Field Session 3

Another great trip into the vast spread of exploration blocks 4 and 5.  Found great exposures of oil shale and even did a cool field test of their viability over the camp stove :)  We made an attempt at the summit of Baga Bogd Uul (under the guise of sampling for a fission track profile; only geologists could legitimize baggin' a peak as science:))  we gained ~5000 vertical feet but got cliffed-out merely 200' from the top, gerrr.  Finished the last hour on the way down in the dark - yikes!  This trip was unseasonably cold and we even got some fresh snow in the high-country; I suppose its not all that different than back in CO...

Back in UB a little earlier than expected, but we heard the call of duty to rally on the current operation block - seeing as it's paying the bills and all.  Hopefully get a few more field sessions this season before the winter weather really sets in.

Drill trucks making holes for seismic explosives :))

Getting water for the day, Bogd Zuun style...

Healing mineral water, magic spring style...

Baga Bogd Uul approach.

The ascent, and a tired pooch sleepin sitting upright at about 3,400m elev.

Urango...the intern.

Kurt sneakin through a passage in this weird moonscape of mudstone.

Brando on the moonscape.

Zaya holding an example of why this has been called the
"Cannonball Sandstone"

Apparently, this is also known as comfortable...in the dog world.

A game of bones, simulating a horse race (line on right); you advance
by rolling a horse rather than the goats, sheep and camel that I rolled (left).

Dashka doing a traditional milk tossing ritual.  Interestingly, Mongolia has a
similar name as we do for the big dipper constellation; essentially big spoon.
Notice that a ladle is typically used for this milk toss; later in the trip we made
the connection, while staring at the beautiful night sky and meteor shower,
 that the milky way is just a giant celestial milk offering :))

The best way to find a route across the Gobi is not by GPS,
it's by asking those who live there.

The Session 3 Crew: Me, Tarro, Dashka, Odto, Moggi, Kurt, Zaya
(Urango Photo)

Look at those oil shales :))) (Dark on the hillside)

 Burnin oil shale!!!

The Gobi is dry, but the water table is shallow and often great for drinking.
A good find for a thirsty hound.

Not a bad scene to wake up to the morning you're heading back to civilization.

Each time I return to this part of the country I gain more understanding of one natural example of "less is more"; the scenery, logistical realities, great distances, people and climate all weave themselves into a tapestry that is only beginning to reveal itself.
Complex, colorful, delicate, balanced, resilient, timeless, and beautiful.