Horse Trek @Khuvsgul Lake

After the exertions of the previous day, some of us slept in, had a leisurely breakfast before getting ready for the day’s highlight. An enthusiastic LC was up early, heading to the nearby forested area to birdwatch and spot wildlife.

Horse Riding

3 September 2023
By consensus, we opted for a half day horse ride, leaving sufficient recovery day(s) in the event of saddle soreness (if any).

As we headed out to the grassy area in front of Misheel Camp, our rides were already waiting for us. The horse handlers wasted no time in pairing each of us to our equine half.

Mounted on our steeds, I reminded myself to sit straight up, shoulders back and to hold the reins lightly.

Though we were not seasoned riders, the riding helmet and half chaps provided, helped us to carry off a more complete equestrian look.

The helmet protects our heads, while the half chap protects the outside of our leg from brush, kicks, and rope burns. It also aids us in gripping the saddle.

We started off at an easy walk to the lake’s edge, going single file along the shoreline.

Soon we turned inland, and headed up the same trail we had hiked the previous evening.

That’s when my horse played up. It refused to budge despite me slapping its rump, gripping & digging in my heels. Our handler had to came back to get me, and thereafter my horse was tethered to his horse for the rest of the journey.

Past the clearing, this time we took an immediate right and crossed the dry river bed to the other side.

Picture above shows our handler bringing up the stragglers who had fallen behind.

The next 10 minutes was all uphill along a winding dirt track to an open area with unbounded views.

It’s a lovely spot to stretch our legs, have a picnic and chill, overlooking the tree tops and picturesque lake below.

Amidst such beauty, the exhilaration of being ‘On Top of the World’ soon gave way to …

‘feeling small and insignificant’ against
a vast and obscure world out there, waiting to be explored.

In that hour, we saw nature at its grandest, appreciated the peaceful surroundings and had light refreshments before saddling up again for the ride down.

The hour-long break resulted in better behaved horses for the journey back. My mount cooperated well, breaking into occasional trots to catch up with the leader.

Back at the starting point, we dismounted, praised/petted and bid farewell to our 4-legged friends on a job well done.

Shop-on-demand

These travelling traders had been waiting for us since 11.30am. They were still there when we got back after 3pm.

Suffice to say the traders did not wait in vain, as items bought included cashmere scarfs, mittens and socks.

Triangular landform

The idea to circumnavigate this pointy landmass just outside of Misheel Camp was a done deal from the moment we arrived 2 days ago.

The actual exploration was spread over 2 days.

The initial attempt on Sept 1 was mainly by road as the grass was waterlogged.

Going clockwise, we loped diagonally towards our rendezvous point – the start of the sand bar – crunching on pebbles, sand, seashells and driftwood. We were reminded of the possibility of encountering livestock as we dodged the occasional horse / cattle droppings on the ground.

4.52pm
The sky was overcast with a threat of rain as we explored the ‘hypotenuse’ side of the triangle.

The water on the protected side is calm, while the open end rippled with waves.

On the approach to the treeline, we noted more leaf debris on the protected side.

At this point the rain got heavier. We dashed under the cover of the trees and returned to camp.

Drinkable freshwater

Khuvsgul Lake’s water is one of the cleanest and perfectly safe to drink without any treatment. Resorts get their water directly from the lake, which explains the many rubber hoses ‘crossing the road to the lake’ I had seen over the last two days.

Today, we got up close to a very basic but efficient piping system. Despite peering into the makeshift box we could not see its mysterious contents.

We can only surmised that the box housed a pump system for drawing water from the lake. And we have been using this same water source for drinking / cooking and showering with no ill effects.