Throughout the trip Padraig’s hearing has been intermittent. Apparently when he had some vaccine shots before leaving home, they messed up his ears.
It seems to be worse first thing in the morning but can continue throughout the day. Every morning we check if he’s “receiving transmission”. Waving our arms to get his attention we yell or snap our fingers beside his ears. In an attempt to clear them he tugs the lobes up and down while opening and closing his mouth like a fish. The poor guy. A lot of our laughs have come at his expense but he’s a good sport. Unuruu says he’s so cute and like a baby, except for the beard so we start calling him Beard Baby.
We bit a sad farewell to Erdenee and Narankhuu this morning before they leave to round up the horses needed for the next trek. John has become especially close with them due to commonalities – how great he is at fixing everything, his love of motorcycles and his positive attitude about everything. He’s bonded with them in a way that the rest of us haven’t. He gives them both big hugs and Erdenee gives us a wave as he rides off.
We set off in the Grey Beast and the potholed road is a jarring reminder that we have eight hours of a backbreaking, neck wrenching ride ahead of us. At least the call for rain was wrong and it’s a beautiful sunny day. We’re all overdressed as it’s 30 plus degrees today. We left Murun in spring weather and we’re returning in summer. We get settled into our seats and I play DJ again. Padraig, John and I are singing along and watching the scenery bump by. The river is swollen with runoff and the dodgy bridge looks even more so. There’s a cattle traffic jam crossing the bridge so we wait until they’ve passed through before continuing on.
Due to the dry weather, the road seems to be in a bit better condition mud-wise. We stop for lunch amidst a goat and sheep herd and I head straight for the creek to dunk my head, my handkerchief and my feet to cool off. Unuruu makes us a lunch out of ramen noodles, veggies (a.k.a. wedgies) and mutton. I’m going to miss our picnic lunches in the middle of nowhere.
We arrive at the little village with the market we stopped at on the way to the Taiga. Padraig is looking for the elderly female proprietor that took a liking to him to pour on the charm but unfortunately she’s away in Murun. Ice creams are purchased to beat the heat and the taste reminds me of blue cheese salad dressing with a hint of lemon.
Ganbaa stops the van to change the hubs back into 4-wheel drive to cross a creek and notices that the front driver’s side tire is missing three of its five lug nuts (bolts that hold the tire to the vehicle). Everyone hops out and tools, a jack and a tarp are pulled out of the back to conduct repairs. John assists Ganbaa while the rest of us go off in different directions to explore. Unuruu goes for a walk in the nearby woods and I head to the creek to dunk my feet again. When we passed through here last week it was covered in snow and I was bundled up. Quite a difference in temperature today. It’s peaceful down at the creek, with the sound of cuckoo birds and a cooling breeze coming over the mountains. The Beast is repaired and we’re back on the road.
A little while later a cheer goes up. We’ve hit paved road again!! We did it! We congratulate Ganbaa on his superior driving skills and I give him a pat on the back. Soon we’re back in Murun to do a quick shop for veggies and fresh mutton. Ganbaa is cooking us a special dinner tonight.
The Beast takes us 20 minutes outside of Murun to a tourist camp, Tultiin Tokhoi, with private gers and cabins along the river. It’s a beautiful setting with jagged mountains surrounding us on three sides, the river on the other and purple wild flowers in the fields. The owner, Esaa, used to be a guide but was away from home so much that he decided to open the camp so he had more time with his family. With the help of friends, he’s built the buildings along with two greenhouses that have a plethora of fresh veggies growing.
I get a private cabin with my own deck and best of all there’s flush toilets and a hot shower!! Heaven! The river bath was great but nothing beats a hot shower to wash off ground in dirt. I spend a little too long enjoying the water running over me and get back to the kitchen cabin just in time to see how Ganbaa is cooking the mutton.
He places the chunks of mutton in a large bowl-shaped pot that fits into the top of the wood stove. He adds a layer of mutton, then red hot stones that have been heated in the belly of the stove. A second layer of meat is added over the stones, then another stone and mutton layer and so on until it’s topped with veggies. He covers the pot with a lid and lets it cook for 40 minutes. We have a feast for one of our last dinner’s together and we’re so ravenous we finish off almost all the mutton. Esaa joins us with his two sons. His English is excellent and is a great conversationalist. He’s met so many different travellers he can chat about anything.
After dinner Unuruu and Ganbaa present us with a blue silk scarf and a copper bowl containing vodka as a symbol of friendship and well wishes. Unuruu thanks us for being such a helpful group who are a lot of fun and have good senses of humour. Ganbaa chimes in and says a little blurb about each of us. According to him, I’m funny and a “hearty” woman. That word again. I’ve never been called hearty but I like that they think I’m a hard worker. Unuruu shows us what to do with the vodka before taking a sip. With your middle finger you dip it into the vodka and flick to the sky, then repeat in each direction before tapping your finger to your forehead.
I need some alone time before bedtime and I head to my cabin to process the day we’ve had and my mixed feelings about going home soon. It’s always difficult for me to leave a place I’ve enjoyed so much. Like I need more time to take it all in or find that one more place to explore. This has been an especially memorable trip due to the extreme differences to my daily life.
I’ve so enjoyed following along on this trip❤️