Once again in the East, in the Valley of Monasteries

Ceremonial handover of an off-road vehicle and motorbike. From left: S. Dalaitseren, employee at We Help Them to Survive—Mongolia, D. Naranbaatar, Director of the Nömrög National Park, Miroslav Bobek, E. Byambajargal, Governor of Khalkhgol District, Veronika Kapišovská, a Mongolist, P. Itgeltögs, Chairman of the District Council, O. Ganbaatar, Director of We Help Them to Survive—Mongolia. Photo: David Broda, Prague Zoo

The next day, our project member Dalai mounted the motorcycle—while I myself preferred driving the car—and we moved from Khalkhgol to the Valley of Monasteries, eighty kilometres away. This valley has already been written about here several times: it is where we plan to return the Przewalski’s horses, hopefully starting as early as 2028. Incidentally, along the way to the valley, there is a sign in the steppe announcing that wild horses will return to this area.

Dalaitseren and Ganbaatar on the edge of the Valley of Monasteries, by the sign stating that Przewalski’s horses will return to this area. Photo: David Broda, Prague Zoo

The Valley of Monasteries is enthralling, with a bright green carpet of grass, blooming in multifarious colours, with magnificent views that are in constant flux as the clouds chase one another across the big sky. I am more and more certain that we could not have chosen a more beautiful or more suitable location, with plenty of pasture and water.

View of the the Valley of Monasteries with our base. For now, it consists of two yurts and a container. Photo: David Broda, Prague Zoo

The two hectares, where our reintroduction centre will be located, have been allocated on long-term loan to our organisation, We Help Them to Survive—Mongolia, while the acclimatisation enclosures will be built on the grounds of Nömrög National Park. The projects are already prepared, however, we still needed to specify the individual structures’ location on site, as well as the enclosures’ relation to the Hook River and the Southern Monastery Stream.

The second of the acclimatization enclosures near a meander of the Southern Monastery Stream. Ganbaatar and Jan Marek choose a suitable place to excavate a pool. Photo: Miroslav Bobek, Prague Zoo

I believe we have planned and measured it well—in fact, as well as it could possibly be done. In contrast to the original draft, we shifted the reintroduction centre’s main building to the most suitable terrain, we chose the best possible site for the garage and hayloft, and, above all, we decided not to include the stream or, even less so, the fast-flowing river within the enclosures, but instead to end them a short distance away and dig pools inside. Now all that remains is to fine-tune the documentation, obtain the already pre-negotiated permits, and construction should begin next spring.

Surveying and then marking out the reintroduction centre’s main building. From left: Miroslav Bobek, Jan Marek and Ganbaatar. Photo: David Broda, Prague Zoo

It looks like the laying of the ‘foundation stone’ in spring will be a big celebration (albeit completely different kind than what such ceremonies look like back home). The date of the event will be based on the lunar calendar and its lucky days. The selected lucky day should be in conjunction with a day of the pig, whose nature is to dig into the ground, and therefore such days are considered suitable for beginning construction work. According to our key Mongolian partner, Ganbaatar, the ceremony could in fact be held at another time as well, but tradition is tradition; not to mention that I am not about to take any risks.

So we are looking forward to the Day of the Pig—but we certainly aren’t twiddling our thumbs in the meantime.

Even in August, the Valley of Monasteries is in full bloom. The photo shows yellow-flowering Iceland poppy (Oreomecon nudicaulis). Photo: Miroslav Bobek, Prague Zoo