We moved to the new place to hunt for chamois in Ossetia. The border zone passes, we need to hunt in that area, were prepared beforehand. In a day we were on the place. I can hardly portray the beauty of nature near the border with Georgia. But hunting situation was complicated by the weather conditions. The rains, poured before our arrival, washed out the roads and made impossible to enter some of the gorges, where they hunted for the chamois. It was difficult to stop the hunter- naturalists who were always looking for the other ways how to get the goal.
Tsara Sozanov - the director of the North Ossetian Hunting company accompanied us that time. He's always worried each hunter leaves Ossetia with the worthy trophy. His great-grandfather Nafi Sozanov was a member of delegation which went to St. Pete in 1774 to ask Catherine the Great to annex Ossetia to the Russian Empire. The monument, devoted to that occasion, stands in the center of Vladikavkaz.
UAZ were driving up the road when stopped by the deep pool, made by the mountain river. Muddy- gray water were boiling in front of us and ran across the road. We should no way but storm this water barrier by foot. Some of us got wet the others were luckier. Telling the truth I didn't feel comfortable when going through those rushing waters which tried to knock you down. At last it was over. Go ahead!
Our guide was Zaurbek. He was a strong 60 years old man with blue eyes and solid constitution as all Ossetians had. Ruslan, a young medium height and very strong build guy, helped him. We took him from one of the villages.
Our team were rising by the serpentine mountain road, and examined the nearest slopes. None of us noticed any signs of chamois. We climbed 3170 masl and felt the lack of oxygen. It was difficult to breath.
Soon we made a stop to have breakfast. It consisted of the very simply food such as meat, onions, cheese and water. But the cheese, we had, was unusual. Zaurbek created it! Tsara told me that Zaurbek was awarded for that cheese and got the main prize on one from the Cheese-makers competitions.
After the breakfast we continued our way, monitoring the surroundings. Zaurbek and Ruslan told us that noticed the chamois. Probably the distance was too long or the shadow game didn't allow me to find them through the binocular.
We resolved to come back to the village and to try once again next day and to approach the place they detected the animals. So we did it.
After the dinner Tsara left us and we all went to bed.
The next day didn’t give any result. There were not chamois but we trained to climb and it was useful. In the evening Zaurbek promised to go to the area, where we would get the trophy with guarantee. It sounded like the promise to show us the way to the place where all animals always migrated. When I asked why we didn’t go there from the very beginning the explained that it was impossible to get there because of the mud flows. It really looked eerily when we reached that place. There were trees with ripped roots and piles of rocks built unearthly landscapes and changed the traditional rivers' beds. The obstacle course with water barriers.
We hiked about an hour when Zaurbek spotted the male of chamois. It was feeding on the small glade on the left slope from us. Then it laid down and looked at our side. Ruslan stayed on that place while the rest of our group moved to the nearest gorge which we could use to approach the male. Ruslan had to become our bait for the chamois. It could see him and thought that people stayed on the place and didn’t move. Everything stood in place. This tactic works well when the animal can see a man and to control his movements. They used it many times, Zaurbek told us later.
But we soon realized we'd just swapped one hell for another. The small gorge, we were going to use, was an even more eerie sight. Huge rocks hung one above the other, threatening to fall down and to make a rockfall. The fresh mud didn’t dry yet and we had no choice but to overcome that lightly-brown slush.
In 45 minutes after we had started to climb, we changed the direction of movement. Then we turned around 90 degrees and began to approach the animal to the shooting distance position. In twenty minutes, we were close to the rocky ridge. It was possible to shoot from there but not comfortable. It was high to stand, there was no possibility to lay and not to support on something. We measured the distance - 250 meters. Zhaisan chose the uncomfortable and very strange position if you look at it from the side. He was going to shoot half-lying, half-standing. He put his left leg on the wall. While the right one was on the ground. Then he tried to keep hand with the carbine on the narrow line of the stone ridge. We couldn’t put anything under it to support. Zaurbek stood lower him. There was no place for me and the slope was very steep. At last, I could base on the left leg and stood near Zhaisan. He began to aim. The sun was directly in our eyes and he could hardly aim. I switched on camera and tried to find the male. And did it. The shot was heard and the chamois ran down. Later we found that he hit to its back leg and wounded it by the first shot. Suddenly the male stopped near the small tree. He did the second shot what stopped the chamois. It fell and rolled down into one of the bushes on the slope. A sigh of relief! We got it. We all congratulated Zhaisan and went down to the trophy.
We experienced once again all delights of the rocky scree and thick bushes on the steep slopes. But I was glad that the hunter got all trophies he was going to hunt and it made our way easier.
We came to the beast. I could hardly express the hunter’s feelings who got trophies in such tough conditions. Zhaisan tried to tell me what he felt when gave me a short interview near the trophy.
It was a memorable picture: the labor trophy of the Caucasian chamois near the hunter's legs and the picturesque view of the gorge from where we came in the background. Snow-capped mountain peaks rise majestically in the distance. The breath of relief, Zhaisan had made before the interview, showed that he considered his mission in the Caucasian mountains was done.
He highly appreciated the hunting trip and thanked all people who made it real and promised to come back to Ossetia.
Zhaisan and I have the tradition that all our hunting trips are not limited by the hunting process only. We always try to know about people who live there, about their traditions and history. Ossetia is one from the main pearls in the Russian crown. I admire its beauty each time when arrive there. And enjoy by communication with those people the descendants of ancient Alans.
P.S. I would like to express my deep gratitude from Zhaisan and from myself personally to the organizers of the hunting trip. I want to say thank you to my friend and partner to Tsara Sozanov. He organized that hunting trip, worried about our failures and wished luck on our way.
Thank you very much to our team: Petro, Elbrus, huge Atsamas (Grizzly) and all the guys who experienced these moments of disappointment and good luck during our hunt.
Afshati, we raise a traditional toast to the guardian of the mountains and wild animals!
