MONGOLIA: Ibex Combo With Mongolian Outfitters Consortium

[LivingTheDream]

First and Foremost, Thank you to this forum and its members. There is no way I would have done this hunt if not for previous reports, talking to members here, and actually getting me to attend SCI.

Executive Summary/Introduction

Before going into all of the details, there is a lot to goes into a hunt halfway across the world. I wanted to give everyone an executive summary since it seems this trip is as much about the logistics, the people, and the experience as it is the hunt itself. I will do a separate gear list as well since I felt like there was a few nuances with this trip.

I do want to put this out there, hunting Mongolia from my one time experience is a mix between hunting Africa Tent camp and drop off camp in Alaska. They really do a nice job of making camp nice and you have vehicles, but you are essentially in the middle of no where and if there is something you need, you better have brought it. Also, given time differences, communication can be tough with people back home. I had an inreach and if it wasn’t for that, it would have been days between having any type of signal. But have an open mind, know you are in for an adventure and just roll with it and you will have a good time. This is all part of the experience.

Outfitter: Mongolia Outfitters Consortium – Did a fantastic job! I could not be happier with the experience, the people involved, and the support provided. I met these guys at SCI and in talking with them they explained that usually they had used booking agents to book their hunts in the past but were looking to start booking directly. I felt like I hit it off with them. They did not have a website or a list of references at that time, so a bit of a leap of faith. As I did talk to more people who hunted Mongolia after I booked, I did connect with people who had hunted with them and had a great time. So I did have some confidence after booking. I had been back 2 days and they are already working on the paperwork to get my Ibex shipped back. I hope to hunt with these guys in the future!

The Cook - I was really worried about the food, I was actually given the piece of advice to bring hot sauce from a previous hunter. So I had condiments, mountain houses, trail mix, protein and cereal bars. This was for nothing, the cook they had was phenomenal. I don’t mean as a camp cook, I mean as a cook. The fact this kid is doesn’t have a featured brunch restaurant in Washington DC is a travesty to the culinary world. Dinners were great, packed lunches were too. I had perfectly cooked pesto grilled Salmon one night. When I got to the hotel in UB, I weighed exactly the same as a I left. Far Exceeded expectations!

The Driver and Interpreter – Both were really good guys. The Interpreter is a hunter himself, did every climb with me and was an overall pleasure to be around. Seriously, the guy game me his last cigarette on the side of the mountain so we could all agree on the wind direction. I think we spent over 1500 miles in the car, from paved road to off road, it was a lot of time together. Also, the driver helped me carry an Ibex off the mountain, but more on that story later.

Travel - Darren at @TRAVEL EXPRESS is the man! He booked my flights, and with 3 WhatsApp message and in 3 hours, he changed my flights so I could come home earlier. This is 100% why I used them. They also handled my firearm information with the airlines and everything went super smooth and was one of the easiest rifle trips I have taken.

Turkish Airlines was nice, on time, and the airport in Istanbul is ridiculous nice. On the way out a few flight attendants wanted to talk hunting with me, so they seemed pretty cool. The service was great, and I did business class and was able to get some sleep. I also got to use the business lounges which are nice when you have a long lay over. They did get me with some firearm and ammo fees, but it is what it is, just smile, pay and move on. My rifle and ammo made it, what more could I ask. I spent 20 hours on planes, it was a lot.

Gun/Ammo – I used a Gunwerks Werkman in 300 PRC, I had the whole package and the gun and gun case weighed under 25lbs, and was still sighted in perfectly when I arrived. I shot well and more on that to come. But given their shooting system, which I have loaded unto a kestrel, I felt more than adequately prepared for elevation changes, wind or extreme angles.

Overall – My first trip to Asia, but given the safety rating, the variety of game, the easy going nature of the people, I think it was the perfect destination to test the waters. I feel more comfortable in Mongolia than I do in Mexico, or a lot of major US cities for that matter. It was all a bit surreal and if you are thinking about a hunt in Asia, Mongolia I think would be a good country to start.

 

[LivingTheDream]

Off to the Gobi

So I landed in UB without really knowing the plan. I wasn’t sure if I was going to grab a hotel for the night and then grab a domestic plane to the Altai or if we were going to start driving. As soon as I got to luggage, I could see a guy in a camo hat by the custom office, I walked over and sure enough it was my interpreter Turo. Turo had all of my paperwork ready to go and said as soon as I get my stuff, we are going to drive off to the Gobi. The domestic flights were a little weird due to a combination of weather, tourists season and students returning. So off to the Gobi.

It took about an hour to get my luggage and gun, but the actual customs review was less than 5 minutes. Just a note you can only bring 30 pieces of ammo, I knew this so there was no issues and before I knew it, I was walking out to a new Land Cruiser for a 10 to 12 hour drive to the Gobi Camp, I meet my driver, cook, and the Gobi camp manager.

I thought traffic in NYC was bad, the drivers around UB are crazy, it took about 30 minutes before we clear of the city traffic, and stopped to grab some water and were on a paved 2 lane. This paved road will pretty much take you across Mongolia all the way to China. So not a lot stop lights and not a lot of turns. But it was breath taking scenery, to see it change from lush green, the start of the Hangai mountains, to the eventual start of the Gobi, it was a cool trip.

We stopped and got a chicken BBQ pizza around 2 pm. It wasn’t too much longer till we are offroad and following the dirt roads into camp. I was drifting in and out of sleep as the 48 hours of travel were catching up to me. We stopped to check the zero on my rifle and a make shift target was made and set out at 100 yards. I got prone, got comfortable and took a shot. It was about 4 inches high but windage was perfect. I took a second shot, it was almost touching. So I get ready to adjust my scope, and my turret was still set for 325, which is about 4 inches high…rookie mistake, but my gun was sighted in and I felt confident with it. So back in the truck we go.

At this point I should note, once off road, there are roads everywhere and no roads. Meaning you are driving to a point on a map, there are no signs and if the 2 track starts to take you away from direction you want to go, you just start driving any which direction until you hit another 2 track. Needless to say, to do this in the dark with no landmarks, and being the first hunter of the year, we got a little lost, but it wasn’t too big of deal since I didn’t know where we were anyway and was pretty much going in and out of sleep.

We got to the camp right around midnight, I had my own Yurt. It was perfect, there was table, a bed, and a sink. The sink was basically gravity feed, but it was a nice touch. I sort of unpacked but went to bed pretty quickly. There was a generator, and you turned off the light by unscrewing the light bulb. No Sooner was I told this, I unscrewed the light bulb and crashed.

Gobi – Day 1

I woke up the sound of Motor bikes taking off. It was a but 7:30 am, I got all geared up and ready to go. I walked out and I guess my emergence so early was a bit of surprise. They immediately said the guys were out looking and I should have a cup of coffee and relax. I didn’t need to be told twice. I sat around for the next hour talking about hunting and learning the history of the Gobi and the hunting camp. It was a bluebird day, so I wasn’t really sure how this was all going to play out. About 9:30, a motorcycle pulled up and the report was this. There is 2 billes that looked too young, there is also a group of 3 billies and one looks promising. They asked for my spotting scope and took off again. I thought well there is a chance. Two of the horses guys came back and took off again, as they wanted to go to a different drainage.

About 11am, a motorcycle showed up, there was 4 Billies, with 2 shooters, they were bedded, they were figuring out an approach as they were lower than expected. The bad news was they were a pretty good ways away. There was a lot of talking going on, a lot of walkie talkie buzz going on. This went on for 10 minutes. Finally, I was told, get your stuff, and your gun, we are going to drive a little closer and figure out a plan. In the car we go, and start to follow the motorcycle.

As we are following this motorcycle through the drainage, other motorcycles start to join, and we begin to look like some slow moving version of mad max. To add to the scene, the horsemen were riding the ridges full speed, and were dropping down to meet up with us. So in total, we have 2 horsemen, 3 motorcycles and myself in the car. Once we went as far as we could go in the car, I then jumped on the back of the motorcycle. We take off for about 2 miles go up and down little ridges and ravines. The whole way we are flushing flocks of chukar. I mean there must have been over 200. Once we got as far as we could in the motorcycles, now it was time to start climbing with the horses. The horse I got was much smaller than what I road on the Yukon and I felt bad it was having to carry my ass up the mountain, but we worked switchback to gain probably close to 1000 feet. Then we tied up the horses and started to climb.

Once to the top, I was greeted with expansive views of the desert, it was truly breath taking and I took a minute to get organized and catch my breath. The ibex were bedded and we had eyes on them, so I had time. We then started working the ridge tops to get over and in position. This was a bout a ¾ mile loop but not much elevation gain or loss, so pretty easy walking all things considered.

Once we got the final ridge cropping, we peered over the edge. The Ibex were bedded, there were two shooters, one older and shorter, and one younger but longer. There were also 2 juveniles. I can only describe there sleeping arrangement as the 3 little pigs, the 2 younger one were hiding/getting shade from some tall grass. The next one was using a bush. And the old one was using a rock outcropping. The decision was made to go for the older shorter one, and we started to lose some elevation to follow the ridge out to gain some distance. We were currently at 380 yards, with it being a steep downhill shot. We were able to drop down and close the gap to about 340 yards. More importantly, they were still bedded, and I had time to get in a sold comfortable almost prone position. The range was verified multiple times and the turret was set. Now the wait began.

 

[LivingTheDream]

After an hour of watching the sleep ibex, he finally decided to stand up. He immediately turned broadside and stretch. I aimed a little further back, then my normal high shoulder shot since there was some wind and it was swirling. I told everyone, he is up, and safety off, 1, 2, 3…Bang. I immediately try to recover in the recoil but see Ibex running everywhere, they immediately go around the ridge and out of sight. I ask what happen, and they say miss as everyone is looking through their binoculars. Miss?!?!

I will be the first to admit, I do miss, it happens, but not like this. I was solid, heart rate under control, and squeezed the trigger. I am pretty perplexed on what happened. I am also trying to keep an eye out for where the Ibex might be going and what is happening. I apologize to the team, my interpreter says, look it happens and the good news is they know of 2 other Ibex, and someone is keeping an eye on them. I am in a bit of disbelief.

On the next ridge over, there is movement. The 2 Juvenile Billies, are climbing and after not much elevation gain, stop and look back. I am waiting for the other 2 to join them, the others have taken off on the ridges, thinking the other 2 have hooked around on us and are climbing on our side separate from the 2 we can see. I load up and start to follow, figure I need to keep my head in the game because things can happen fast. We cover about 400 to 500 yards, we now can see into the other valley that the Ibex hooked around. However, where the 2 Juveniles were, there is now a 3rd, and it the other one. Not my Ibex, and they are all looking back. They finally have enough and take up over the top, climbing over a 1000 ft in seconds. But the big thing is my Ibex was not with them. At this point, I am thinking I didn’t miss, maybe a bad shot, but he is somewhere in this valley and we just need to find him.

The guys all fan out, and a motorcycle appears in the bottom, we are searching, after 5 minutes, one of the motorcycle guys yells. 2 of the horsemen run down, and I see them looking at the ground. They start to walk off and then I see a wave. Everyone starts to walk down the mountain. I look at my interpreter and he goes they found your Ibex, I ask ok where do we need to go to get a shot. He goes, “oh no, that is not necessary, he is very much dead.”

Obviously, this changed my mood immensely, now I just had to get down off this mountain without falling. It probably took me 20 minutes as we were pretty high up, and the Ibex had dropped not 15 yards from a bike path in the bottom of the valley. Everyone met up at the bottom, and the ranger showed up. I could only think, you might be cool, but you will never be as cool as a Mongolian Ranger on a Motorcycle in the Gobi. It was time for pictures and to break down the Ibex. The Ibex was aged at 10 years old and 38 inches. An Old and great Gobi Ibex to take. I think taking this old guy, just adds to my excitement to hunt them more!

I asked my interpreter why they thought I missed, he said well we heard you counting and thought you were counting Ibex, so we weren’t really looking since we didn’t expect you to shoot. Given my shot didn’t really immobilize the Ibex at all, I guess I can’t blame them. The bullets did work perfectly, and I won’t describe what the internal damage was but I am not 100% sure how he ran the 400 yards or so that he did. Really just amazing.

Once cleaned up, and now with the Ibex loaded up on a motorcycle, we needed to get back to camp. I got my horse, and my interpreter got a motorcycle. So it was me and 3 horsemen riding out of the valley. It was pretty cool moment, but given they didn’t speak English, the conversation was minimal. Maybe ½ way back, they stop and get off the horses, they tell me to get off and we walk over to bushes. They immediately start picking berries, and tell me to try one. I did and they were pretty good, for the next 20 minutes or so, I was picking berries. Which I did not have on my bingo card, but I can’t think of anything else I would have rather been doing.

We finally made it back to camp before 6 pm, and start to celebrate, everyone had a beer, and it was steak for dinner. Everyone was in great mode and it was cool just to sit around and tell stories, and learn more about the Gobi. It is amazing how 24 hours earlier I didn’t know a single one, we can’t speak the same language but are able to joke and tell stories like old friends.

As night approached, a bad Thunderstorm rolled in and I got to listen to the rain and thunder roll through the mountains. I also woke up around 3 am to do some star gazing. I have never seen stars like that. I got to sleep in, had breakfast, with the Gobi mission accomplished we were off to Altai!

 

[enysse]

Congratulations! Excellent picture and I’m sure some great memories!

 

[cpr0312]

Congrats on the first portion or the hunt! Thanks for sharing!