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Saying goodbye to Mongolia
By Charlie Frew
And so after 9000 kms, 90 nights camping, 1 puncture, 1 cracked radiator, 2 broken leaf springs, 2 shattered roof racks, an exhausted turbo, 50 river crossings, a chair thief, a couple of eaten sheep, hundreds of milk teas and a climb up the highest mountain, my time in Mongolia has come to an end.
To me Mongolia has been a lesson of living as a nomad, sharing food, having access to very basic supplies, doing without internet and mobile phones, conserving water and exploring an incredibly wild country as I recorded some fascinating interviews on global warming.
It has also been a massive learning curve in the sense that it was me and the Hilux in a very foreign and remote corner of the world where we dealt with problems ourselves. Having visited the most northerly village in the country, paid homage to Ikh Burkhant in the east, braved the burning sands of the Gobi and struggled across the glacial terrain of Tavan Bogd in the west, our journey here is surely complete.
It only leaves me to say a very warm thank you to Gerelmaa (Shangri-La Projects in UB) who got me my extended visa, to Engiima (CNCF) for looking after me in UB and to the hundreds of nomads across the country who have pointed me in some direction or other, right or wrong.
And to the Mongolian environment, forgive me for scarring the occasional valley; may the summer grass grow quickly and cover my tracks.
I shall be returning; I have the 5 Saints to climb with Ganga!
I cross the Russian Border on Friday 27th August 2010.
Charities
With variety Charity road shows and events, all donation & fundraising of this expedition will go to:
Christina Noble Children's Foundation www.cncf.org
SOS Children's Village www.sos-childrensvillages.org
Shark Trust www.sharktrust.org
For more info and keep track of the project, click on to:
Website: www.onthewrongside.info
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