Nature conservation in Mongolia is by and large the result of low population pressure. The areas that we will visit are by any international comparison remote. The little tourism that does take place has so far been confined to just a few places. With private ownership of livestock we have seen a tendency to increase the number of livestock,and overgrazing is indeed a problem in many areas. Although cultural impact and other threats to the Mongolian heritage is low we would like to outline the special conditions that apply when you travel with us in these lands:

People and homestays: The Mongolian herdsmen are completely mobile during the summer months and they spread out quite widely They seemingly pitch their gers at random wherever they fancy the pasture is good for their livestock. They are a mobile people on horseback. Changing conditions due to the transition to a market economy have  allowed most nomads today to own their herds, but most are also poor in cash. Nomadic Journeys will not - in the tourism season - promote and undertake "homestays" essentially relying on food and board from nomads. We do not wish to commercialize traditional hospitality. We will have ample opportunity to meet and encounter nomads and even stay near their camps. However we will always provide you with tents and all food provisions so that we are self-sufficient. We support the pastoralist's livellihood in other ways, as we have developed partnerships with many nomads across Mongolia, renting their animals for treks and rides and buying meats and milk products from them.  The lifestyle of local nomads place a lot of emphasis on mobility. Mongols are very skilled in moving caravans and equipment and all nomads have animals for such tasks. Even though those who can afford it  are converting to using trucks, these skill sets are still available in abundance. We promote travel in traditional ways, supported by local nomads and their support animals, be it yaks, camels or horses. This kind of revenue is quite high yield for a nomadic family. Mongolian nomads were exposed to cash incomes during Soviet times when their herds were collectivized and owned by the state. Although they live in a subsistence rather cash less economy, some essentials such as cloth, flour, etc .are essential for their livelihood, and are items which must be purchased with cash.  

The Dukha, by outsiders known as the Tsaatan, are the reindeer herders of Mongolia and they inhabit the northern taiga on the border with Tuva in Hövsgöl province. Anthropologists and foreigners alike have become fascinated by their ancient lifestyle unusual to Mongolia. Few remain fully nomadic.

Dukha children and adults ride their reindeer and they still live in teepees.
Hövsgöl aimag Sep 1996.

The remaining Dukh ahave already been impacted by tourism. Some families have migrated seasonally to the shores of Lake Hövsgöl, in order to get cash from tourists by posing for photographs. Normally, for the tourism season they should migrate to higher ground in the taiga forests. At lake Hövsgöl there is not appropriate forage for their reindeer and some have died. We will not support this practice by bringing our guests to any of these families at Lake Hövsgöl. It remains an open question about further tourism development among those Dukha who are still in the taiga (many have already left their communities and become "mongolized".   Ecotourism or reponsible travel to the Dukha have the potential to benefit their livelihoods if done intelligently. However, first their traditional reindeer-based livestyle needs to offer them their livelihood as this is a practice which, for centuries, has carryed them through the year. You may learn more about visits to the Dukha at http://www.itgel.org/ and take it from there.  Although remote, it is possible to undertake such journeys. At the moment, however, we do not offer commercial trips to the Dukha people.

Toiletries: When on treks and horseback journeys we camp out. Camps are always near to open streams or lakes in which we can wash ourselves or near wells. Please bring bio-degradable toiletries only along on the trip. The squat style toilet holes will of course be covered after use.  In semi-permanent camps toilets are long-drop style. There are no flush toilets except for in the Ulaanbaatar hotels and some big ger camps around the country.  Nomadic Journeys ger camps have composting dry toilets. 

Fishing: We encourage those among our guests who are semi-vegetarians or prefer fish to bring along their own rod if they would like to try fishing. The Gobi areas (desert south) are devoid of fish. All fish caught must be eaten or released. If you want fish on the menu you must catch it yourself and tell us ahead of time to allocate time for this in your trip itinerary.  We also offer speciallty fly fishing journeys with professional guides from Montana and Chile.  These are fly fishing only, catch and release, fishing with single barbless hooks. Those programs are only allowed in the rivers and tributaries where it is legal. As it is, you must always buy a fishing license.  This is easiest in protected areas (!) directly from rangers in that jurisdiction. There are two kinds of Pike, four kinds of Grayling, two kinds of Lenok Trout and Pike Perch, which are legal after the lek period, which is June 15th and later. Most fishing from mid April to mid June is illegal. A special permit is required at all times to fish for Taimen, which in practice makes fishing for this species impossible at random and short notice anywhere. For Taimen it must be catch and release. New rules have been introduced in 2008 and will be further modified 2009 and beyond. For such fishing you are only legal if you participate in organized trips for that sole purpose. As the vast majority of the 3800 Mongolian rivers are devoid of dams, nothing controls flooding during the July and August rainy season, which is why the best fishing season for serious anglers starts in the end of August for most rivers. and continues until it is getting too cold in early October.

To see photographs and information about our wonderful fishing journeys, please visit Mongolia River Outfitters at www.mongoliarivers.com or watch an exciting videoclip from their Mongolian fishing conservation project below:

Hunting: Mongolia is considered very exclusive big game hunting grounds for some foreign hunters. The country is in great need of hard currency and wildlife. Wildliife have been depleted considerably over the past 15 years.  We have learnt that some hunting pressure have caused the prey of Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) to shift their home ranges in which is negative for the herdsmen in these areas. Both ibexes (Capra sibirica) and argali sheep (Ovis ammon) have in some hunting areas changed their home ranges leaving the snow leopard home range lacking their main prey species. As a consequence, the snow leopards prey more on domestic livestock, causing harm to local people. We would like to be proven wrong, but until then, we do not offer any hunting at all.

Our ger camps: Nomadic Journeys operate - ourselves and in partnership with community level partners - several ger camps around Mongolia.   Our camps are all small and intimate. They can be relocated to another site without any impact. Electricity is operated by solar panels and small wind mills.  These camps are semi-permanent, meaning they will be dismantled totally from their sites in the winter, which is the majority of the year. The camps are fully collapsible and are stored in containers for the winter. They all operate under concessions with the local community authorities.  Jalman Meadows is located in a protected area with three level of permits; national, county and local. Toilets and showers are available and are eco-friendly. Our ger camps will not offer karakoke bars, TV, noise, generators or flush toilets. Parking lots are placed away from the guest gers. All camps are connected with local people in the destination where they operate.

General: We find our concept and partnerships promising for the future. We at Nomadic Journeys are providing 70 in-season direct jobs and offer many partnerships with communities around the country. We have recently partnered with several well known conservation organizations who are working to make a difference which will carry Mongolia into the future. We offer seasonal jobs to both rural Mongolians and young people from the city. The intra-generational issues are important as 70 percent of the Mongolian people are 34 years and less, and 50 percent are 21 years and less. A young seasonal work force gets to travel to other parts of our beautiful country through our trips, showing their homeland to foreigners. 

Ecotourism or responsible tourism is much sought after in Mongolia but still in its experimental stage, and thus not perfect. We cannot say there is a planned approach to sustainable tourism development in Mongolia. However, more by error than design, Mongolia has avoided the many pitfalls brought about by tourism elsewhere.  Perhaps the most interesting aspect of our operations at this time is that we seek travelers who are willing to share this unique Mongolian experience with us and help provide ideas for our local partners - often herdsmen themselves - to develop a kind of ecotourism adapted to the Mongolian situation, which strikes a balance between sustainability and profitability.