The Kazakh Eagle Hunters
My friend Bavo is pursuing his childhood dream to track down the Kazakh eagle hunters who reside in far the Western Mongolian region of Bayan-Olgii. He’s passionate about it and his fervor for these noble birds of prey is contagious. I’ve caught eagle fever as well.
Maybe it was growing up in Belgium and not having the proximity to nature that’s made Bavo so relentless in his search, or simply the power of National Geographic documentaries to capture the imagination of young viewers. Regardless, he’s here pursuing his dream and I respect him for it.
Our driver Tulegin is Kazakh and assures us that he can take us to see some eagles. He doesn’t disappoint. He speaks no English so random stops become common, but this time he waves us out of the car and after a brief conversation a young guy emerges from his small square house with the hooded eagle.
Later that night we head out of town to a humble ger that sits below Mount Tsengel, one of the highest peaks of the Altai. The man asks us for a dollar each to see the eagle since the family is poor and they’re just coming out of the hard winter months. He puts on his hunting caps and we head out into the field to check out his six-year-old bird. We are allowed to get close to this one and it seems pretty tame. I’m still concentrating harder on the bird’s massive talons and beak than the beauty of the bird. The thing freaked me out.
Our third eagle stop is on the way up to the Two Lakes area near the Chinese border. This eagle is five and the largest and friskiest of the three. Bavo braves sitting next to it after it’s owner struggles to get the hood on. Immediately the bird’s head turns and starts sniffing who the hell is there and Bavo retreats as soon as I take the picture.
Tags: Eurasia: Marco Polo-in' it, Mongolia
Administrator
Leave a Reply