News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Cal Allen of Sisters enthralled a Lunch and Learn audience last week as he recounted his trip to Mongolia.
Allen illustrated his description of this country, about the size of Alaska, with color slides, recommended books and a large map.
"We (the United States) should take more interest in this country whose only borders are with China and Russia," Allen told his audience. "Mongolia is a democratic republic and the least populated country in the world (2.5 million in its huge area)."
Allen visited the country in September and October of last year and described a warm, hot summer and bitterly cold winter.
"We lived in gers (yurt-like structures) about 25 feet in diameter, and it was sure good to have a fire inside each morning," Allen said.
"The gers are like RVs to Mongolians who move four times a year so that their animals may have good pastures to feed on."
Allen was there with his son, Brant, a UC Davis student, who was doing research on water quality and river systems in this vast country which had been a Chinese territory until the Soviet Russian takeover in 1920.
The Soviets left in 1990, and the democratic republic of Mongolia was formed. There are not many tourists in arid Mongolia, which includes the Gobi desert.
"The altitude ranges from 500 feet to mountains at 10,000 feet," he said. "The rivers in the country's north are pristine and feature no foreign introductions of non-native fish or plants."
Allen offered photographic proof of this for his appreciative audience.
Fishing these calm rivers seemed excellent, and Allen showed many large fish caught on his trip.
"Hucho Taimen is a member of the salmon family that lives its entire life in rivers of Mongolia and Siberia. They can grow to six feet in length and 200 pounds," Allen said. "This was a catch and release situation."
Allen described the Mongolians that he met in the barren parts of the country as providing beautiful music and having wonderful singing voices.
"I guess when several generations of the same family live in a small ger, there isn't very much to do except music and singing," he said.
The roads shown in Allen's presentation were primitive.
"The people depend on their horses and other animals to move around. There is a large horse competition during July," he said.
Asked if he'd like to go back to Mongolia, Allen answered in the affirmative.
"I'd like to visit the middle southern part of the country and also the dinosaur digs in the Gobi desert," he said.
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