My Big Cat Year – Mongolia and the quest for the Snow Leopard
Ghost of the Mountain, that is the expression given to the elusive Snow Leopard. Up to 20 years ago seldom seen by any Westerner. For me, this has always been a magical cat and a dream to see this creature in the wild. So we went for a 14-day trip into some very remote mountain areas in Mongolia in search of the Snow Leopard.
As part of The Big Cat Year, the 14-day trip focused mainly at the Altai and Margaz Mountains for the Snow Leopard. It also included a visit to UVS lake near Ulaangom, close to the Russian border, mainly for Birds. The trip was locally organized by Soaring Expeditions and Wildlife Guide Yumchin who led the trip.
All in all, we managed to see close 12 mammal species and 115 bird species. With regard to the mammals, we managed to observe Snow Leopard, Corsac Fox, Siberian Ibex, Mongolian Gazelle, Asian Wapiti, Mongolian Jird, Silver Mountain Vole, Mongolian Mountain Vole, Long-tailed Ground Squirrel, Pallid Ground Squirrel, Pallas’s Pika and Tarbagan Marmot.
More photo’s and video’s are shown at the website www.mybigcatyear.com .
Trip report Mongolia – My Big Cat Year – 2026
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