Sutai Khairkhan Expedition 2025
Sitrep 1 12th July 2025:
Sue McKenzie reports that their first campsite has been full of interest and excitement. The local people are proving most friendly and treating the team with local delicacies, including fantastic yoghurt! Dentists Emily and Tess have extracted 43 teeth, and the doctors have helped with local clinics. But the children and the adults love the animal puppets being given to patients after treatment, to encourage wildlife conservation. Some 33 pairs of reading glasses have been given out. 4 camera traps have been positioned. Temka, one of the Mongolian guides with the Snow Leopard Trust saw a snow leopard killing an ibex and has been interviewed by Jack Fisher for the expedition film. There is plenty of evidence of leopards in the area. The team are now moving on to Camp 2 on their lively horses which are reported to be easier to ride than those used in our 2023 expedition. Ends.
Sitrep 2 21st July 2025:
On 16th July the expedition moved South to camp in a narrow rocky valley which turned out to be extremely beautiful. Local people living in nearby gers were apprehensive of their arrival but soon made them welcome with traditional hospitality. The horses, coming up from the previous camp, took a while to arrive and were given a day's rest to recover. However, the team soon detected the sprayings from snow leopard and set up camera traps.
By the afternoon of 18th July the team had distributed 29 camera traps after some long rides in challenging countryside. At their camps the dentists treated 59 local patients, doing 19 extractions and gave out finger puppets made by ladies in Dorset. The people were delighted to receive these and also reading glasses that have been collected by the Scientific Exploration Society. Moving camp Northeast to Khokhmorit, the team visited a local school and hearing of the sightings of snow leopard put out the last of their 34 camera traps.
Around their camp the local people sheared their sheep but due to the bellowing of the nomads’ cattle, sleep proved difficult.
On 19th of July Jack and Temka led a party to a mountain top to watch for snow leopard and saw many ibex but alas, no leopards. Another group made a long ride to the top of the “prayer mountain”, Khimorlin. Some good gallops were enjoyed before they reached the summit ovoo (stone cairns). A violent thunder and hailstorm hit them there and the riders were especially grateful to the local people who gave them refuge in their gers with warm milk, bread and a delicious dish of noodles and meat. Snow carpeted the ground as they rode back to camp where dentists Emily and Tess had treated a further 12 patients and extracted 70 teeth! The team also gave out more reading glasses. They also visited the school at Darvi Sum and presented USB sticks sent by Philip Beale. These were for use with the school computer. The horsemen and their mounts departed on the evening of 19th July and on the 20th the team drove 200 kilometres to a new site in the Gobi desert sand dunes. Here they held a lively Burns supper with Stahly’s haggis. This has become a tradition on Scientific Explorations Society expeditions, and they also celebrated John Bell's birthday. John Blashford-Snell spoke to them via a WhatsApp connection. One of the Mongolians dressed up as a dinosaur! Ends.
Prior to the Burns supper, the Governor of Khokhmort visited the expedition camp and told them that the annual Silk Road Rally was passing nearby. This event involves a large number of vehicles passing through 12 countries and the expedition waved them on.
Pausing for welcome refreshments at one of their herdsmens’ homes, the team drove back to the former Operation Raleigh campsite near Hovd, where they ended their stay in Western Mongolia and flew back to Ulaan Baatar. A farewell dinner thanks to Great Genghis expeditions was much enjoyed as was a visit to the Fat Club Jazz Club for dancing. Dentists Emily and Tessa had treated 100 patients, making 79 extractions. Over 130 pairs of reading glasses were distributed to local people. The 34 camera traps purchased by the members have been placed and will remain in position for a year, being checked by the Mongolians. Hopefully some good evidence of snow leopards will result. However, they also carried out important archaeological, botanical, and zoological research and aided the local community. Thus ended a most successful and enjoyable expedition organised by Pioneer Worldwide supported by the Scientific Exploration Society and led by Sue Mackenzie and Kate Coleridge. ENDS
FOOTNOTE BY SUE MACKENZIE:
After that we eventually got to go to the Fat Club Jazz Club which was fun and everyone wandered back to the hotel between about 11pm and 4am!!!!!!
Needless to say the next day was a slow day with a mixture of sleep, shopping, sleep, showers, visits to the Naturaan market, monastery more sleep and then we finished up this amazing expedition with a superb meal in a local Korean restaurant that Bridget found.
At dinner we all reflected on our favourite experiences of this trip and there were common themes of; a great group of people, amazing scenery, the incredibly warm welcoming Mongolian people and the sense that we are part of something really important in putting out 34 camera traps to track the elusive snow leopard but the job won’t be completed until we see what is captured on the cameras over the next year.
A huge thank you;
To Colonel John and Philip Beale of Pioneer Expeditions for trusting Kate and I to lead this expedition, To Professor Terbish, Urana and Chimge of Great Genghis for all their hard work and support before and during the trip.
To the scientists; Saruul, Guugaa, Dava, Munkhu and Temka for the expertise and knowledge they shared with us all.
To the guides; Tuya, Ardakh and Ari for doing a great job in translating between everyone - not an easy job.
To the drivers; Batja, Tilegen, Meiram, Dauken, Boldo and Namshir for keeping going on those long drives when the rest of us slept.
To the cooks Tsevge, Doljiko, Nandia and Oyuna who fed us all magnificently and coped well with the different diets - not easy in Mongolia.
To the herdsmen; Mingaha, Nassa, Gala, Baggie and Zuhgee and their wonderful horses without who we would not have been able to complete our mission.
And a special thanks to the 15 intrepid explorers who made up the very special Sutai Khairkhan 2025 Team. It was a pleasure spending the last few weeks with you all - perhaps see you next time!
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