest of the Tsaatan family we are looking for. He had gone to gather the flock when he guessed our presence. He took the initiative to meet us. He now shows us the way. After 20 minutes... We discover a new camp and the dogs, guardians of the place, come to greet us joyfully!

These new reindeer herders have set up their camp in the heart of a beautiful wooded square. The herd has gone into the heights which gives us time to get to know fully around a... (you know now) milk tea. Bambaga, Lhagvaasuren and their 2 children, the young Tsahiur and the little one Namuundari, just 2 days ago, the cold getting too heavy on their previous location.

We take advantage of the warmth of the sun's rays to familiarize ourselves with this new place. The tipi and their facilities are more advanced than those of the previous camp, certainly due to the presence of the children. The youngest Tsaatan shows us the little purple treasures whose ground is filled and gives to heart joy: we spend a moment with her sitting in the blueberry bushes.

Suddenly, a sound resonates in the valley. No doubt about our new nomadic instincts: a herd is approaching. And we're right! These are other Tsaatans: a young couple of family friends who come to join them. Before our eyes once again, we see the arrival of about 40 reindeer and the construction of a real tipi. 

Once the installation of the new tipi is complete we return to the main camp. Every reindeer is carefully tied after he's done a good job. We observe the scene in the sun, between two games with young Namuundari and generous caresses to dogs, who seem very happy to have so many new hands.

14.00 - The reindeer breeders are giving us a surprise.

Always lying in the sun between dogs and reindeer, we are asked timidly to rise: In front of us stands the greatest reindeer and he is... Salted! Much smaller than horses, we are afraid of being too heavy to ride them on their backs and hurt them. The Tsaatans reassure us that these animals are certainly less enduring but can safely carry loads up to 85kg (for us, it goes!).

The animal is sublime. We let ourselves be gently carried in the taiga at the pace of his steps. Barnaa follows us closely, ensuring that nothing comes to threaten our safety. But the reindeer is deeply peaceful despite the power of his muscles that we feel under our tight calves. Never would we have imagined ourselves riding this animal in such a place!

15.00 - The short walk is over and we let the Tsaatans reindeer rest.

We take the opportunity to meet the diferent members of this nomadic community and observe their daily activities.

Living exclusively from the resources around them requires work : Tsaatans are busy throughout the day. The first hours of the morning are devoted to trafficking. Then the herd must be fed and released and watched over them in the mountains. Women are involved in washing laundry with river water. Then comes the time to prepare butter, daily bread and other reindeer milk products. The afternoon is dedicated to cutting wood for heating (the stove burns continuously under the tipi, to cook or provide heat). Men sharpen the tools they have made or dried and peel the furs with which they will make warm clothes and shoes for winter.

16.15 - Night quickly falls into the valley and ice Mongolia.

It's out of the question of leaving this place without honouring our guests. Tonight, it's decided, we'll take care of the dessert: it will be blueberry jam to spread on the spreads Hey! Inside the tipi, Zaya is preparing dinner (she sashes with her axe on a sheep's neck that she cannot cut for the broth). He is enthusiastically explained that we intend to harvest blueberry and then make it a jam. After carefully listening to our plan, she salutes the initiative of a fatalist. « Good luck! » . Anyway, we leave more confident than ever, each one armed with our stainless steel cups that we find a new utility.

30 minutes later – We overestimated our abilities. The blueberries are certainly numerous... But tiny! After half an hour of harvest, our respective cups were only half filled. You don't need to be great cooks to know that it won't be enough for our jam.

5 p.m. - After being beaten for blueberries, our turn to cook for the Tsaatans.

It is almost dark and after being beaten because I had swiped the blueberries from the cup to Maxime so that mine would fill up faster, we realize that we have more of these purple fruits on our hands and face than in our containers. Zaya laughs at us and wants to immortalize the moment.

But whatever, at the table! The stove burns like never before in the main tipiWe're all taking refuge. Tonight it will be Mongolian soup (rice and sheep neck cooked in water) but also the opportunity to draw from our last stocks of sausage to share a new moment with our guests. Again, good mood is at the meeting And it is with joy that the family accepts our gift. Better yet, they use fresh bread to make real... Franco-Mongol tapas! Fireworks for our taste buds.

About our home jam... We are happy to announce that she is doing well! We've been able to cook the blueberries with wood fire, and that's the effect. Especially for a little nomad, we let you guess which one.

In the land of reindeer herders, it's time to sleep

Under the protective eye of Barna we leave to slip under our 459 duvets. Zaya also sleeps with us and teaches us to wish a good night in Mongolian. He's asked for a song to fall asleep. It's the end of an amazing day, dreaming about what tomorrow holds for us...

DAY 4 – Good-bye with the Tsaatan family

There are places that one never really leaves, these remote areas where the Tsaatans live are part of it.

7.30 a.m. - The sun pierces through the forest and comes to warm the tipis, it's time to get up! We take the opportunity to go to the clearing to admire the first rays and above all... Say hello to the reindeer.

Three days among them do nothing, we are still in admiration before these animals. This feeling of being in the middle of a awake dream never leaves us. The sun sneaks among the fir trees and comes to caress the horns of the animals. We are alone with them, surrounded on all sides. The song of birds at the heart of silence ends up adding a dose of fairytale to the scene. We play with reindeer who like to throw their horns into our hands.

Between two trees, the mother slowly arrives: It's time for trafficking and today we're also working on the task.

8 a.m. - A big day of horse riding will be necessary to leave the Tsaatans and join the « civilization ».

Soon it will be time to prepare bags and mounts. But before that: « breakfast time ». Some are happy that we still have a little more spread.

We say goodbye to the family Tsaatan. We try to arm our best smiles for clichés, but good-byes are difficult. We express our gratitude with simple words and gestures.

It is in this kind of moment that we realize that we do not need to speak the same language to make ourselves understood. Emotions are enough.

10am – Departure. Horses are excited to come home and gallop easily in the middle of the Mongolian taiga.

The day will be long, we take advantage of the enthusiasm of our mounts to run through the wind. Soon enough the forest spreads away to give way to the steppes again and the relief becomes more smooth. We don't wait long to be several kilometers away but nothing does... Our spirit remains with the Tsaatans in the mountains.

The riding hours will help prepare mentally for our return. It's hard to separate from this bad habit: turn in turn to project in the future or then to revive the past. There's no better way to miss the present. So we put our thoughts aside and enjoy every kilometre through the steppes, until we get drunk with this feeling of freedom.

Our horses are galloping. Barnaa and Zaya are never far away and we see their protective instincts awaken every moment when they see us leaving at full speed on our half-wild mounts. However, if we omit the passage where Maxime tried to open a pack of waffles while his horse was trotting, we can say that we did quite well, no incident to report ! You have to think we're pretty good riders.

15.30 - Time ran as fast as a horse scared by a pack of waffles through the steppes.

It is already in the middle of the afternoon and in the distance we see the little enclosure (the one we had taken so long to find to go). This time, our brave driver Bor seems to have remembered the path because beside the barriers the silhouette of the Uaz stands out. He too soon saw our little convoy and made great signs, happy to see us all four after three days waiting. We sting one last gallop and race to him. He laughs and addresses us big inches raised « Good riders, very good riders !! » (good riders, very good riders!! »).

Our equipment leaves the back of the horses to be loaded again in the van. We give last caresses to our mounts and warmly thank Barnaa. This simple and discreet man has far exceeded his skills of horse guide Throughout the adventure. His kindness was equal to his helpfulness, Don't hesitate to get up every hour to keep a fire on to protect us from the icy night. It is deplorable to be the object of such benevolence and generosity on the part of a person we had never met before. If there is one thing we will keep in mind, it is Incredible smile of this man with his heart as great as his country.

As if we had always lived here, we found the family who had welcomed us the first night. Everyone deals around the huge herd (yaks, goats) to bring the animals back to their enclosures. With them, we participate in gathering the goats who try to climb the mountain.

Inside the yurt, fresh bread and homemade butter take on a new dimension. We are hungry after this long day of riding. We swallow 4 milk teas and at least as many big spreads, our guests rejoice in our appetite. That's how one ends up having a full stomach but a little tight heart... Besides leaving the Tsaatans, we know it's one of our last nights in Mongolia. The day is coming to an end, we go out watching the lights abandon the steppe. In the distance, the tracks of Barnaa's motorcycle float gently in the air.

This frozen painting holds us for a few moments in silence, then a small excited voice manages to make a place in the vastness of the plain: Zaya has a surprise for us. When we return to the yurt we discover a real feast that the family and they prepared us: dozens and dozens of khuushuur !!

Khuushuur ??
Delivered « rouchour » Hey! This Mongolian specialty is similar to small homemade donuts stuffed with sheepmeat cooked with onions. All cooked in fat... Sheep of course. Preparation takes time, which is why it is often associated with festive meals and great occasions. A must-see dish if you go to Mongolia! It's our favorite specialty.

We have about the head. children discovering their Christmas gifts. We warmly thank the family and Zaya for this attention, which all well thought has perhaps to do with the fact that Maxime has:

• 1 : speaks 975 times khuushurs for four days and
• 2: Give that name to his horse.

Just gilded in fat, khuushurs combine to perfection hot milk tea And we're in eat tens that night.

8.30 p.m. - We woke up in a tipi at 2,000m altitude among Tsaatans and reindeer and...

...We sleep in a yurt in the midst of steppes surrounded by yaks and khuushurs. We spread the table again, we spread the duvets again and we sleep with dreams full of the head. They are filled with reindeer and they all gallop on a field of khuushurs.

DAY 5 – End of our adventure to meet the Tsaatans, BACK TO REALITY.

The road is beautiful, but the roads are separating.

7h00 - Milk tea fumes come to tickle our nostrils. The mother is already standing and Zaya is already standing. This morning, we are getting ready: we have a long, long day of journey. We will have to drive until evening to reach the nearest city and then take a night bus. The trip will take 15 hours to reach the capital of Mongolia, Ulan Bator. Almost two days of transportation.

The night cold has frozen our vehicle and the Uaz is a little heady, but while we spend time near the herds our driver the bichonne and (unfortunately) we can leave.

9 a.m. - We climb on the benches. Uaz starts. Far, far away: the capital of Mongolia.

On the road, even the yaks tried to keep us... But nothing does. Kilometers march and we prepare to say goodbye to the huge forests that house nomads reindeer herders, yaks, goats, colorful steppes, our favorite guide and driver and all those little moments that we will miss.

The end of this Tsaatans land adventure is worthy of these melo-dramatic love films. You know, the ones where farewells are on the docks of a railway station. and where after so many beautiful moments the protagonists separate because their paths will now take different directions? Zaya remain in Mongolia with his family and continue to take visitors to discover his beautiful country. We will continue our journey to continue to discover the world and the people who inhabit it.

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