With Kazakh Eagle Hunters in Mongolia

The quartet of Kazakh eagle hunters approached, their sturdy Mongolian horses trotting in unison. Each wore a traditional a fur-lined red hat with a cluster of fluttering eagle feathers. Their sheepskin-covered right hands and wrists were supported by a wooden prop, fitted to the saddle, on which rode their hooded eagles. Their golden plumage gleamed in the morning sun.

Hunting for Fox, Rabbit and Marmot

I was in the remote Altai mountains in Western Mongolia’s Bayan-Ulgii province following four eagle hunters. We set out in 4WD vehicles and met the hunters at the foot of the mountain. Be prepared to climb we were warned. I looked up at the craggy slopes with patches of slick grey shale. It was good advice. Mongolian log-tailed shaggy-maned horses take anything in their sure-footed stride. To me the climb looked challenging.

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The hunters planed their strategy. Once on the mountain they scoped out the crags for fox, marmots and rabbits. They watched for any slight movement in the still morning. In winter, trails of footprints in fresh snow guide hunters.

Golden eagles have incredible eyesight, they can see forward as well as to the side at the same time and can spot a rabbit three miles away. When not hunting they wear soft leather hoods to keep them calm. Once their hoods are removed, the bird is instantly primed to fly and hunt. Golden eagles are the second fastest birds on the planet

During this hunt two foxes ran for their lives as the birds plummeted towards them. It was over in seconds, a dramatic battle of bird and fox. This time the foxes won. One disappeared into a cave, the other went to ground elsewhere but not before damaging one of the eagle’s talons.

The Kazakh Eagle Hunters

These Kazakh eagle hunters live in western Mongolia where the borders of Khazakstan, Russia, Mongolia and Chinese Xingjiang province converge. Hunters use fur for clothing which helps them survive bitterly cold winters when temperatures can plunge to minus forty. Winter is also prime hunting season, when animal’s fur is thick. The striped patterns on hunter’s Loovuuz is made from soft fur from fox legs.

Nomadic Life

The Kazakhs in Mongolia are semi-nomadic pastoral people who until 1930 moved freely across borders. Many still move with flocks between summer and winter pastures. Home is a ger (yurt) which can be set up in under an hour. The willow frame is collapsible with felt coverings and embroidered textiles for the inside pack easily. Bactrian camels were traditionally used for moving. Today it is more likely to be a battered decommissioned Soviet army truck.

After the hunt we joined a celebratory lunch in a ger and were welcomed with traditional bowls of warm milk tea. A slaughtered sheep cooked on the stove in the center of the ger. Low tables were piled with traditional Mongolian fried dough, honey, white cheese, biscuits, and bowls of sweet butter and cream.

Staying in a Ger

The Altai Eagle Festival is smaller than the Golden Eagle Festival and less crowded and commercialized. It is also held away from any town so there is no infrastructure. For us a camp of gers was set up within walking distance of the festival. The camp was surrounded by mountains and overlooked a lake. It was remote, beautiful and completely off the grid.

The first evening at the camp I clambered up the surrounding slopes to photograph sunset reflections on the snowcapped mountains. Looking back towards the gers, each with a chimney puffing white smoke, I saw three eagle hunters riding up from the lake towards our camp. I scurried back down. Was this a taste of what we would see at the festival? One of the hunters was Nurgaiv Agalai, father of Aisholpan Nurgaiv whose passion to be an eagle huntress was documented in the movie, The Eagle Huntress

The Eagle Festival

The two-day festival is planned to showcase the skills of Kazakh horsemen, eagles and their steeds, skills passed down from father to son for milenna. Khazaks can ride before they can walk, it is said. Events scheduled were eagle calling, picking up coins while galloping, tug of war with a headless goat, power lifting a full grown sheep and more.

The festival grounds were already buzzing with excitement when we arrived on the first morning. Hunters, resplendent in traditional clothes, arrived on horseback, with their eagles. Families clustered, wrapped in soft fox fur coats and hats. Gers were set up for spectators and hunters to gather and keep warm. Rows of stalls stretched across the field piled with colorful embroidered clothing, bags, cashmere socks, fluffy fur hats and silk scarves to attract shoppers. There were even “eagle hats” soft eagle hoods for sale as souvenirs.

More and more hunters on horseback arrived and the morning’s events began with an introduction and traditional singing followed by a parade of the eagle hunters. They galloped across the field holding their eagles aloft – some birds with wings outstretched. The spectacle was enthralling and it was just the start.

Fun and Games

The eagle calling competition followed. Eagles were taken to the top of a cliff, the hunter was on the field below. The hood was removed, and the hunter holding fresh meat called the eagle. The winner was the fastest eagle! Most eagles followed the rules but some went awol and hunters had to gallop up the mountains side to retrieve them which spectators found highly amusing!

Over the two days of the festival traditional Kazakh games and races delighted family and spectators.

There was Tenge ilu, picking up coins while galloping at speed, Kok Par, tug of war with a headless goat, Kyz kuar, and power-lifting a full grown sheep. Visitors joined in a tug of war and there was a dance performance by girls in national dress with traditional music.

At the end of the festival winners lined up

Time to Say Goodbye to our stay with Kazakh Eagle Hunters

With the Festival over it was time to leave. Our valley home would once again belong to yaks which grazed nearby. The gers and all signs of our stay loaded onto trucks. The following morning driving away from the camp I looked back at our four-day home by the lake. We gathered speed and crested the hill towards the festival grounds. There was nothing there. All signs of he two-day event were completely erased. Packed up, transported and gone.

Now there was just the vast steppe, mountains and a lake. The wind was gathering speed and the sky was darkening. With signs of the festival gone, shortly traces of our camp would also vanish. Following the nomadic tradition, we too were off to fresh pastures.