Статьи

In 1776 Peter Pallas described the ibex, habited in the Siberian mountains as Caprasibiricus. Few years later in 1794 Meyer has changed the species name in accordance with the existed norms and now it’s called Caprasibirica. Some changes have happened from that time. Taxonomists determined several subspecies and four from them are considered to be generally accepted such as: Altai (Siberian) Ibex (Caprasibiricasibirica), Gobi Ibex (Caprasibiricahagenbecki- was described by Novak in 1903 and called in honor of German- founder of the biggest international company for selling wild animals), Central-Asian or Mid-Asian, Tian Shan or Pamir Ibex Caprasibiricaalaiana), and Himalayan Ibex (Caprasibiricasakeen). The Club of Mountain Hunters distinguishes four populations of Caprasibiricasibirica ( which habitat in Altai in Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and in the Sayan mountains) and three more subspecies of Caprasibiricaalaiana (from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan). The animals from the last population are called not Mid-Asian ibexes but the Pamir ibexes. The non-specialists don’t see any differences between those animals but the expert will distinguish easily all specific differences in the body sizes, the wool color ( from black to light gray, in horns’ form and size). We are going to talk about two kinds of ibexes, dwelling in the mountains of TianShan and Pamir - Central-Asian and Altai ibexes. The typical habitat of the Siberian ibexes is near the rocks and screes. The altitude is not the determining factor because you can meet them on the low heights to 500 masl or up to 4K meters above sea level. Ibexes are deprived of the ability to run fast and can only reckon on their skills to move by steep, vertical rocks in the danger situations. That is the reason why these animals prefer to stay there. When there is no danger, they move slowly one after another, the strongest old males usually go in front. Jogging trot is not fast but is clumsy. A dog overtakes easily a running goat. V. N. Shnitnikov wrote about the goat' ability to climb in 1936: “They can easily move by the steepest rocks. You could hardly believe it if didn’t see personally. The goats not only walk but run at a gait there if somebody chase them. Their jumps from the height are also amazing”. It's one of the reasons why they don't go for a long distance from that area even for feeding. The determination factor where they stay is the snow depth. Can they get forage from under snow or not? The deep snow also prevents to move fast. In other words, the animals try to avoid places with deep snow cover. The base of ibex’ food is cereals and herbs - green in summertime and dried in cold, winter period. In the late fall or winter, you can meet them on the slopes, covered by remains of grass or in the places where they can find tree and branch feed. The senses which are well developed are: hearing, vision, and smell. If suspect danger, the ibex can gaze to the suspicious object not less than half of an hour. They make sounds rarely but if they do you can hear the alarming whistle. Females and baby goats bleat like their domestic relatives but hoarse a little bit. Females and males get the puberty on the second year. These animals are polygamists. The adult males gather harems from several females. The rut time on Altai starts in the mid of November and lasts about three weeks. But the rut season in Pamir begins in the second part of December till the beginning of January. The animals grow till 8-9 years old. Horns grow especially long. The lifespan of the Siberian Ibex in the wild nature rarely exceeds 10 years but we know about the female ibex from the London zoo which has lived 22 years and has been killed, hasn’t die of natural causes. The natural enemies of the ibex in Nature are snow leopards and wolves. The snow leopard hunts for the ibexes all year around. Its prey are all goats of both genders from new born goats to the old ones. It waits for them near the places where they have rest or where they cross the ridges then overtakes it in a few huge jumps. The wolves chase ibexes in winters when the snow depth is high. Capra sibirica sibirica is considered to be the smallest one among the south Asian ibexes. Their body length, according to Alexander Asinovsky observation, can reach 171cm and up to 110cm in shoulder height. The average weight - 80-100 kg (max 140 kg). Females are shorter by one third and in two times lighter. The trophy size from 110 to 14,3 cm and with the horns’ base girth 25,4cm is a good one. The horns of Siberian Ibex are shorter than the horns of other Asian ibexes. Ibexes have back-curving horns. The most part of horn have clear three-side shape. The wide and flat front face of the horn makes the pronounced edges together with the external and internal sides. The cross section of the horn has a triangle shape, the base of the triangle is the front face and the vertex is directed backwards and is rounded There are high transverse ridges on the front face. These ridges come up to their tips. The exact shape of the horns varies considerably between individuals. In winter time the goat’s wool has yellow- white colors with the reddish shade. A broad brown stripe runs along the back. In winter, the color becomes more contrasting. A beard and a tail are black and brown. The males have long beard which takes almost all lower part of their head except for the chin. In summer the wool colors are darker and uniform. This subspecies habitat in the mountains of Mongolia, Afghanistan, the NorthWest of China and in India. In Russia it dwells in the Tian Shan, Altai and the Sayan mountains. The SCI record belongs to Lois De Merce, who has got the Siberian Ibex in Mongolia in 1987. Its characteristics are: the length of the left horn - 134,3 cm (52 7/8 inches), the length of the right horn – 133 cm (52 3/8 inches), the circumference of the base of the left horn – 25 cm (9 7/8 inches), the circumference of the base of the right horn– 24,8 cm (9 6/8 inches). The number of points - 124 7/8. 169 trophies are registered in the SCI record book, and 6 of them are found.   Another subspecies is Carpa sibirica alaiana. It's the biggest among the Asian ibexes, have strong massive legs, the longest and sharp-shaped beard and strong back-curving horns. The horns curve to three-quarters in a circle and ended by sharp tips. The front surface of the horns are flat enough but have the pronounced circular rings. But the transverse ridges are weakly pronounced. The average trophy size is about 110-155 cm in length and up to 30cm in the circumference of the base of the horns. The female's horns are relatively small. The height in shoulders is about 95-190 cm. The males weight to 130kg. The coloration is also variable but less contrast than the Altai ibex. These animals are common in the mountains of Pamir, Tian Shan, Altai and on the Zaalai range in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and China. In other words, the natural habitats of both subspecies coincide in some regions. The SCI record belongs to Hossein Golabchi, who has got his trophy of ibex in 2013, in Tajikistan.  Its characteristics are: the length of the left horn - 60 5/8 inches (153,99 cm), the length of the right horn – 60 inches (152,4 cm), the circumference of the base of the left horn – 12 inches (30,48 cm),, the circumference of the base of the right horn– 11 5/8 inches (29,53 cm). The number of points - 144 2/8. There were 223 trophies, registered in the SCI Record Book (2015).  The first twenty trophies, among the TOP -thirty, were hunted in Kyrgyzstan, the next thirteen in Kazakhstan and the last two in Tajikistan.     «Gold» - from 114 7/8", «Silver» - from 103 2/8", «Bronze» - from 95". The following Russian hunters registered their trophies in the SCI Record Book:  A.Kuznetsov – 137 1/8"; S. Lipivsky– 124 1/8; S.Lyapuntsov – 123 4/8"; К. Popov – 117 6/8; 97 7/8; A. Egorov – 117 3/8"; V. Dmitrienko – 115 1/8;  G. Rogozin– 115";  E. Kurgin – 114 4/8"; V.Vinogradov – 111 7/8";  S. Yastrezhembsky – 110", 99 2/8"; 96 2/8"; I. Mochaev– 109"; O. Andreev– 105 7/8",  L.Ogorodnikov – 105 4/8", 103 3/8". K. Noskov - 99 5/8” The colouration difference allowed to several researchers to allocate several more subspecies. The most part of the zoologists don’t consider them to be the separate subspecies but they can exist in the population frames. In 1906 Lorentz described the ibex, he hunted in the Kulji region, as Carpa sibirica almasyi. Lydekker had also noted those animals in 1913 and described them as the subspecies of Carpa sibirica lydekkeri. Leisewitz (1906) had found the population of Carpa sibirica merzbacheri, which habitated in the Central Tian Shain, in the Bolshoy Naryn region. One more the unacknowledged subspecies Carpa sibirica transalaiana was described in 1906 by Lorentz. It lives partly in Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan (near the border with Tajikistan) and in the Pamir mountains along the main road Osh-Murgab. From the book of R. Potapov “Unknown Pamir” ... The real Lord of the rocks is the Siberian Ibex. The locals call it a goat. Unlike the wild sheep the ibexes live mostly on the rocks. They descend to green meadows of the mountain circuses and to the Alpine valleys for feeding only and then go up to have rest or for a night. They also run up to their native rocks at the slightest danger. They easily move by the steep walls and overcome the incredible obstacles. I'd never forget the scene; I saw in the valley on the Nayzatash ridge. I worked with the archaeologists at that time. Our group, consisted of three people, hiked along the stone blockage, blocked the picturesque gorge. I was walking in 100 ahead of my colleagues who were looking for the stone tools of the Neolithic and moved very slow. I crossed the heap and saw how the bed of the stream meandered by the surface. The valley was covered by thick grass and looked like a green carpet in the room. The high steep rocks from both sides were like walls. The herd of 15 ibexes fed there. They started to run away when I came out and disappeared behind the edge of the rock. I crossed the glade, turned the same rock and saw them in a few minutes. The group was running up by the steep white rock, which looked made of marble in the blinding midday sun. They were climbing, in chain, the smooth rock where even the beetle can’t keep. It was fantastic. In a minute they disappeared behind the ridge. There are many ibexes in the rocks of Aktash, Rangkul, Nayzatash and other small mountain chains. Hunting for these careful animals is difficult. People don't feel themselves so comfortable among the rocks as the ibexes feel. It’ll help to save the animals population for a long time. Hunting for ibexes in Tajikistan is legal only in fall and only for males. But people hunt them all year around and hunting is very effective in winter when goats go down to valleys. The locals have learned to shoot from small-caliber rifles using the powerful cartridges. They try to approach the animals up to 150 meters. They often take dogs trained to chase goats. They need just to wound the animal and the dogs will finish it. The ibex is the most ancient hunting object in the mountains of Central and Mid Asia. The ancient pictures of mountains goats painted on the rocks in different places confirm it. How did our ancestors hunt for these careful animals with their primitive bows? But we mustn’t forget that there were many more animals at that time and they were not so careful as nowadays. The animals change their behavior after getting the first acquaintance with the weapon. Their carelessness is replaced by extreme caution. They can estimate the distance from where the man can hurt them. We also need to take into account the mastery of ancient hunters. And not only theirs! There are local hunters from the kishlaks of Badakhshan who hunt the goats with the smooth barrel rifles and who have to approach them 30-40 meters to make the shot. Sometimes when people hunt actively the ibexes leave the place and move to another one in dozens of km. They prefer to lead a quiet and relatively sedentary lifestyle when nobody bother them. The herd spend all days feeding and having rest on the Alpine meadows or on the slopes. They live in peace and harmony with the birds: Ulars are walking among the animals while the other bids seat on their backs peaking for parasites. In winter they even help Ulars to feed when digging snow to get grass for themselves and birds also used those holes. There is lack of snow in the Pamir mountains and it helps goats to feed there all year around. But there is one more serious danger which threaten them in a winter. Once during the wintering on the Pamir, the well-known biologist L. Arutonov got several ibexes for research and discovered that most of them had tuberculosis! I think he was right when has assumed the reason of that disease can be frostbite of the lungs. It’s easy to frostbite lungs when the animals run in the condition of low temperatures. But running is the only way to escape from the enemy's pursuit such as a snow leopard, wolves or a man. They spend harsh winter nights in the caves. I spent nights in places like that one, where the floor was covered by a thick layer of goat droppings. I guess they also stay there during winter storms. The goats always use the places with rock ledges from both sides not to be blocked by predators if they attack. Wolves bother goats but don’t do them much harm. The livestock and sheep suffer more from them. The snow leopard is their main enemy. It habitats only where the ibexes live because they are his main food. Each day it stalks the herd, laid for hours without any movement, snuggling up to stones to then it jumps and fall on the prey. I guess that each big herd has its own personal snow leopard who follows and graze them.

After arguing with my wife what we have more in our house my hunting boots or her shoes, I've decided to write this article. I lost, because handed out a lot of hunting shoes but still had enough. It's the important and complex theme how and what boots to choose for the mountains. Our feet suffer in the first turn because we hike a lot in the mountains. It’s hard to find the generalized and structured information in the one place, everybody praises only its own goods. It's time to improve this mistake and to change the situation.   Almost all hunters have realized now that rubber boots aren't the best choice for the mountains though some of them have argued with this statement even five years ago. The first group who defended the rubber boots rights was consisted of the highlanders who didn’t extra money and had no possibilities to buy other boots, the second group - city dudes and I belonged to them too.   I must admit that the set of consumer qualities of good rubber boot, produced in Ufa is well: 100% waterproof, a good grip on various surfaces; light weight and a low price. I could accept my feet freeze fast in these boots in the wintertime but they don't fix the ankle at all. If you live in the mountains all your life it’s not a problem. The locals who hike everyday have strong ankles but it’s critical for those who live in the town. I've got such experience during my spring bear hunting on the east of Kazakhstan. In the first day I could hardly return back to the camp and realized that wouldn't change my Mendl boots to others.   Why it is so important? It give me the absolute comfort during the trekking. The orthopedic pads fix the ankle. The fluted sole provides maximum gripping on any surfaces. They are waterproof and have vapor permeability for sweat from inside. Different models have additional options such as extra synthetic or wool warmer, ventilation, soles and bootlegs which can be made individually, antibacterial coating, damping in the soles and others. I want to write about it. The outdoor industry grows fast and there are many companies producing lots of goods for people who like active life style. The most famous ones in Europe are Hanwag, Meindl, LaSportiva, Scarpa, Salewa. USA - North Face, Wasco, Daner, Irish Setter and others. All these brands have models, suited for mountain hunting.   Mountain boots are classified by:  A - for walking and everyday usage; B - for hiking by low mountains, marked trails, hiking till altitude 2000 masl; BC - medium difficulty trekking till 3000 masl altitude; C - alpine trekking, height limits - 4000 masl D - off road trekking, climbing with crampons, the altitude limits till 5000 masl. Some producers call these groups in the different way: Walking, Trekking, Backpacking, Alpine.  Each group has its definite features. The higher mountains require harder shoes and soles, the boots become heavier, more warm and have higher ankles. Boots from BC and C categories are enough for Kazakhstan mountains but some of my friends choose models from the group D. According my experience the best pair of mountain boots weight about 1600- 1700 gr (10 size). The heavier ones can be higher only.  The average height of the models for hunters is 25 or 26 cm. They keep the foot and protect from snow but the experts say that the height of 12-14 cm is enough to fix the ankle, because it's just in 5 cm from the sole. I always wear additional gaiters that's why use boots with the height three quarter. Their weight is in 200-300 gr lower than the high ones.   Materials and technology The top of the right shoes is made from the bull skin. This natural material has a number of advantages. It's flexible, easy to work with, keep the form and wear-resistant. The skin, used for mountain shoes, can be from 2,6 to 3 mm thickness. It's handled by special water-repellent compounds and additionally pressed. Synthetic material are wide used too but most of them with skin. Cordura are lighter but doesn’t keep the form well and the manufacturers use the additional composed materials. It's not critical at all because the most of leather boots have inserts made of other materials which add more reliability and functionality. The artificial materials will completely replace the skin in future.   They say that the top has to be done from the whole piece of leather. It makes it more reliable and durable. If you look at the most expensive models used for climbing for the eight- booms, they all are in stitches and made not from leather. The matter is not in the number of stitches but in the work and material quality guaranteed by the high- class companies.   The stitches can be a problem but in another way. Once after three active season I noticed that they had wiped in the places where the leg kept in the stirrups. But I used them seriously. The more important thing is to have the fused structure of shoes with the tongue. In the opposite case all trash like small stones, thorns and humidity will be in your boots. The modern boot tops are made of not only leather but other materials to increase the users’ comfort.   GORE TEX prevents the penetration of humidity inside but allows to save the bandwidth for diffusion of sweat outside. It works. But only if you use it right. You must not to overheat it (to dry near the fire or under the hot sun) otherwise it’ll lose its properties. The other synthetic layers will adapt to your individual anatomical features and provide additional comfort, ventilation and warm.     Shoe laces The lace-up Shoe – is the very important trifle. The lace-up shoe allows a boot to fit the leg. If it’s not right it can lead to disaster. Once I was too lazy to tie the shoelaces and began to descend with the heavy backpack. As the result, I dislocated thumbs on my feet. There are several types of shoelaces rings - above the foot lift and with easy shoelaces running. The hooks of DIGAfix type are located near the heel where the foot transfers to the lower leg. It helps to fix the shoelace and to protect from dissolving.   These hooks allow to make the lace- up shoe of different strength. The lace-up shoe fixes a foot what is very important. You can rub calluses if the foot will slide back and forth while you are going up or down. The boot top is laced on the hooks what makes it easy to untie the boot in the upper part. The hooks allow to tighten shoelaces fast. Probably you have noticed that boots which have been wet and then have dried, are stiff when you try to put it on and hooks help to resolve this problem. After thirty minutes’ walk boots make warm and enlarge and you have to tighten shoelaces.   The double knot allows to strength the shoelaces fixation. There are many kinds of the lace-up shoes from the classical cross to the complex variants what eliminate the disadvantages of pairing the foot with the shoe. Let's talk about shoelaces. The good quality shoes have good shoelaces. But if you need to buy new ones you can use paracord. A few years ago, shoes with cable ties appeared on sale. But they are inefficient. You can't regulate the fixation in different boots parts, the cable often breaks and you stay without the shoe.  This accident had happened with my fellow when we were in the mountains last year. Fortunately, we had a rope and wrapped his shoe,  An excellent sole is a multi-layer cake. The most famous (but not the only one) manufacturer of good quality soles is – Vibram®. The classical sole consists of such layers as:  1. Breathable insole lining 2. Midsole made of polyurethane foam 3. Special material for stabilizing walking 4. Vibram ® non-slip rubber sole. Each company has its own secrets but the construction is more or less similar in all goods: first layer under the insole is light material for ventilation, then comes a layer of polyurethane foam, to reduce the impact when walking and to prevent lateral twisting and the last one is the rubber tread to provide maximum grip on any surface. I have to note that soles made from other plasticized materials slip on the wet surfaces and don't suit for mountains. There are several rubber types (as for the car tires) - for summer, dust and stones - the hard one but freezes when it’s cold; for the winter time, too soft for summer but ideal for frost. That is one of the reasons why you need to have two pairs of mountains shoes for summer and winter. The bottoms always have deep tread to provide the maximum grip with different surfaces. Some models have the rubber edging to protect them from banging into rocks. It’s a good idea because allows to extend the service life of boots. The Alpine models have special edging for crampons but I haven’t seen yet any man hunting on the glacier.   The soles from different manufacturers are similar. Last year on the Show in Munich I found the interesting model of Meindl with the retractable spikes. There is a special key in the heel, you need to turn it to activate the spikes. From the one side it's sound interesting but from another... The shoes weight dramatically grow. It's more comfortable to have crampons and to use them if necessary.     Other " small things» You have insoles when buying the shoes but the market suggests so many models made from breathable material, with arch supports, with insulation, thermoforming and so on. So you can choose any to your taste. I’ve bought insoles for my summer shoes to reduce the walking impact and the insoles with the electric heating for the winter model. Socks are your partner. You can choose any: for summer, winter, with wool or with Thermolite or Coolmax. Most of men like slim girls. But the socks have to be thick. I have a narrow foot but the most of tactical shoes sold in our shops have broad fitting. That’s why I use two pairs of socks in summer and winter. Winter kit: sport synthetic (for mountain skiing) and wool socks for temperature to -33C (Merino wool, 100%) + sport socks Mund. Summer kit: thick cotton socks from Mund + light socks with Coolmax. I’d like to remind to take extra pair of socks when go to the expedition. The feet sweat faster than the membrane can remove moisture, and wet things cool faster than the dry ones.   Crampons I’ll try to find the affectionate name for them. They are light, durable and useful in the definite situations such as first snow on the rocks or the grassy slopes. I use them a couple of times in the season.   Gaiters. Some people call them lanterns. These armbands for legs put on above the shoes and protect you from snow and debris. The best ones can even safe you from water when you pass swiftly small rivers or springs. The main requirement: they have to be done from non-noisy material. Your camouflage will down the drain if the gaiters rustle. The other requirements are: to be waterproof, to fix tightly up and down and to have a strap under the heel made from the cable (the rocks will cut the textile one in the first day). I know the only gaiters which meet the requirements, made by Spanish company Hart but they are also not ideal because have a zip on the back side. The other ones rustle.   There are many shoe care products which you can buy everywhere and they extend the service life of shoes. I talk about leather boots. I like the production of the American company G 96. They make great cleaning reagents for weapons, and a special spray with the silicone base to prevent ingress of moisture to the layer before the membrane. It’s very important. Because the wet shoes can weight 1500gr in spite of 800 gr. How to buy. First of all you need to define your size. It has to be in 1 or 1,5 size large than you usually wear. There has to be about 1 cm space between the tiptoe and the inner surface the shoe, that you can enter the finger between the heel and back to the sole when the shoe is unlaced. It fits you well if the tiptoe just touch the inner surface of the shoe but don't buy if the fingers flex at the joints. If there is a space, the shoes are too big. The ankle sides can stretch out but the size in length won’t change. You’ll cold in the small shoes and the calluses can spoil your hunt.  The shoe tree is the most important element of the shoe. Each manufacturer has minimum four shoes. This is due to the peculiarities of the structure of the feet of different peoples. People in America and Europe wear shoes made by different templates. The different manufacturers have different shapes. So, you'll need to try models until you find the suited one. The mountains shoes seem to be rough and not comfortable when you try them at the first time. It's normal. Don’t be in a hurry when you buy the shoes. Give you time to walk in the shop, the shoes need time to warm and to form under your feet. You need not less than twenty minutes to realize what’s on your feet. It's better to use the same socks which you’ll use later in the expedition.  I divide all my shoes into three seasonal groups: for dry summer weather; for the main hunting season (fall - spring); and for cold season what starts from the beginning of November and lasts until March.  Meindl Safari which I have bought for Africa trip, are from the first (summer) group. Distinctive feature: no membrane, not heavy and has light color.  I wear these shoes in the dry mountains ( we have the mountains where there is almost no precipitation). The second group (fall-spring): Meindl lhotse and almost new Meindl dovre which have all listed features of classic mountain boots. The third group (winter, frost): Irish Setter Mountain Claw – are real winter shoes! Cordura, they made from, make them light (despite the insulation). They have great bottoms from soft rubber and high ankle. I used them four season and wanted to buy the new ones but they went off the market. The ankle of these boots is softer the shoes from the second group but it’s not critical. the snow smooths out uneven terrain and the feet are tired less and don't’ get cold. The next winter shoes are – Meindl Nordkap. They are so called two-pieces mountain shoes. The top layer is made from Cordura with the lace-up and the sewed gaiters and the inner layer is from GORE TEX. The inner surface is made of thick felt with natural fur, the lower part of the liner is rubberized what allows to wear them in the camp or a tent.  I used them twice in the last winter and liked it. What may be more comfortable than the felt boots with fur, Vibram bottoms under the Cordura and the membrane.     Few words. I need to say some words how to break in shoes. The first rule: Never do in on the hunt or in the expedition because it’ll go to the bloody calluses even if you use good socks. Last year I decided to break in new mountain shoes just in two days before the serious expedition. So, I took a walk along the tourist trail for 3 hours. And got corn bladders on both legs.  Fortunately, I found the plaster “the artificial skin” and it saved me. It works great.   You need to wear your shoes gradually. It’s better to put on and to wear them from time to time. It takes time while the shoes adapt to your feet. Once I even wanted to throw away one of my mountains boots because not like them. Later I broke them in and used them several seasons. The service life of a good shoe is 3-4 seasons if you actively use them 50-60 days per a year. It doesn’t mean that they will fall apart after that time but can lose some of their features. I try to change them each 3-4 years though I didn’t like it. I get used to good things.  The summary:  The mountains shoes for off road adventures and for the heights to 4000 masl have to be: 1. Good quality (made by well-known company with high reputation); 2. The weight of one pair is from 1400 to 2000 gr (the light ones are for trekking, the heaviest models - for climbing); 3. With the ankles from 12 to 24cm; 4. Category: BC, C or trekking, backpacking; 5. With the lace-up for two zones on rings and hooks; 6. With multi-layers bottom and the rubber tread; 7. With membrane, high quality materials and feet’s fixation We all look for universality but all our life teaches us that the attempts to create such things end in failure and we have to choose everything, including shoes, for the concrete situations and tasks.

The jacket of the fifth book of the Great Hunters album. The album "Their trophy rooms & collections" was printed in 2010 by SafariPress Inc. in California. We can see there the picture of hunting house design belonged to Oleg Andreev. The tome starts from the article devoted to Oleg Nikolaevich and presents the photo tour about his house. We suggest your attention the interview with the hunter, considered by Americans to be famous.   “The Magic of the Real Safari”: I looked through the old hunting magazines and found the article where you tell about markhor hunting. It was published in the Safari magazine in 2002. I remember the phrase which impressed me that you began to be keen in mountain hunts in 10 years before that date. It was the beginning of 90s, wasn’t it? So, when did you start mountain hunting? Oleg Andreev:  First of all I need to say some words about “my hunting challenges”. There is no exaggeration in this phrase. My friends - Alexey Ogorodnikov and Alexander Shishkin and I had taken part in several hunting adventures, including such tough ones as hunting trips in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. They all happened before 2002. I hunted three times in Krasnaya polyana. The first time we spent time waiting and didn’t hunt at all because there was a conflict between the outfitter and the owner of the hunting grounds. The second time was more romantic. It was night when we arrived to Krasnaya polyana. We were riding under the unrealistic huge stars, then accommodated in the tents and fell asleep. Next morning, I woke up and suspect that something was wrong. It was too light for the morning. I got out the tent and discovered that everything was covered by knee-deep snow. The guides were drunk and gave us a lot of arguments not to go for hunting. They suggested to wait when snow would stop. Ok, they knew better. I got into the tent once again. And slept a little bit. When I woke up the second time: there was much more snow and the guides were fully drunk as a skunk. At noon I realized that the best variant for me was to leave that area as soon as possible while I could do it. Snow covered all roads and we could hardly see where to go. The other guys helped us to tie the Chief guide to his horse and it carried him to home. While I and the other guide followed it. We reached the nearest base and I had a lot of trouble persuading them to move further to the town. The trees were falling across the road under snow weight. We stopped several times to made passages. Fortunately, we had the chainsaw in the car. Snowplows didn’t work and we cleaned the windshield by hand. That way took us two hours a day ago but that time we drove more than six. The guides, we left on Krasnaya polyana, couldn’t leave it for four days because all paths were blocked by large trees. My third trip hadn’t been done without adventures. It was in spring. Snow was almost gone but horses could find several places in the lowlands where they sank to the bellies. One of them fell, rolled down the slope and scattered all the things it carried. Unfortunately, we loaded that horse with the most important things such as docs, money, cameras, cartridges and so. We spent two hours collecting them all on the slope. That time I got my first tur. The irony was that we looked for the males and monitored the remote slopes but it jumped out at us twenty meters away. Miracles do happen. One of the guides took all meat but it was heavy to carry the body he tossed it before him and it was rolling down the slope hitting all stones. The chops were almost ready when we descended and the guides ate that old 13 years old male. Two times we hunted abroad in Uzbekistan and Afghanistan for a markhor. One time I traveled there alone. Then that hunt was closed and we were almost the last ones who hunted there legal. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Let’s come back to the question: When? I’ll explain why. The hunting press began to write about trophy hunting in Africa and about mountains hunts in the beginning of 2000s. And our compatriots developed taste to that kind of hunting a few years later. Only a few people in Russia knew about it at the beginning of 90s. There were not touristic companies worked in this sphere yet. The pioneers were Pavel Gusev, Alexader Lisitsyn, Alexander Khokhlov... O.A.: First time I had hunted in Africa was in 1992 or 1993. Can't remember the definite year. Alexey and I found the outfitter and traveled there together. We had flown to Kenya through the Embassy then drove to Tanzania where hunted for gazelles and a buffalo. We had one offer for two. From that time I visited other countries in Africa -Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Cameroon… but the best and the most wild hunting is in Tanzania. My wife and my eldest son were there too. Three years ago they both finished the hunt in 10 days. Each hunting offer included - a lion, a leopard, a big crocodile and a hippo. The Magic of Real Safari: So, you had been the desperate travelers and hunters at the beginning of 90s. When did you start to hunt? O.A.: Everything began from the shooting gallery. Once at the mid of 80s I visited the shooting gallery, was interested and started to train shooting. The champion in bench shooting Galya Sabitova took us under her wing. She had taught and trained us a lot and got us into hunting. Thank you very much to her for it. However, this did not happen immediately. The first hunt, I took part, was for moose. Then we all drove in the car with that meat. The blood smell mixed with others. I wasn’t impressed. Later I felt excitement and understand what people mean when say about "a sense of unity with nature". It was a very strong feeling. We hunted in corrals with Yasha Kolesnikov, who is a very positive guy. Once we met the photo journalist Anatoly Digilevich and accompanied us in the hunting trips lots of times. One time we were invited in Kyrgyzstan and it was a real mountain hunting. We took part in hunting for Marco Polo. I remember, it was cold and we all were frozen. We slept in the tent heated by coal and the compressed dung what gave a specific smell. We opened a window to breath but the temperature was 20 degrees below zero! And didn’t go a lot, used horses. We spent there a week but didn't get a trophy. I saw males but couldn’t approach them. Later it turned out that we had almost became the reason of the international conflict. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China send the note to the MFA of Kyrgyzstan because we accidentally crossed the border of Chine and didn’t know about it. The mountain hunting affected me. All time you have to overcome yourself. I go in for sports for many years and know that feeling when your consciousness defeats the panic and the body’s laziness. The hunting award is the trophy. Which you desired, worked hard to get it and got it. I agree with the words that the most pleasant victory is over yourself. You’ll never see such beauty as in the mountains. Nothing to compare it to. And amazing, cosmic silence! Despite the failures at the beginning I was seriously interested in mountain hunting and probably forever. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Don’t you feel monotony to hunt mostly in the mountains? O.A.: Mountains are always different and can’t bore at all. Thanks to mountain hunts I'd been in such countries where I was not going to visit as a tourist. I mean Iran, Pakistan, Tadzhikistan. I have been in the place where it has borders with China, Pakistan and Afghanistan. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Once I overtrained before the expedition and had inflammation of the knee joints when we had arrived already to the mountains. How do you train before the trip? O.A.: It’s enough to go to gym regularly and to do runs on the treadmill few times a week. But it’s individual. I personally saw how the body accumulated the experience of being on the altitude during your stay there. It's hard from the very beginning but each time, each new trip it becomes easier. Probably you’ll need to add the aerobic exercise. The most important thing in the mountains is your breath. And legs. And arms. And your head. You don’t need to run after your guide. Choose your own optimal tempo and move in this regime. The guide doesn't test your stamina he is just used to walk in the mountains and doesn’t know your obilities. When you choose the optimal tempo, he will adapt to it. “The Real Safari Magazine”: What mountain hunts do you remember? Do you need time to adapt to the normal oxygen level when go down from the top? O.A.: My problem is that I don't sleep well in the mountains. I don't get enough sleep and my body doesn’t recover. But after going down everything comes to normal. It’s hard to hike there because of the air lack. Horses save the situation if they are used. It's easier to rise and move there by horses. But not descend. I always lead the horse when we move down. When we arrived to Kyrgyzstan for the second time, the state authority and military met us. We celebrated our meeting and next morning sat on horses and rode to the mountains. My horse looked calm. But soon it began to act strange. It jumped over each obstacle we met. It was not difficult to rein her at first. We reached the stone part of the path and it suddenly jumped. I flew out of the saddle, but my left foot caught in the stirrups. But the horse ran. Nobody understood what had happened but just stood and look how it dragged me over the rocks. Fortunately, I had a backpack. But the gun’s stock shattered into pieces. The backpack started to crack while I tried to protect the face by hands. It even tried to kick me to get rid of unnecessary ballast. My angel saved me because I was going to put on the knee-boots first but chose sneakers. At some moment my foot popped out of the sneaker. If I were in lace-up boots I would not save my head. I guessed that I’d got the brain concussion but went on hunting and spent five hours suffering because of the swollen leg. Unfortunately, we didn’t detect any beast. At last one of the guides felt sorry for me and suggest to come back to the camp... alone. He told me to go along the spring not to lose the way. I plodded two hours making stops from time to time to dive my leg into ice water to ease the pain. Later at home I made the operation because it happened that I had torn my anterior cruciate ligament. And what I have known later? They didn’t enough horses and took several culled ones from the racetrack. So, I got the old horse with its own kinks instead of the calm one which is used to ride in the mountains. I”m wary of horses from that time and always go down by foot. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What happened with the rifle? O.A.: I used the carbine Zaur.202, cal. 300 WeathMag. The gunsmith made the new stock from the walnut. It became heavier but I use it for eighteen years already. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Kickback from 300 WeathMag calibre... would be massive. O.A.: I don’t say so. Probably I’m used to it or the new stock compensate the recoil. My wife and my son also shot from it. My son does it since he was twelve. My wife has a very slim constitution, she is ballerina but doesn’t have any problems with it. She even hunted with it in Africa. So, the recoil isn’t so massive as you think. Probably because of its weight. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Once we are talking about your wife I’ve remembered that we’ve published the article about your kids' hunts. Do you have a hunting family? O.A.: Yes. The kids have grown now and I want to show them the world of real hunting in Russia and other countries. It’s too early for them to hunt in the mountains and I teach them to hunt outside Moscow. But they took part in hunting tours in Poland and Rostov-on - Don. While my wife Angelica and my eldest son hunt seriously. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Do you think it makes sense to teach children hunting from their childhood? I mean not just to teach but to allow them to shoot from serious weapon and to get trophies? O.A.: It depends on the child and his parents. I can’t say that I’ve insisted on it. It was their own desire, their passion to hunt. If the child wants it why not? He sees his parents and his elder brother hunt. His mom is the member of the International Safari Club. Juniors really like it. They are ready to get up early and to go as long as it’s necessary. Nobody taught them to hunt they just were with us when we hunted and dreamed to join us one day. But I’m absolutely sure that parents are responsible and not to leave their children with guns unattended. If the child wants to hunt but the parents don’t allow, he’ll find the way how to do it and they won't be able to control the process. We all know lots of stories when a boy steals grandpa’s rifle and goes for bird hunting. But only those become hunters, who don’t hurt somebody or themselves. The only way to make it is to hunt under the parents’ control. One more thing I have to note is that if the child study the hunting culture without any control it can make him a poacher in future. When he hunts with the parents, he’ll receive the right information that the hunters don't shoot females and their babies. Later in future he’ll understand that it makes sense in several cases but it's another level of hunting knowledge. They’ll learn to use meat they’ve got. My family is used to eat the wild meat only and other right things. We have the hunting house where celebrate all children parties - birthdays and New Year party. They play with the stuffed animals, saddle and mess with them. They live in that atmosphere. Taisiya grew up on the bearskin. She was four when we came to the zoo and she pointed to the animals and called them their names. “It's Hartebeest, it's warthog”. People who stood near and heard those unknown words, compared them with the names written on the tablets and were surprised because she was right. Once when she entered the school the teacher told to my wife. Your daughter is a big dreamer. Will you pay attention to it. My wife asked: “What has happened?” The teacher: “ Tasia told pupils that you have an elephant's head on the wall in your house”. The wife said that it's strange. “ You see. It’s sounds strange.”- the teacher replied. I mean, it’s strange that she’s mentioned just one elephant though we have two. You can imagine the teacher's eyes at that moment.  “The Real Safari Magazine”: What do you think, at what age can children to hunt with weapon and how to organize it. O.A.: The Germans understand it and even make special rifles, the lighter ones. There were special rifles Monte-Cristo produced in Russia for children. They fired weakened cartridges. It's normal if the kid is engaged in shooting with a coach from the childhood. It's legal. Or even hunt with the parents. It’s also legal from the definite age. It's also depends on the physical condition of each child. One child can shoot with a semi-automatic carbine while another one of the same age can't even manage with the one-barrel rifle. The deputies when adopted the law used the recommendations of the doctors-pediatricians who gave them the average age when they can start to shoot. But every case is individual. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Let's come back to your hunting. Your huge trophy collection contains of many mountain ungulates including rare ones. But the only award you’ve got is OVISWorld Slam. O.A.: Two years ago I became the member of the OVIS club and they are in process of estimating my trophies now. I have 20 sheep and many ibexes and think to get more awards in the nearest time. I didn’t worry about it till now but then decided to get the “thirty”. The new dream leads to the new plans. You’ve noticed I have trophies which can't be hunted legally now. I hunted in China where all hunts for the mountain ungulates are prohibited now, got the sheep trophy in Kazakhstan which is also closed. I have the trophy of Severtsev sheep but hunting for this species is prohibited now. I’m in the better position than the beginners and want to use it. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: You are the member of Russian Club of Mountain Hunters. Why do you choose it? O.A.: Not only member, I’m one of the founders and the Presidium member. Why have I chosen.... First of all, It's the Russian club. Its mission statement coincides with mine and this Club of Mountain Hunters is the club as it has to be. The Club became the very interesting specialized platform for communication where all hunters can get the info they need. The Ovis and Capra list in the CMH is bigger than the OVIS list and it give the opportunity to discover the new regions and to test yourself in the new situations. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: To the conclusion I want to ask you about traditional huntings. Do you have time for it? O.A.: Of course. I like all beast hunting. I’m not interested in birds hunting but as for bears, wolves, ungulates. I established the hunting farm in Karelia where we can hunt for bears over bait. I really like it. There you can merge with nature. You can fully immerse in the excited and fascinating world. I can seat there for hours just listening and watching. The bear walks completely silently. It's difficult to define when it goes close. It always walks around and tries to catch the smell. Ten years I hunted in the Ilinsky hunting farm while the owner had not been changed. I drove there with kids. A half of the day we spent in the corrals and the rest of time sat on the tower hunting for a boar. I’ m the hunter and love any kind of hunting. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: We wish you good luck and thank you for the interview. O.A.: From my side, I want to wish good luck to your magazine and I do it sincere because consider it to be the best Russian hunting magazine. 

The minutes of waiting were agonizing. We had even cold, staying on the wind. At last Petro went down to us and asked to follow him. The animals went not the way we were waiting for them but significantly lower.   The sun was almost setting behind the peaks of rocks. There was the only chance to approach tur for shooting. The real race had begun. We ran down across the loose gravel. Then up the rocks. And down and up. It seemed that we were in the army and were overcoming the obstacle courses. I could hardly remember how many ridges we had crossed but not less than five. The faces were covered by dirty-sticky crusts. Sweat drenched our eyes. But we could not to stop to take breath. The males moved on and on to our right. We should be in time to intercept them before the darkness came. At last Atsamas and Petro reached the definite place and laid down on one of the ridges. The thought flashed – the chase is over! I came to them and heard they said that the males were not far and we should shoot now because they were not sure that we could to do later. Not that day. The herd, consisted of 30 individuals, stopped on the slope to graze. Zhaisan joined them. He needed to calm and to breathe easily. But it was hard after such the long and exhausting race. The animals looked calm but the light day was almost over and he shouldn't hesitate with the shot. Zhaisan put his carbine ChristensenArmsкалибра .338 LapuaMag on the ridge's rocks slowly. The shooting distance was 315 meters. I prepared the camera. And pushed the record. It was harder for me to find the landmark then for Zhaisan who used gun’s optics. I was afraid to be late to focus on the herd. But could do it. Kept them in a frame. Zhaisan was aiming the male, pointed by Atsamas. The shot cut the gorge silence. We all saw the dust, rose into the air from one of the males. The herd took off and ran the same route, they came there. We saw, he hit it but the male ran so confidently that we couldn’t believe it. I had seen and not once, how the wounded animals such as a maral, an ibex and a boar ran several hundred meters and then fell dead. We didn’t see it fell and were confused. It was getting dark. We'd discussed before leaving the camp that the hunter could try to get the second trophy if he wanted. The goats quickly overcame small gorges and ridges in a half of km below us. At that moment Zhaisan applied all his long-distance shooting skills, he trained with the coach in Kazakhstan. After the last shot one of the running males stumbled and rolled down the slope. 500 meters to the running aim! I had no doubt! He got the trophy! Atsamas took off his cap to greet his successful shot and to thank Afshati. We all congratulated the hunter who deserved that hard-labor trophy and impressed the local guides by the accurate shots. But there was no time to exult for long - the twilight fell. Our team divided into two groups. Petro and Elbrus went to look for the first tur. While Zhaisan, Atsamas and I began to descend to the second one and we hardly found it. It was already quite dark, and it was difficult to see anything even at five paces. It took us not less than half of an hour to discover it. There was no evading hunter’s joy. The tur happened to be old male which fought from its youth because its horns were damaged from both sides and instead of sharp horn’s tips it had huge nodules. It added the trophy some exotica and allowed to to include it to the abnormal category. Meanwhile, the night had descended on the mountains. Afshati gave us one more gift except the trophy. It was water. We drank all we had during the race and there were almost no springs at this height. We sweat a lot and lost a significant amount of moisture, our mouths felt dry. The more valuable it was to find a small spring, flowing from under rocks and moss. We were filling all the bottles we had while the guides butchered the carcass. Water was filling slowly but it was enough to drink and to keep a spare.   Night in the mountains. It was time to think about the camp. In the dark we found the small and flat place where four from our team could seat. Petro and Elbrus were still out looking for the first trophy in the dark. We were settling when noticed their flashlights and pointed to our shelter. It happened that they found the first male and it also had a good size. We had just a modest dinner to celebrate the hard way we overcame and great trophies we got. Later in the base camp we fixed this annoying discrepancy. After a meal we tried to find the place where we could lay the mats and to spend the night in the sleeping bags. But we were not successful in it so and built a parapet from the stones. The flattest stones we had put on the top. They were the base for our beds. Then inserted sticks around to protect and not to fall down in a sleep. Fortunately, it didn’t happen. I had barely time to enjoy the depth of the clear mountain night sky with myriads of stars before falling asleep. In the morning we woke up early and pack everything quickly. Then went to the second trophy. It was a nice male with the classic form horns Capracylindricornis. We made pictures and the guys butchered it and sorted meat into the backpacks.   The descend. The way back with the additional weight was not lighter as the reader could think. We crossed the same gorges and ridges. The way led us through the thick Acadia bushes with sharp thorns, stunted trees and huge boulders. There were no any paths at all. Even deer and turs preferred to choose another way. But we had no choice just onward and downward! We regularly fell, slide on the wet and loose soil then stood up and went on. The sun was getting warm what made our way even more difficult. Fortunately, there were streams with crystal clear mountain water. We stopped there to drink and to cool off.   We could barely move our feet at the end of that hike because had to balance with heavy weight between trees and boulders all the way to the camp. We were pretty battered by sharp thorns and boughs. When I saw the road and the car waited for us, then relaxed and felt I was flying down. One of the birch-tree boughs caught the eye when I was falling. I tried to hold on with the hand and flayed the skin from the wrist to the elbow. Probably I stepped on the non-stable stone and could not balance on it with the weight I had behind my shoulders. I had already had nice decoration on my left leg and added the new ones on my arm and the right eyelid. My stave- stick stayed to lay near the path, parallel to it. My legs were shaking from fatigue and exertion. I looked funny from the side. But people who were used to go in the mountains knew that it wasn’t so. Nobody was kidding. The sweet and juicy watermelon waited for us in the car!   Visiting the Grizzly First of all we had to take Atsamas -Grizzly back to home to Dargavs. And we did it. And there we were captured. His family cooked dinner and seated us at the table. We were happy to share a meal with those nice and hospitable people. Everybody said the traditional toasts for Afshati and St. George. Then we said good buy and drove to the base. One of the guides offered to make a stop and to swim in the hot springs of the Karmadon gorge. How we could refuse to warm the tired muscles in the healing water of the Caucasus. The spring were really hot not less than 40 degrees! It seemed that lactic acid in our muscles dissolved like sugar in hot water. Ironically, we continued to endure hot temperature even we left the hot springs. It was 30 degrees above zero when we drove down to the valley. The locals said it was about 41 degrees in the time when we were driving. I couldn't understand why I didn’t feel cool. The hot car engine added additional degrees. It was a real happiness to arrive to the base. It was cool and comfortable there and dinner had been already cooked. We didn’t change clothes which soaked up sweat and were crusted with salt. There was a washing machine on the base and we immediately loaded it. Then we took a shower, changed clothes and went down to the canteen to celebrate the success of our hunter. Next day we were going to have rest, to keep strength before the chamois hunting.

Ossetian Afsati is read in Russian like Afshati. Afshati is the Lord of the Hunt and patron of wild animals. Alania or North Ossetia attract mountain hunters by the variety of its wildlife. But hunting is not the only thing why you need to visit this area.   This mountain country is the home for the descendants of ancient Alans. The name Ossetia and Ossets derived from the Georgian word “osi” or “ovsi” which derived in its turn from “asi”- the name of the group of Alans.  It’d be right to call this small but proud nation -Alans. Alans made a significant contribution to the culture of European nations in the period of the declining Roman Empire till Mid Ages. I talk about horses, bred specially for military actions, about their first usage in the wars, about Alan's hunting and attack dogs and military and horse equipment, harness and weapon. Alans together with the Germanic and Sarmatian tribes won lots of victories in Europe. Their fighting spirit was raised to a cult. It was honor for an Alan to die in the fight. There is a legend that the King Arthur, who united the disjointed tribes on the British islands and started the British Empire, was from the Alans. Not many people know, but the number of the Soviet Union Heroes to the total number of North Ossetia-Alania population is the highest among all other nationalities and nations of ex-USSR. It says a lot. These reasons make me to feel responsibility during my stay there. I had to save face and tried not to do the wrong not to offend or to hurt the Highlands even if there was nothing vicious about it. Moreover I had to conduct myself with dignity in the mountains. I was impressed by the local people endurance and felt deep respect to all of them. I think that trekking in the Caucasus is one of the most difficult activity. Hunting for a Dagestan Tur in the North Ossetia-Alania can be considered to be as the endurance criteria for the middle heights to 3000 m above sea level. Mountains there are rocky, steep and have a lot of unpleasant surprises.   The meeting. I landed in the Vladikavkaz airport. That time I was accompanied by the passionate hunter from Kazakhstan Zhaisan Syzdykov. He flights from Almaty through Moscow. My friend and partner Zara Sozanov met us at the airport and we drove the hunting base “Verkhnay Saniba”. It’s always pleasures to meet old friend whom you know for a long. We have a great rapport. It was the end of August. The weather was unusually hot for the North Ossetia in that year. Vladikavkaz met us with heat and stuffiness. The thermometer was off the scale during day hours - 35 degrees! The locals said it was unusual for the end of summer and that area. We comprehended that It’ll create additional difficulties on our way to the trophy. We won’t have the opportunity to relax and recover after climbing in such weather. Fortunately, the house, where we accommodated, was built in the Soviet period and had thick walls. The temperature inside allowed to sleep well and to recover after the ascending. In correspondence before hunting Zhaisan has written to me that the harder hunting is, the more interesting it is. That statement discouraged me. Not all people think this way. Lots of hunters want to take the big trophy but not ready to work hard for it. I call them the trophy gatherers. I was pleased to hear from the hunter that trophy is less important than the hunting process itself. As for difficulties while getting the trophy, the Caucasus takes one of the first places or probably is on the top. There are all what you need to feel it: steep slopes, screes, snow and altitude about 3K masl and even more. Not all hunters can do it. The only good thing is that we feel much better on the altitude 3K masl there than on the same height in Pamir and don’t feel hypoxia. But it compensates by the steepness and danger of climbing. The parable to be treat all mountains with respect, is very actual. You’ll never take mountains with a rush. You have to train physically and mentally. Good physical shape doesn’t guarantee your success. It’s no less important to dose your efforts between ascends and descends. First day we spent in the camp and devoted on testing guns and gathering equipment. The dinner was served in the traditional Ossetian style. Alania is one of the less places on our planet where the locals respect and honor the age-old traditions of their ancestors. The feast ritual is one of the best examples. It looks too complicated for the beginners but young people who are used to see them from their childhood, treat them self-evident. The Alans have never toastmaster but it's always the eldest man chosen among the most respected ones. The eldest man appoints two assistants who seat for both sides from him. They say toasts in a definite turn. The eldest allows to say toasts to his assistants and guests. Tsara headed the table and pronounced a few toasts in honor of St. George, Afsai (pronounced as Afshati)- the Ossetian Lord of the Hunt, for health of all our relatives. There were traditional three Ossetian pies put on each other. They are round in shape and quite thin. Each of them has its own filling. One was filled with meat, another one by beet leaves, the third one was with Ossetian cheese. But the classical variant is three rounded pies with Ossetian cheese only. Each of them has its own sense. They embody sun, land and water. You can try each of them. If you don’t do it you’ll offend the hospitable hosts. There are also lots of meat and vegetables on the table. You have to eat it all with the traditional drink - araka. Araka is a corn vodka with a strength of about 28 degrees. It is usually drunk hot, even in hot weather with hot pepper. This gives the drink a unique flavor and piquancy. The variety of dishes and toasts don’t give you the opportunity to get drunk fast as it often happens in Russia when we seat at the table and drink vodka. We tried not to eat and to drink much. The start was scheduled for early morning. Zhaisan and I thanked our hosts for the tasty dinner and we both went to bed. The guides asked us to be ready to spend next night or two in the mountains. I quickly packed everything I needed for a autonomous trekking in the backpack. There was a sleeping bag, a mat, some food, medicine kit, camera and other things I’d need while being out of civilization.   About clouds Next day after a breakfast we left the camp. The trusty UAZ drove us along an empty road into the mountains. The early morning means light cool. But we didn't feel it at all. The temperatures was about 20C degrees and was growing as we were getting close to the starting point of the ascent. We were not in a hurry because had enough time before the sunset. Turs moved actively near the sunset and we were going to the place, which the guides had examined before our arrival. Thus we had time and I decided to show Zhaisan the very interesting place. It was not far from the ascent beginning. There is a one village in Ossetia - Dargavs. And not far from it there is one more place - called “The city of Dead”. It consists of a large number of small stone houses with only one small window. Each time I stop there to pay tribute to the courage of highlanders who have been coming there to die in these houses. Few centuries ago, cholera came to this area. It was incurable in that time. To prevent the spread of disease the natives built that “City of Dead” and sick people left their homes and went there to die. Sometimes whole families left. The relatives came there, knocked the only window and gave them food through it. When there was no answer, it meant that there was no one left alive inside. It helped them to prevented the spread of the disease what people couldn’t do in Europe. We paid tribute to the courage of died people and drove to Dargvas where were going to take the local guide Atsamas , nicknamed "Grizzly". The foreign hunters had called him so because of his completion like the north American bear. He was 185 cm height, had huge broad shoulders, strong-willed large nose and heavy gray eyes, which contrasted with his appearance and made him looked like a huge bear. But like most of giants who was not so severe as you could think about him. It was his responsibility to approach animals. He regularly monitored animals’ movements and assured us that the males were on the place. We should follow him to the top of the Jimara Hoh mountain (Black mountain) as the Ossets called it. It was easy to say! I’d been there and not once and knew how tough, thorny and long way to the top. But Zhaisan was going to meet the Caucasus mountains for the first time. There were several other people in our group. Petro was a lean, blue-eyed, fit guide of venerable age and tremendous endurance. He was also more than 180 cm height. He often accompanies our guests in the mountains, moves well and felt himself perfect on the altitude. Atsamas and Petro had always been at our forefront. Elbrus, the guys called him Blu, insured the group. He was slightly above average height, well physically developed and always ready to help in a difficult moment. I can tell you a lot about physical form of the highlanders. I visited mountain republics many times and met different people of solid constitution who were in excellent physical form. Not many people can hardly follow them in the mountains, and for many visitors it is impossible at all. We looked to the sky, took a deep breath and started. The mountain foot was not steep and we quickly went around it and reached the steep part lead to the top. There were several ledges on our way where we could stop for a while to have rest. The air warmed up to 25 degrees. I could hardly call those conditions to be comfortable because we had to climb with 15-20 kg backpacks. We removed our outer clothing and put it in the backpacks what made them even heavier. It's known that each gram in the mountains weights more and you feel each of them. We drank a lot though it didn’t bring relief rather the opposite. They say, water hits your legs. Legs are getting wobbly and it's getting harder to walk. I always recommend to the beginners not to drink much water in the mountains even if they are thirsty. It is better to rinse your mouth and take one sip. Why it is so difficult to climb in the Caucasus mountains? All slopes there are covered by not high but durable grass. Sometimes you try to lean on the ground but the boot slides by such grass and you may fall down. I saw how it could be. Zhaisan’s leg began to slide but Blu put the stave in time and saved him from rolling down. Another feature of movement in the mountains is the narrow passages in several places. And you don’t have the opportunity to go around that place. Thus, you have no choice but to move on all fours or on tiptoes holding on the rock ledges or to squeeze between huge stones on the edge of the gorge. There were several such sections on our way. That time there was no accidents except for one incident that occurred with the author. We were overcoming one of the impassable places on the edge of the gorge when I snatched the big stone which laid on my shoulder height and tried to pull up. I was almost done and ready to move the center of gravity forward when the stone slowly moved, turned and cut by its sharp ribs along by left leg from the thigh to the shin. It didn't hurt me at first. I worried that didn’t have time to warn my fellows who went behind. Fortunately, it rolled down the gorge and nobody got hurt. The consequences of that case could be more serious than the pain in the leg, I felt later. I didn’t have time to think it over, we should have to climb. In five hours, we reached the top 3000 masl. We all were drenched in sweat and tired. But it was the place from where we should see males and to make a shot. There on the top we immediately wore all clothes we packed in the backpacks. The sun was setting and not hot. It’s often windy on the top and the wind is bitterly cold. We still had time and was not sure what to wait for that's why decided to have lunch. Zhaisan passed the test of the first ascent in the Caucasian mountains with honor. He was in a good shape and ready to make the accurate shot. Atsamas and Petro monitored the surroundings and next ridges. We were asked to seat as silent as a mouse in a hole. Every movement or loud word could betray our presence to the sensitive and cautious animals. To be continued.

Hunting for the Cretan mountain goat or the Kri-Kri ibex (Capra aegagrus creticus) is very popular in Europe but is organized just in a couple of countries. And that's not a coincidence, the Kri- Kri ibex female had the honor of suckling Zeus himself.   This name Kri-Kri sounds strange because people in Europe call so “the singing" insect – a cricket. Nobody knows why and when people have started calling it that. Probably it happened so because those ibexes were originally from the island of Crete or because their bleating reminded the cricket’s song. We guess that both variants are right. The natives from the Crete island use different names for these animals. They call females ibexes- sanada and males- agrime as if these are two different species. The latest genetic research confirmed the Cretan goats are the feral goats. Their ancestors dwelled in the Mediterranean region in 8000-7500 BC. That animal had been captured in the Minoan civilization art- one of the most mysterious culture Eastern Mediterranean of the bronze age (2700-1400 BC). The murals with Kri-Kri images were found in the result of the archaeological digs on the island. Some scientists think that there was the religious cult of this animal in the ancient times. Nobody knew and counted the number of animals till the end of XIX century. Lorence, in 1809, was the first who describe this species using trophies, taken in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Later in 1838, Schinz described it as the Cretan endemic. In the mid of XX century Kri-Kri population was on the brink of extinction (only 200 individuals left) because it was the only source of meat for the Greek partisans during the Second World War. In 1962 the authority made the historical decision to established the National Park, located on the territory of the Samaria gorge, to protect this species. Nowadays you can meet them there. In 70s the Kri-Kri population was artificially restored in the National park of Bourazani. The number of populations began to grow steadily. The main Kri-Kri habitat in nature is on Crete and consists of more then 2000 animals. We can also meet them on the next islands Dia, Todor, Agi-Pantes and in the countries of Macedonia and Greece. The length of its body is 1,2-1,6 m, not including 15-20cm tail. The height at the withers is about 80cm, weight - from 15 to 40 kg. Its color depends on the season. It’s reddish-brown during the summer season and lightly gray in winter time. But legs and the muzzle are always dark-brown. The black stripe goes along its back. Its breast, sides and shoulders are covered by dark-brown or even black “apron”. The males heads are decorated by two curled back horns. Most of the animals lead a secretive, sedentary lifestyle. They prefer to stay on the steep rocky slopes covered with bushes and changed by mountain-steppe parts. The adult’s females and males stay separate by small groups and gather only for the rut season -from October to December. The main problem with these animals is to preserve the purity of the species. They are easily interbred with the domestic goats and the animals who became feral not long ago. It mostly happens in the areas with the high density of the local population. You can easily meet the goats not afraid of people but look like Kri-Kri ibexes. Hunting for Kri-Kri ibexes is prohibited on Crete. But you can legally hunt for it in Greece and Macedonia. We all treat Greece as the cradle of European culture and civilization but not many people think about it as a hunting destination. And completely in vain. Hunting for a Kri-Kri Ibex in Greece is organized on the island Sapienza, located at the southwestern tip of the Peloponnese Peninsula. The hunters accommodate in the cozy and comfortable private hotels in the town Metoni, on the shore of the Ionic sea. That town has a centuries-old history. During the Crusades it fell under the power of the Venetians who built the fortress there and called it Modon. For a long time, the owner of the fortress owned the Peloponnese Peninsula too. Nowadays it’s a very popular Greek resort from where the ferry departs to Sapienza island. Greece is located in the Mediterranean climate zone characterized by hot, dry summers and chilly, wet winters. The best time for hunting is the beginning of winter season - November. The ferry connection can be canceled for several days at at that period because of rains and storms. Hunting on Sapienza island is prohibited on Sundays. You should bear that hunters can use the rented smooth-bore weapons without optics only. It’s a specific of Greek safari. That’s why the hunters will better train their shooting skills with such weapon for 30-40 meters. Hunting there isn’t hard because there are not high mountains with lonely peaks with steep slopes. The average altitude is to 2000 m above sea level. Hunting time is limited from 10 am till 3 pm. It’s the time when you can stay on the island. But the density of ibex population doesn’t give you any chance to leave the island without the trophy. Hunting in Macedonia is also easy not less effective. The Republic is located in the South-East of Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. It borders with Kosovo and Serbia on the north, with Albania on the west, Greece on the south and Bulgaria on the east. There are lots of architectural monuments from ancient to the Middle Ages. The nature of the Republic, listed as a UNESCO world heritage site, allows to consider it to be of the best European countries for the active recreations such as trekking, hunting, rafting and sport fishing. The most part of its territory is gorges of such mountains systems as Skopska Crna Gora, Pind (the highest point - 2753m) and Pirin. They are separated by wide intermountain basins. The hunters from all over the world arrive there to hunt for the Kri-Kri ibex. The season lasts from September 1st, to November 31. They can also hunt for the Balkan chamois, mouflon and deer there. The nature resort Lakavika is one of the most popular hunting territories. It’s located in 100 km from Skopje, the capital of the country, and takes about 7K ha. The territory of 2,5K ha is fenced. Hunting is organized in both parts. There is mostly mountain relief with typical Mediterranean vegetation. The reserve is home to populations of mouflon, wild boar, fallow deer, spotted deer, ROE deer, maned sheep and the Kri-Kri goats. Hunting is organized from the approach or from a sit-down. It has sense to calculate the hunting trip when three hunting days are devoted for one species. Accommodation during the trip is in the luxury hunting house, on the reserve territory. There are eight rooms. Russian citizens need a visa to visit Macedonia, which must be issued in advance at the consular section of the Macedonian Embassy in Moscow. Visa-free entry to the territory of the Republic of Macedonia is possible if you have the origin of the invitation issued by the authority in Macedonia or you have the tourist voucher which confirms your payment for the hotel during your stay in the country or you have the valid Schengen visa of category "C".

There are plenty of articles devoted to the backpacks for tourists and hunters. But I haven't met the information yet which I fully trust. This article is not the ultimate truth but I want to share the experience gathered during the years of mountain hunting.   The problem of carrying loads is not the new one. It was more actual in the world when people didn't have iron horses and had to think how to fix loads on their backs. In the dark corners of the world no matter where, on the South or the North we still can find simple but comfortable things (from leather or wood), made to carry things.    Rucksack - from German, means a bag on the back. The main plus of such system is that the hunter's hands are free and the load is distributed evenly. The outdoor industry produces backpack for any tasks and users: for trekking, mountaineering backpacks, for bike drivers, everyday use, fishing, hunting and others. The materials and technology are also on the high level. Let’s talk about the usage in classical hunting conditions, I mean classical for the region where I live (Almaty region, Kazakhstan. The terrain there is both mountainous and steppe).  But first of all we need to discuss the main quality features of the backpacks:  - volume ( in Liters), - material, used for the production (it has the close connection to its quality), - weight of a backpack (It’s a very significant parameter because you have you carry everything with you in the mountains), - specific features of the model (ergonomics, organization of internal space, forms of fasteners, fasteners), - mechanical strength, - moisture resistance, - noisiness of materials, - color  These are the main parameters you need to pay attention when choosing the backpack for hunting.   Let’s come back to our hunts. We almost always use a car to drive to the one-day feather hunting (quail, partridge, duck-geese, pheasant). If you hunt for the chicken game, the backpack is needed only for carrying snacks, water, and a few numbers of cartridges. You can use any types of backpack to 25 Liters volume and even the military model. The backpack has to be good quality, light and has water resistant bottom, to protect the jacket from blood. I use the backpack made by the Allen company with the volume 20 Liters.   The advantage of this model is the fabric which is close to the back and is waterproof. There are many pockets for small items and a big one on the front side for the game birds.   You don’t hike for a long distance when hunting for a waterfowl. According my experience the hunter has to seat and to wait in the blind or a boat that’s why the model with the chair will be the best variant. It’ll be useful for the fishing trips too.   The hunters can drive directly to the place where corral hunting on the plain or hunting from tower are organized. There is not a problem how to deliver meat if they have taken a trophy. So, they can use the same kind of the backpacks as in the previous case.     For mountain hunters. The hunting for mountain ungulates lasts several days and the camp's location can be changed few times during the trip. The hunter has to hike a lot and it influences to the backpack’s choice.   Usually the group of hunters drive to the huntsman's cabin, used as a base hunting camp. We often use horses to ride in the mountains but the hunters have to be ready to hike. The trekking can take from 30 minutes as well as a day. It happens because of the excitement, or because the hunters are not experienced enough ones or can be done on purpose if the goal is to take the desired trophy. I mean the variant when you leave the camp not going to spend the night outdoor but the day comes to its end and you realize that haven’t time to come back in time. I guess most of hunters have been in such situations, including me. Well, it was this way.' Beginning of November. A really strong snowstorm started in the town. But it was a weekend and my fellow and I wasn’t going to lose the opportunity to hunt and drove from the town at night. Towards morning we arrived to the village where our guide waited for us already and all three began to climb the gorge. The snow stopped falling, and stars appeared. At the sunrise we were on place near the circus where detected the group of ibexes. The shooting distance was 500 meters. It was in 2006 and it was the extreme distance for the military carbines we used. We didn't want to risk and decided to approach them 300 meters. Our mistake was that we were too excited and forget that didn’t sleep, eat and had no water. Then we tried to approach them but each time we came close the animals moved further from us. It seemed we are close but the herd headed behind the rock. The guide who stayed below corrected the direction by radio and we went on. There were lots of snow but we were dressed appropriately (as we thought a that moment). I had rubber boots, canvas pants and fleece jacket above the wool sweater, my fellow had a synthetic jacket. We rose 3500 masl and went to different sides to surround the goats. But there was no sign of them.  In several places we fell through snow to the waist. The sun was shining and snow on our pants melted and drained into the boots. None of us noticed it while we were actively moving. The first thought that something is wrong came to the mind when the sun disappeared behind the ridge. It was getting cold and we were thirsty and hungry. I couldn't connect with my fellow (It happened that he changed the channel), and didn't hear the guide... I tried to go down but soon realized that we had climbed by another gorge and there was not any safe opportunity to descend by the slope where I was at that moment.   I had no strength to ascend or to go back. It was getting colder and all my wet clothes frozen. Soon I didn’t feel my feet. I’d never forget that feeling when you make a step and feel the thousands of needles are stuck in the foot. Fortunately, I took the small flashlight and the extra woolen socks when leaving the village in the morning. Later when my legs finally lost their sensitivity I took of the boots, squeezed out the insoles and changed the socks. I was cold and tired as never before in my life. It was a miracle but I managed to go back to the car what took me five hours! I took off all clothes and couldn’t move for an hour or even more. My friend didn’t appear yet. My mind became to come to life and I realized the tragedy of the situation where he was. He climbed upper than me and had no extra socks or a light. The temperature was 20 degrees below zero... In an hour the guide delivered him on his back. He could barely live. He found him crawling on all fours, hardly alive. It happened that he fell into the hole and stuck with feet between rocks under snow. He didn’t have a fulcrum and spent few hours trying to release from captivity. At last he realized that the only way to do it was to get feet out of your shoes. Only barefoot did he manage to get out. Then he lost time trying to get out boots. We were lucky that stayed alive. Slight frostbite of the limbs and face and the fear that we could die were the only damage at that adventure. But the result of those misadventures was much bigger. We had the choice to give up everything or to change our attitude to the hunting trips and to buy new equipment. We followed the second way. From that time, I’ll never go to the mountains without the 20-30 Liters backpack where I always have hot tea, some snacks, warm extra clothes, a flashlight and matches and a knife.   The list of items, I take with me, was determined empirically. I never hunt alone for the mountain ungulates and that volume is enough to share meat between 2-3 hunters. The average weight of such size backpack is 1,5 kg or less. I like Bundeswehr backpack for 25 Liters, its own weight is 1 kg. Its simple but comfortable design is used from the mid of the last century. Somebody can think that its small but I know, it's enough for a young ibex, roe deer or a wild boar-young. Don't forget about one more thing, you can fix the same volume on the top of the backpack if it's necessary. I really like it but realize that is has not a rigid back design, is not adjustable for the anatomical features of the body, is water-permeable, and is very noisy. There is the alternative for that model. Eberlestock Gunrunner Pack - is the new black. It's waterproof, has the needed volume, made from the noiseless material in good camouflage color and its weight is just 1 kg. And one more thing that backpack has the cover to carry the rifle on the back, what is very comfortable. At the beginning I was confused by that “tail” but followed the feedback of hunters who used it and began to carry it too. It is comfortable to go when the carbine is on the back and don't catch anything. I've tested it for carrying meat and equipment and confirm it works well. There are two kinds of accessories worth of our attention. They are side patch pockets and a net fixed by snap hooks to carry birds, but I successfully used it for meat too. The main load is on the pelvic bones and shoulder straps don't cut your shoulders. This backpack fits me to 70%. I can call it my main working tool. One more kind of hunting is by horses or by feet for several days. You have to be ready for different situations and to take everything you would need. The hunter has to take all necessary equipment and food and to be ready to carry it by himself. The major task is to carry the load in the maximum comfort way during the route.   My choice is the middle size, high quality backpack with the extra pay load capacity and comfort. Don’t forget about its own weight, it must not be heavy. The companies, making goods for climbers, produce such equipment. Five years ago, I've bought such backpack, made by the Marmot company. its volume is 50 L but weight just 2kg. Now you can find same type models made by Black diamond, Ospr е y, Vaude and others. Just one note, I fix my sleeping bag and my mat on the outer side of the backpack.   The most extreme variant of hunting is an autonomous full week trip including trophy huntings. You need something special to take everything you’ll need for that period. The backpack volume should not be less than 80 L or you can’t pack all things you have to have. I advise you to look for the proper model on the sites of the outdoor industry leaders in the sections for military or hunters. I followed the next rules when chose the backpack.   The backpacks for climbers are good according by its volume/weight/load capacity ratio. They are on the top among the competitors. They also have excellent ergonomics, the latest technological advances and reliability. But the materials, they are made of, don't suit for carrying meat and bones; they don't have the module system. It means that you will always carry the full size backpack; one more thing I paid attention was its colors. The backpacks made for climbers have bright colors what is not good for hunting.   The military backpacks are on the last place by the volume/weight/load capacity ratio. The same with their ergonomics and technology. Cordura 1000 - the main cloth (plus MOLLE firmware) is an exceptionally reliable variant. The model is done in the natural and camouflage colors. But it's heavy. Weight addition for the super-large backpacks means extra several kg. The military model doesn't have the module system too.   Backpacks for hunters are the cross between mountaineering and military models. They are lighter than the military ones but heavier than the alpinist backpacks. The materials, they are made of, are less noisy, more reliable and have camouflage colors. But I prefer the Eberlestokс k Blue Widow Pack model to all of this variety of backpacks. This transformer backpack can change its volume from 36 to 77 Litres and to 125 L with the additional accessories. It has the regulation and ventilation systems as the professional mountaineering backpacks have and you can carry the rifle on the back. It allows to fasten the water system and has the additional bag for a one-day hiking. Thus you have the opportunity to pack all things you need in 120 L. and fly to the ends of the earth as to Kamchatka. After arriving to the place, you can take off all the attachments and go for scouting just with the small bag. Later you can take 36 L backpack and go for hunting. You’ll be able to carry any trophy after increasing backpack's volume to 70 L. Or you can pack everything you need in 70 L. and go to the autonomous trip for several days. Or so and so.. It has lots of functions. It also has a couple of accessories. Spike Camp Duffel is the waterproof bag for 40 L which you can you as a bag for meat or to increase the total volume to 120 L or to cover the backpack when it's rain. It’s announced as to be a waterproof bag but zippers locks leak, as I’ve known during testing it. The next accessories is the holster for the carbine. It’s buckled additionally but I haven't bought it yet. That’s all.   But I have to mention one more really good product. It's a bag-backpack produced by the Maxepedition company, model Doppelduffel Adventure Bag. It has top -loading. It’s a comfortable item to transfer\ carry things when you travel by car or by public transport. The goods of the Maxpedition company are known by their reliability. It will never be extra and I advise you to have something like that bag.   These are not all backpack I've bought during my hunting career but I've described the most used ones.

He was more than 40 when began to devote hunting more time. (Interview with Sergey Uspensky) Several years ago the association “Rosokhotrybolovsoyuz” established two trophy nominations.  One of them - The Magnificent Seven united the most prestige hunting trophies.  The second one “Mountain Five” includes Russian mountain ungulates.  Not many hunters in Russia have these all these trophies. Sergey Uspensky is one of the twelve hunters awarded by “The Magnificent Seven” and one of the eight Russian hunters who got five Russian mountains ungulates.  He also has big collection of trophies taken on the other continents.  I met Sergey in his office and we talked about hunting.   “The Magic of the Real Safari”: According your hunting collection you are very experienced in hunting and traveling. Sergey Uspensky: Yes, I had time for hunting and travelling. “The Real Safari Magazine”: I look at you and imagine that you’ve been born in Siberia and all men in your family are hunters. S.U.: I love Siberia, especially its southern mountain part but I was born and live in Moscow.  But telling the truth I always felt so called hunting spirit in my family.  My uncle Nikolay Sergeevich and my grandpa -Sergey Sergeevich were hunters.  The grandpa had two hunting rifles.  The one of them, double-barreled trigger gun, produced by Tula’s weapon factory I remember very well.  It had the very simple design but attracted me so much.  I liked everything about it, starting from its specific gun’s oil smell. The second gun I don’t remember well. It was also double-barrel gun with inner triggers, made in Germany. I guess it was produced by Zauer company.  When I was young, I liked guns and shooting.  I was about 11 or 12 years old when grandpa allowed me to shoot from his gun. It happened just once but was a real present I still remember my feelings at that moment. Probably my hunting career started at that time. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Do mean that your hunting way began from that moment? S.U.: I began to hunt seriously just after 40 years old.  I bought “Saiga” cal. 20 and was glad that could legally hunt with it.  My first trophies were mostly cans because I needed to train shooting skills and what  i did.  Later I bought the Italian inertial semi-automatic rifle Benelli Raffaello cal. 12. That was my "second coming" to hunting. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Do you remember your first hunting trophies? S.U.: Of course. I think that most of the hunters remember their first trophy for the end of the life.  My first trophy was the boar. It wasn’t big but it was no matter. Then I got ducks, capercaillie, black grouse, woodcocks. Once in winter we hunted with friends and the moose came just to me. It was luck.  I remember the bears, I hunted- the one I got on the oats and another one in the den. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Have you bought the rifled weapon after five years you've owned the smooth bore one? S.U.: I fully realized that the rifled weapon give other opportunities for the hunter.  My first carbine was CZ527 Luxкалибра .22 Hornet. Later I bought Blaser R 93 cal.300 WinMag. Today it’s my main gun. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: The cartridge 22 Hornet was designed at the beginning of 30s (sometimes its’ called 5,6Х35 R Hornet) but it’s a rare thing in our country.  Why did you buy it? What trophies have you got with it? S.U.: It impressed me from the very beginning. It's convenient, light (its weight 2,8 kg) and proportional. The rifle's stock made from the beautiful walnut. It has the safe sliding bolt, and the chamber for five cartridges. Its barrel is long enough (600mm).  Though its caliber coincides with the usual small-caliber cartridge, its shot is more powerful.  These cartridges are produced with hollow point (HP) and semi HP bullets with the weight from 2,6 to 3,5gr. The muzzle speeds are in limits from 715 to 890 m\sec. Once I got 200kg boar with this gun.  I hunted with it for pigs, badgers, raccoons. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What cartridges with what bullets do you prefer when hunting with Blaser R93? S.U.: Usually I use Norma cartridges with Accubond.  If I am going to shoot for short distances I choose Orix. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Where did you start mountain hunting? What trophies have you got? S.U.: My first mountain hunt was on Kamchatka. There I’ve taken my first mountain trophy- Kamchatka snow sheep with symmetrical horns - 94cm each.  Kamchatka impressed me by its nature and hunting possibilities.  I visited it several times because couldn’t but fly there.  I’ve got there such serious trophies as Kamchatka brown bear, moose and Koryak snow sheep. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: It’s evident according your trophies that you have hunted a lot in the  mountains.  Where else did you hunt? S.U.: I’ve been in the most of places, well- known among hunters.  They were mountains of Altai, Karachaevo-Cherkessia, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Canada.  In Canada I hunted for the Polar bear. Hunting in Argentina I consider to be one of the most interesting ones, though it’s not mountain hunting. “The Real Safari Magazine”: What regions do you like most of all? S.U.: I enjoy hunting on Altai and Karachaevo -Cherkessia. It's difficult to explain why. It was a combination of factors that did those trips so memorable for me. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Do you remember your shot for the longest distance? What trophy did you hunt? S.U.: I remember most of my successful shots. My personal record is 545 meters. It happened on Pamir, on the altitude 4500m. I caught Marco Polo in the crosshairs. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Any trophy is very worthy for the hunter.  But we all compete with each other by our trophies.  What of your trophies are the precious for you? S.U.: The horns of Mid-Caucasian Tur, Marco Polo sheep and the Kirghiz Ibex are the most rated ones. “The Real Safari Magazine”: How often can you hunt? S.U.: If you ask me about mountain or foreign hunting trips, I do it 2-4 times in a year.  But when the hunting season starts in Russia, I try to hunt each two weeks. “The Real Safari Magazine”: If we talk about hunting in the remote areas, how long do they usually last? S.U.: Unfortunately, I can't leave business for a long.  It takes to 5 days. “The Real Safari Magazine”: What clothes do you use for mountains hunting? What boots are the most optimal ones for the mountains? S.U.: Hiking in the mountains is not an easy matter that's why I prefer to use light clothes. Usually in the backpack I have thermal underwear, fleece jacket and a raincoat.  As for boots, I prefer mountain shoes produced by the Mammut company.  They fix the ankle securely and have a reliable grip with stones. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Tell our readers about the most memorable case which happened with you  in the hunting trips. S.U.: Once my friends persuaded me to join them  for a boar hunting with dogs in Argentina. The only weapon which the hunters were allowed to take for that hunting were spears.  The team of spearmen consisted of three hunter and they had to stay as close to each other as it was possible, in other words shoulder to shoulder. The outfitter had the pack of dogs which were used to hunt for boars. Their task was to find the prey and then everything went like clockwork.  In the first hunting day we detected the wild-boar. It was very fast and active.  Dogs followed it but it was constantly moving.  This excited not only dogs, but also hunters. The male ran so chaotic and rapid that our formation broke up and the boar attacked me. I reacted without thinking and hit the spear to its mouth and broke its fang.  Next moment it tumbled me down and began to tear my leg.  The dogs activated at that moment. The boar paid attention to them and I could escape.  Next moment one of the guides, accompanied us, shot it. They drove me to the hospital where the doctor treated and sewed up the leg wound. I had to get ten stitches. I longed so much to become the winner in that melee that next day we were in the same hunting area once again.  It was the right decision because we three with the dogs's help could have taken the big wild boar. “The Real Safari Magazine”: Thank you for the interview. On behalf of the editorial Board, I want to wish you good luck.

Sergey Ikrennikov and I arrived to Azerbaijan for the second time. We had already had the negative hunting experience with one of the local outfitters and were thankful to Alexey Kim who recommended us Asif Ilyasov. Alexey showed us his trophy with 103 cm horns and gave Asif's contacts. I called him before the departure and asked about future hunting with him.   We agreed all details and flew to Baku once again. It happened in May, 2014. Asif met us at the airport and helped with weapons papers on the custom. We followed his advice and accommodated in the small but cozy hotel and later in the evening he invited us to his famous restaurant. Azerbaijani cuisine is magnificent! It’s worth to be mention in Scheherazades tales! Next morning we drove to Ismail. Asif has two hunting areas in that region. We moved to one of them, known under the name Kal Dag or the Stag mountain. It's the exclusive area and the number of permits for hunting there is limited. Telling the truth, we didn’t believe Asif’s and his chief guides Nariman words that the hunt would be fast. They told us about the high density of animals population in that region but we remembered our last year hunting in Sheki and didn't trust them. It took us three hours’ drive to the village where the guides waited for us already. Then we drove three hours more on KAMAZ and we arrived to the base. Next morning, we got up early and rode by horses to the mountains. The sun had risen and outlined the rocks silhouettes effectively. The weather was fine and we felt as if were invited on the party. We were hiking about five hours and weather had changed several times. It was strong wind with the gasp of snow when we set the tent camp at the end of the day. It was storm when I fell asleep. Next morning, we left the tent and saw the enchanting view- the orange sun shined in the blue sky and everything was covered by snow. It is harder to ascend by snow then by dry rocks but everything depends on the hunters’ physical condition. We were there not to relax but to overcome all obstacles. When we reached one of the edges, Nariman showed us the place where Alexey Kim got his monster last year. I liked to talk with Asif and Nariman. They both spoke Russian and it’s important when you can use you own language in the foreign country. Our guides Sasha and Alik spoke to each other in Azerbaijani but if also knew Russian well. Nariman said with regret that expected to detect the turs in the morning but it was a half of the day and we hadn’t seen any yet. I took these words with a fair amount of skepticism because remembered the negative experience and based all impression on it. But in an hours, I changed my opinion. We spotted the group of thity-five animals. They dispersed by small groups along the lower slope near the waterfall. I was amazed by the number of animals and their trophy characteristics! All alike beyond belief! There were about 800 meters to them. We began to discuss how to approach them. It was not an easy task to come close. We should have to descend by the slope when any rock could roll under our feet. Moreover we had to take is so that the animals which had sharp eye and ear didn’t hear us. We stood in line Asif, Nariman, Sasha, Alik and Mubariz. Sergey and I were at the very end and went down very carefully. It took us a half of an hour. At last Nariman suggested us to wait in the hollow while he and Sasha would rise and examine the group. Soon they came back and said, the group of 5-6 good size males were just in front of us on the opposite slope. The distance to the group was 160 meters. The other animals were further away. We were not upset because the nearest group was very good. Sergey and I decided to shoot together on the count of three because we both wanted to take the trophy. Let someone be lucky, and someone would have to look for animals tomorrow. We took the position, found the animals and took them in the crosshairs. Here they were, at a glance. All six! They laid and chew. Each of us aimed his own trophy. Sergey chose the one on the far left when I preferred from the right. They both had nice horns. I guessed that our maneuvers had not gone unnoticed because the males stood up and went slowly to the right along the ridge. I was ready and asked Sergey if he prepared for the shot. Then I calculated to three In a whisper and pushed the trigger. The bullet hit to its spine and I saw how it happened clearly. I even noticed the white smoke, rose above the Tur’s back. The animal fell and rolled to the other side of the ridge. Then I heard Nariman’s voice: - The second is nice. Really nice! But the second one was more experienced and immediately hid behind the ridge. Why Sergey didn’t shoot? The other Turs ran down after the shot. They were in a hurry and were moving clinging each other by horns. Suddenly one of them separated from the others and stopped in 120 m from us. It did few steps and finally stopped. Then stepped a couple of times and stopped. I heard Sergey's shot. I didn’t know what it was thinking at that moment about but the bullet finished its musings. The Tur collapsed like a log. Joy, cheers, congratulations! But then we detected the group of Turs with huge horns which almost created the number eight on their heads. They ran on snow rocks up and up. Twice I tried to use optics to examine them but it was hard, they were constantly moving and the distanced changed every minute. I didn’t shoot. The trophies were taken. But we had to come to them. First of all, we reached Sergey’s goat, made lots of pictures and the guides stayed to skin the trophy. While I and others went to my trophy, laid near the small waterfall. One more photo session, congratulations and emotions. And after those pleasant chores we went to the tents, located upper us. It was getting dark when we reached the mobile camp. Dinner was ready and waited for us. What a pleasure it was to drink hot soup and tea after such hard, busy day! Next morning we packed the camp and rode back to the Base came. That way back took us six hours. There we did everything to regain strength, we took hot shower, ate shish kebab, and proposed toasts for lucky hunting. We liked to stay there. There was an atmosphere of benevolence and friendly participation. We were lucky to meet people who loved what they did, had excellent hunting area and ready to help hunters to realize their dreams. Asif and I discussed hunting plans for the next year. Next day we went back to Baku. I's still impressed by this town which is the combination of the modern architecture together with respect to ancient Eastern traditions. Asif invited us to his trophy -room. What kind of trophies were not in it! I highly estimated the quality of taxidermy. He also introduced us to Faik Babanly - the very interesting person and the avid cat hunter. We both have only positive impressions after that trip. Thank you very much to Asif, Nariman and other guys who helped us! I hope to meet them not once and not only in Azerbaijan.

The trip was under threat of failure. We sent papers for Canadian visa in two months before the departure (in the beginning of June) but only one of our group - Sergey Samotin, got the visa. Few days left. Though we sent visa papers together and it was not our first visit to Canada, the embassy made the decision just in 45 hours before the departure. You can guess what I felt that time. Don’t trust the indicated dates on the embassy site. It’d be better to apply papers not less than in three months before the trip, especially in the season.   We flied to Vancouver several times before but that time the most comfortable way to get there was suggested by British Airlines. They say that Heathrow airport is not the lucky place for hunters who travel with guns. There were lots of cases when the airport staff lost gun’s cases and did not load them from the transit flights. But we were lucky and got our weapon in safe. The Canadian custom did all paperwork fast. It’s interesting to note but we heard about situations when the foreign police officers or customs asked to show Russian permission to keep and carry weapons. There were not such situations before, but we took all papers just in case. We weren’t going to overnight in Vancouver and just transferred to another flight to Whitehourse. At last we arrived, accommodated in the hotel and went to bed. Next day we had free time that's why spent it sightseeing. We admired the stately Yukon and made lots of pictures of the historical ship Klondike. Then we visited several guns shops. There you can find lots of things which are not in Moscow. Whitehorse means White horse. This name of the town was not accidental. It is located in the place where Yukon passes through the dangerous thresholds part. The water on the thresholds reminds White horse mane. Next day we got up early, had breakfast and left the hotel. There were two more hunters who checked-out the hotel. It happened that those guys- the middle age guy from Texas and an active old lady from the Western state, were going with us to the same outfitter.  The microvan arrived and we drove. On the way to the airport we drove to one more place where took two more Mexican guys, hunted for caribous. The representatives of the charter company prepared all papers, weighted and loaded our luggage and weapon. Then they introduced us our pilot who invited us to board. He told us safety instructions and we flied. In ten minutes, I noted how one of the Mexican guys was talking something to his fellow and pointed to something in the window. I followed with eyes the way he showed and saw what was going on. A trickle of fuel was flowing from the tank cover in the right wing. - How long did you notice it? - As soon as we took off Do you think we need to say the pilot about it? I didn’t reply and immediately inform the pilot about it. He turned the plane back. We lost about an hour while changed the rubber gasket, but the pilot thanked us. He wouldn't be able to fly back if there was not enough fuel. The second attempt was more successful, and we landed in the wide mountain valley near the town Dawson. Jim and Adrian Finky waited for us already. They drove on two giant pickups and soon we arrive to the Base camp and accommodated in the typical Canadian hunting cottage. The lunch was ready already. We discussed our plans while having dinner. The hunting territory is huge and none of the hunters interfere each other. The outfitters sent us to the places in accordance with our goals and physical conditions. Sergey and I was delivered by double-seats place to the center of the mountains where we could hunt by horses. The young 25 years old guy Lucas became our guide. But first of all Jim came to our room and asked if we agreed that Lucas would be our guides. He thought that we could be unsure in his age and his experience. If we didn’t agree he’d provide us with other ones. We agreed his first plan. We'd never regretted it.  After the lunch we repacked the luggage and left all thing, we don’t need, in the cottage. Soon we flied once again under the tundra, surrounded by mountains. I even saw the herd of sheep while we were flying but we were going to another place. But in any case, it was a good sign. We both were in high spirit in anticipation of future hunt. The plane on the low-pressure balloons landed on the cleared place of tundra. Lucas with horses waited for us already. His young wife accompanied us as a cook. Two one-room cabins, one for us and another for the guide and his wife, were built in a couple of minutes’ walk from the runway. When we had dinner, Lucas told us that worked as a guide with three hunters already and followed other hunting groups for four years as the guide’s assistant. He knew that area very well and considered it to be the best for sheep hunting. We explained him that needed the good trophy. It was not matter the horns’ size we were looking for a sheep of definite color. There are two subspecies of American thin-horned sheep- Dall and Fannin sheep. Dall sheep have white wool without any gray or brown inclusions. The only exclusion is their short tail. Fannin sheep have wool with all these inclusions and other marks on the body. Sergey had the nice trophy of 14 years old Dall sheep in his collection already, that's why we needed to find another one not so white. Lucas calmed us and told that more than a half of local sheep had such marks- grayish areas of hair.   The first day of hunting met us with thick fog. It covered all valleys. But Lucas saddled horses and suggested not to waste time but to ride and to look for animals in the breaks in the dense shroud. We detected several female sheep and in the second part of the day when weather became much better we spotted a couple of young males. It was good for the first day taking into account how it started. Next day weather was fine, and we left the camp. We moved to another side. In four hours later we reached the saddle and let the horses graze while climbed the dominant height and began to examine the surroundings. We thought it’d be easy to find light sheep on the green landscape but all rocks which laid everywhere had the same color as sheep. It was always Lucas who detected the animals first. He was used to look for them in such places. He spotted the group of four males, which pastured on the remote top. We tried to examine them through the scope, but the distance was too far. There was no way but to descend to the horses and to go up the opposite hill. The rangefinder showed less than two km to the group. In two hours, Lucas stopped watching them and told that two males from the group had trophy size but he couldn’t define their color from such distance. We didn’t have time to approach and decided to go on next day. It was a good evening which we spent in good mood.   We all went to bed just after the dinner because was going to get up early.   The plan was to reach the yesterday saddle before the sunrise, to check if the group of males were still there and to approach them. There was a risk that the herd would overnight in another place and we would need to look for them. But luck was on our side. We found four light spots, sparkled under the sun on the highest top. We went there. A part of the way we rode by horse, then scrambles through thick high bushes, grew along the springs on the canyon's bottom. It became really hot and we all were fully wet from sweat when reached the foot of the mountain We tied horses and began to prepare for climbing. There was no sign of the weather getting worse, that’s why we decided to leave the most part of our luggage there but to take extra water. In the last moment I followed the instinct and put the raincoat and a softshell jacket into my backpack. The long climbing began. The path led through the thick bushes and trees, which covered the lower quarter of the mountain, then we walked by stones and parts of the rocks. The last part of the way was more or less flat, but we had to walk by bulk stones. The wind began to blow when we were in the mid of the way. At the beginning I even liked it because it was hot and it helped to feel comfortable but when we reached the top, it gathered the stormy clouds, and the rain began. I praised myself that took clothes! I shared it with Sergey while Lucas covered in the material which looked like a huge bag. There was no visibility and we had to wait. GPS showed that we climbed 650 meter and did it in an hour. Good result. As soon as the clouds had lifted Lucas crawled up a little bit and immediately laid on the belly. Then he turned and showed his big finger first and then 4 fingers. Great! All four sheep were on the place. Then our guide examined them for a while and crawled down to us. The sheep were in 200 meters from us and two of them were the same size. We could choose any. The most important thing was that they were not purely white, but we could try to find more "dirty" ones. We thought that "better is a sure enemy to well.” and agreed to fire. Sergey measured the distance, it was 274 m and got the trophy of Fannin sheep by the first, accurate shot. . The sun was shining when we came to the sheep. It was nice 11 years old male, with salt-and- pepper color. It was what we needed! After the photo session lyric was over. It was time to skin and pack the meat. According the Canadian law, the hunters has to take away all meat, they got in the mountains. Each time I’m happy that it's not a moose. In such case we would need to go several times to the body and back. Unfortunately, we could carry all meat in the one time. Later in the evening we cooked what we got. What a party it was!   Next morning two planes arrived to take us back to the comfortable Base camp. We finished hunting on the third day and were the first from our group. Later I knew that all hunters were successful.  Adrian called to the charter company and informed that the plane could be in the camp in two hours. We agreed. It's rare when you can change the locations so fast during the hunting trip. We had breakfast in the mountains and drank beer in the evening in bar in Whitehorse. On the next day we flied to Vancouver where spent time with pleasure. The next Canadian adventure was over. It was interesting and intensive hunt. We got the right trophy and felt bright emotions. We are ready for the new expedition.             ZOOLOGICAL REFERENCE: Some people think that Fannin sheep are just the mixture of Dall and Stone sheep because they inhabit in the area where these two species cross. But the presence of Fannin sheep in the north regions of Yukon refutes this theory. The northern population of Fannin sheep is geographically isolated from the southern one. You can also met Fannin sheep on Alaska and in the Mackenzie mountains on the Northwest. They don't intersect with the Dall sheep population there. The Grand Slam Club consider Fannin Sheep to be the separate species. But there are many places where you can meet both kinds of sheep, as the Ogilvy mountains, where we hunted. That's why the Club administration has taken the decision that if the taken trophy has a small percentage of gray hair on the body and legs- the hunter will decide by himself how to register it in the Club. These both species are scored for the hunter, who collects Super 20, 30 or 40 but only one of them can be scored for the GrandSlam nominations ( the collection of the North American sheep) and OvisWorldSlam ( 12 sheep from all over the world).

Historically, the National Hunters Association of Croatia is the member of the International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC), that’s why they use the same methods of trophies’ evaluation. These principals state: the animals, resembled the domestic animals, can’t be the objects of trophy hunting. The Dalmatian wild sheep, you can meet in Croatia, is one of them.   When I began to hunt with the American hunters, I had known that the International Safari Club (SCI) and Ovis Club rated the sheep trophies, which looked like domestic. We don't talk about animals which have escaped from farmers a couple of years ago and have run wild. It's about sheep, dwell on the islands for centuries and are wild for several generations. The locals hunted for them for hundred years and shot them only for meat not thinking about them as about trophies. Later in the trophy lists I found the Dall Sheep from Texas and four horns sheep from Scotland which looked similar to our sheep. The same situation was with the goats. I mean a Balearic goat from Majorca and a Feral (wild goat) from Ireland. I got the idea to enter a Dalmatian sheep to the trophy list of mountain ungulates. First of all, I had to prove those animals hadn't run away from the owner and I needed help. The story, I’m going to tell you, is about two Croatia islands - Plavnik and Dugi Otok (the last one is translated as the Long Island, because it’s not wide but the length is 76 km). The hunting for the Dalmatian sheep is officially allowed there. The Plavnki Island is located on the northern part of the Adriatic Sea. While covering an area of 8.64 km2, the island has a length of 6.3 km (3.9 miles) and a width of up to 2.3 km (1.4 miles). Its highest elevation is 194 meters (636 feet). The square of the Dugi Otok island is bigger - 14K ha. The biggest island of Croatia is Krk. The main town of the island with the same name Krk is more than 2000 years old. It was the king’s residence in the past. The Plavnik Island is not far from it. Centuries ago any man or a animal could enter the capital island only after 45 days quarantine on the Plavnik Island. There is a small church which is 550 years old. The chronicles said, the first wild animals -sheep and goats dwelled there before the church had been built. Nobody knows how have they got there. The Dugi Otok island is a part of the island’s chain, extended along the coast of Croatia. It’s located on the outer side of the chain and opened to the sea by one of its side. It is just hundreds of miles from the Italian coast. The first people who discovered Croatia from the sea, landed on the Dugi Otok first and then entered the mainland. The oldest church in Croatia is located on that island. It was built in in the eighth century (750 ad). The chronicles, dedicated to the construction of the Church, are stored in the archaeological museum in Zadar. The scientists have found there the notes about the first people tried to catch the wild goats and sheep, inhabitants there. There is a big cave, from the outer side of the island, on the depth of 300-400 meters. The local tourist companies organize excursions there during the summer season. The archaeologists found the traces of human presence- fireplaces, bones of wild animals, including bones of sheep, goats and deer. There is not any sign of civilization or the agriculture activity on the outer side of the island. It’s good for wild life. By the way, the oldest professional hunter lives there. He is 82 years old and he remembers how he’s hunted with his grandfather when was 5 years old. His grandpa was the first islander who had the trophy gun, taken from the First World War. That rifle could shoot to 50 meters and they used it for hunting for goats and sheep. The population of the Dugi Otok island was about 30K people before the First World War. They were engaged in agriculture and each family had 15-20 sheep, goats and a donkey. When the war was over, most of the families had to leave the island and to move to the mainland of Croatia. The life there was easier than on the island. They couldn’t take animals with them. The domestic sheep and goats were running wild and had created hybrids with the native wild goats and sheep of the island. Nowadays all hunters take the samples of muscle tissue and hair, of the trophy they hunted, for the DNA analysis. Scientists of the National forest Institute from the Department of Game biology are ready to give the conclusion concerning the authenticities of the local wild animals. They researched more than 300 samples of different animals. But they need to test 200 samples more to give the guarantee result. When the DNA analysis will be done, we can refer to the National archaeological Museum and ask to provide us with the small pieces of bones, found in the cave on the Dugi Otok island and stored in the museum. It’s the obligatory procedure to define, is it the same species or not? The problem is that it’s really difficult to find several hundreds of samples. Each year the hunters get 6-8 trophy males and 10-15 animals are shot in the selection aims. Selective shooting is important to save white hair sheep because 1-2% of the animals have brown spots or are completely dark. The males without horns are also have to be ejected from the wildlife. We take samples from all of these animals. It means that we need 15 years to collect 300 samples. We analyzed the situation and referred to SCI. We needed help of international hunters to get samples. That was the beginning of hunting for Dalmatian sheep as for the trophy object. The next story is about goats, inhabitant on the Dugi Otok island. I’m the member of SCI for 14 years already but have never thought about those animals as about subspecies. Norbert Ullmann - the representative of the SCI in Europe visited me about 6-7 years ago. We were hunting on the Dugi Otok island, when he detected the group of goats which looked like Kri Kri ibexes. As it turned out, there were gray color goats with black stripes on the backs, with black muzzles and markings on the shoulders but there were red brown goats with black backs, muzzles and marks on the shoulders too. Some of them had mixed colors. A part of goats had horn which were similar to the ibex but other had horns like domestic goats had. We thought that time, they were run wild goat. Three years ago the OVIS (GSCO) magazine published the article, written by several American hunters about their hunting for goats in Greece. They got the trophy and assigned it to the hybrid of Kri-Kri ibex and the wild goat. Larry Higgins arrived there with the inspection. He is well-known not only as a hunter but as the SCI specialist who is responsible for measurement and evaluation of trophies of goats and sheep. He has admitted that there are Kri-Kri ibexes and the great number of the Feral (wild goats) on the island. The dense shrub on the island doesn’t allow to make the selective shooting and to leave Kri-Kri ibexes only. That’s why Hybrid Kri-Kri ibex has been selected in a separate category. When I read the article and looked to the pictures, I understood that goats on the Dugi Otok island belonged to the same category. I immediately informed Dennis Campbell, Chairman of the OVIS club. He couldn’t come right away but asked to gather as much information as it was possible and to make photos. Last March he spent five days on the Dugi Otok island hunting for goats. He was startled how dense the shrubs on the island were. And they were everywhere. The most part of the territory, about 65-70%, was inaccessible for people during the last 200-300 years. But the animals feel great there. Dennis shot the goat which was assigned to the feral domestic goat. It was decided that animals with untypical for Kri-kri Ibexes colors such as red-brown hair with the black stripe on the back, dark muzzles and shoulders, will be assigned to the feral ones, but the rest goats with the typical Kri-Kri colors are considered to be the hybrid. But we should have to find the evidence of Kri-Kri habitat on the island. And we were fantastically lucky. One day we were sailing the boat around the island chasing the wounded animal. My fellows and I watched attentively to the shore and noticed a group of Kri-Kri ibexes! It consisted of two males and three females goats. They stood on the rock, which goes up from the sea on 200 meters. It was impossible to approach them. Then they disappeared in the bush. But we saw them! The result of that meeting was that we divided goats, dwelled on the island into two trophy categories - the Feral Goat and Kri-Kri (Hybrid) ibex. As for the pure-bred Kri-Kri population is not large. But we needed to get a couple of them for the DNA analysis. After all, we granted that right to two well-known American hunters. First of them was Ken Baru, the applicant for The Weatherby Prize and the second one was Renee Schneider who got all possible hunting trophies in Croatia. The samples, from those two trophies,were sent to the lab and it was confirmed that there was a 95% chance that they were truly Kri-Kri ibexes. That conclusion vindicated what we saw and what the local anglers told us. They watched and not once the group of ibexes, resembled Kri-Kri ibexes by color and horns. Hunting for Kri-Kri ibexes in Croatia is prohibited now but the authority is going to bring several males from Greece to renew the blood and to revitalize the local population. GSCO agreed to list Kri-Kri (Hybrid), taken on the Dugi Otok island to its Capra trophy list. That subspecies will be added to the credit for CapraSuper 20 and CapraSuper30. If you look to the picture of these animals you see that some of them look like Kri-Kri ibexes while others resemble the Feral goats. You can notice, these goats have Kri-Kri colors and size (they are smaller than feral goats) but their horns are something in between two types.

Our stringer Yuri Morozov took the interview from one of the most famous hunters in the world - Bela Hidvegi. He is Hungarian. We present you this interview.   The world famous hunter and businessman Bela Hidvegi was born in 1936 in the small town Nagyszenas, Hungary. The was a student of the Agricultural Academy in Keszthely when transferred and continued his study in England in 1956. He graduated as the specialist in the food industry and stayed to work abroad. At the beginning of 70s he became the marketing director in the well-known American food company. He lived in England when got acquaintance with the legendary gunsmiths and began to have his own weapon collection. At that time he also began to hunt in other places. The first countries, where he hunted except Hungary and Great Britain, became other European countries such as Spain, Austria, Chezh Republic and Romania. At 90s he traveled to his first African safari and fell in love with the Black continent. He still hunts there every year or even twice. His favorite hunting species are screw-horned antelopes. Hidvegi hunted in the savannahs of Tanzania, mountain desert of Ethiopia, in the Zambezi estuary, in dry and rainy forests of Central Africa and Kameron, on the grass valleys and in the Bush of the South Africa and in Zambia’s swamps. After Africa he went to conquer the north. His hunting way passed by Alaska to Brooks Range, by the endless wild space of the north and Rocky Mountains in the North America. After visiting Pamirs and Altay from Mongolian side he opened Asia later. He hunted in Pakistan in the Hindu Kush and Karakorum mountains and spent two months in Himalaya. Then Iran. In the mid of 80s he came back to Hungary and brought the colossal collection of hunting trophies. He gave is as a gift to the Natural history Museum of Hungary, exhibited in the castle-museum Gelikon in Keszthely. That fantastic collection consists of hundreds of trophies and about 200 of them were taken not in Europe. Two trophies are still the world records and 25 are from the TOP 10 according the SCI Record Book. The collection presents the wildlife of all six continents. About 150 specimen made in the original size. They are shown in the habitat. In 2007 he was awarded the most prestige Hunting Awards - WorldHuntingAwardRingSCI, in 2009 he won the prestigious “Triple Slam award” of the OVIS club. He is most proud of this award, because only the hunter, who won other three slams - GrandSlam, OvisWorldSlamи CapraWorldSlam, can get it. Nowadays only four European hunters have this Award. He was the laureate of the Carlo Caldesii award twice. That prize means a lot for all mountain hunters. Hidvegi wrote and published three books: “Dream hunting”, “ The hunter on the top” and “ One the edge of the rock” He also made three DVD movies: "My dream", "My mountain hunting", and the documentary "From nature to the Museum". The name Bela Hidvegi is inextricably linked with the Hungary SCI division and with the Hungarian hunting magazine Nimrod. “The Magic of the Real Safari”: Bela will you allow to ask you some questions... Bela Hidvegi: Sure. It’ll be a pleasure but you are clearly exaggerate my hunting glory. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Traditional question: When and why did you become the hunter? B.H.: I can hardly reply this “traditional” question. I’m really proud that set foot on African soil for the first time when I was 50. It was my first hunting experience outside of Europe. Can you imagine that? The biggest trophies I had before were chamois from Austria and Romania. That's all! Most of the people began to hunt when they were about 18-20 years old. Nowadays they are kids of the rich parents who early have big money. I had to work hard to allow myself that fantastic world of impressions and emotions, victories and failures. I still regret that made a mistake and didn’t start to hunt in Africa in 10 years earlier. I was 40 when could hunt there but thought my business needed my presence and stayed on place and worked hard. Thus, my real hunting career started at 50. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Thirty years have passed and you got the great collection of hunting trophies... B.H.: Yes, I can say with some pride that I have got more than 270 species, including the rare and exotic ones. Twenty five of them are from TOP 10 according the SCI Record Book. But most of all I proud my mountain trophies. I was lucky to get enough trophies to get the most prestige OVIS awards - VISSuper30 and CapraSuper30. I'm fond of hunting in Africa. There are some not usual African species which are rare now: the mountain Nyala, Lord Derby's Iland, an elephant with over 100 pounds tusks , hunted in the wild. Africa now isn’t so wild as it has been. There are many ranches with corraled territories. It’s not my hunting. I love it for real emotions, you feel when hunting in the jungles for... the screw- horns antelopes. I consider those animals with spiral horns to be the aesthetic perfection among the natural forms. I have 25 species and 22 subspecies of them. I wrote a book and one of the main chapters is devoted to them. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What can you say about mountain hunts? B.H.: I learned about mountain hunting in 70s. We lived in Austrian and I hunted for chamois and ibexes. Later I came back to England and the friend of mine was going to hunt for Marco Polo and then to hunt in Mongolia. I joined him. I was drawn to the mountains like a magnet after that trip. I was charmed by mountains ungulates. Telling the truth, I still went on to hunt in Africa and even finished DiamondLevelпо by SCI system. The main thing, I like in antelopes and mountain ungulates, are their horns. As told above, I’m not indifferent to the spiral horns and markhors are my favorite ones. I have all three species which can be legally hunted but now the forth one has appeared - the Bukharan markhor. I hope to get it in the next year. But this is the expensive hunt and I must not forget about my age. I haven’t been in the mountains expeditions for a year or two and not sure how I’ll feel myself. But I love these screw-wrapped horns! That's the reason why I like Eland, Bongo, mountain Nyala... “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What from the mountains hunts was the hardest one? B.H.: I think it was my hunt for the Blue sheep and Tahr in Nepal. And of course Caucasus. It was tough but I like such hunting though we had a rough time there. It was the most memorable hunting expedition, I took part in. I got there all my three turs. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What of the mountains hunts did you like most of all? B.H.: It’s so easy to reply this question as ask the parents of five kids, whom do they love more. But I prefer markhors. About 14 years ago I got my first hunting license for the Astor markhor. The hunting for this species was prohibited for thirty years. There were about 30 individuals of these animals when the hunt was closed. Can you imagine that? Its population grew enough during all these years. I received the first license but met just small size males when we arrived there for hunting. Now there are trophies with 40 inches horns. My trophy was about 29 inches. But its’ no matter. We didn’t have good optics that time. The male was in 400 meters from me and I couldn’t understand what place I’ll hit it. The crosshairs obscured the target. The Shot! The guide told, the bullet flew above the animal's back. That's all The hunt was over! I had to wait one year and to pound the pavement the North Pakistan authority to get one more chance to hunt there. Just imagine: 15 state officers sat on the floor and discussed, was I worthy to get one more chance to hunt without extra payment or not. The final vote decided the case in my favor - the most part of the officers agreed that I was a good guy and was worthy to get one more chance. In the next year, It was 2001, I got the biggest trophy at that moment. It happened thank to the preliminary scouting. But the adventures were not over. The hunt was just finished when my guide came and said that he got a call from Khan Karakay. He asked me not to leave because the war in Iraq began, the Americans canceled all hunts and I had the opportunity to get the Kashmir markhor for a half price. My guides Riza and Mehmet helped me to take the trophy of the Kashmir Markhor . We just descended when Khan called once again and offered to stay for the Sulaiman Markhor hunting with the same conditions.   Thus, I took two markhors for the price of one. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What are you plans? B.H.: Plans.... I’ll be 79 in the next year and not ready for the serious hunting adventures. But I have one goal concerning mountain hunting. I’ve wanted to get all trophies for the Triple Slam, then have dreamed about Super20, Super30 and now I have 31 sheep and 32 goats. It seems that there is nothing more to dream about. But! One more dream was born. I won’t talk about in now. First I’ll try to make it true. Your magazine will be the first one whom I’ll tell about it. If I don’t do it no one will tell that I divided the skin of an unkilled "bear". “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Thank you for the interview and Good luck! B.H.: Thank you! Good luck for your magazine and your readers!

That trip had happened because of the joke. I visited hunting show, which took place in 2013 in Rostov-on-Don, and met my old fellow Benjamin Kaschaev. We were talking about everything and then began to joke about my trip to Kyrgyzstan, Benjamin’s motherland, where he invited me. It's known that mountain hunts are one of the most expensive and I’ve never thought about myself as about mountain hunter. I dreamed about in and even imagined myself in the mountains but in the distant future. Later in summer we talked about it once again and it was not a joke. I felt that I wanted to go there. I needed a good company and somebody who would support me that’s why invited Yuri Gonnov to join. He easily agreed and from that time our adventure depended on the ticket’s dates only.   The local representatives warm welcomed us at the airport. We went through the customs, sat into the car and drove to the hunting area. We arrived to Bishkek by the night flight and were tired that's fell asleep as soon as sat into the car. It seemed that I just blinked when opened my eyes and saw mountain by both sides! The impression was intensified by the contrast between the plain and the mountains and I wasn’t even sure that it happened with us not with somebody else. The car stopped on the bank of the well-known Issyk-Kul lake. I heard about it a lot but was surprised by its salted water. It seemed that I could watch endlessly its calm surf and waves, hide the depth of that ancient reservoir. That day we spent in Karakol town (Przhevalsk in the past). Next morning, we were going to the camp, located on the height 3200m. We tried to acclimatize (1600 masl) and visited the museum and the grave of the famous researcher of Asia N.M. Przhevalsky I read his books but could hardly imagine that see his last refuge where he wanted to stay forever. Those mountains were the witnesses of his adventures and great discoveries. We got up early in the morning, loaded all equipment and drove to the camp. It was rain and snow but we all were in a high spirit. We reached the mountains at sunrise. They mutely looked at us and didn’t allow the bad weather to come through. The blue sky and the sun accompanied us till the end of the trip. The ground under the wheels wasn’t firm and it made me nervous when I looked to the deep abysses by the road's sides. The passes are created to help the travelers to feel better because it took your breath away by the amazing views each time when you cross it. And then you move ahead but down. The highest pass, we crossed, was 4200 masl and I didn't feel well there. Probably it happened because of altitude. In one place, near the spring we found the ibex bones - the result of the successful wolf hunt. By the way, we saw the remains of the wolf feasts each day. At noon we arrived to the place. The guides and cooks waited for us already. They met us with smiles, everything was ready for the hunt. We had lunch. The both chefs cooked all dished we wanted and introduced us lots of tasty dished from the Kyrgyzstan cuisine. After a lunch we tested guns, we both used the rifles of the host side, and prepared for hunting. The average temperature in the morning was about -5-7 C, it was warmer during day hours. It was windy on the tops but in general the weather was fine for that season. We all were in high spirit the run-up to the real adventure. I enjoined everyday riding by horses, admired the views of deep abysses and high mountains rosed around us and could hardly believe that all were happening with us! The only thing sobered us was, that Yuri’s blood pressure rose at the end of the first day and it made us worried about him. He stayed in the camp next day to acclimatize. We hadn't to forget about altitude in the mountains! Fortunately, everything was well and in a day Yuri was well. In early morning on the second day I, accompanied by two guides, rode to my first mountain hunt. We moved along the gorge, crossing springs and stone rubbles! I wasn't experienced in riding horses before and soon felt all muscles in femurs and tibia. It was nothing in comparison with emotions, I felt. I expected to get the new experience and waited for it. We crossed the dry springs, stormed tops, made lots of stops, monitoring the surroundings and each time discussed what we saw and then moved further. There were groundhog holes everywhere and I imagined what happened there in the springtime when everything got alive and air was full of those whistles. One of the holes had been dug and ruined by a bear and I stopped for a while examined what it had done. Sometimes I got nervous. I felt wonky each time when saw how the horse was going by the wild goat path at 45 degrees angle and realized that the horse was too huge for that way. The only glance to the bottom of the deep abyss made me to forget about the future trophy. At noon we detected the group of ibexes but they noticed us first and ran away for some distance. The guides used the natural shelters led me to the distance where I could dismount. We had to take the decision. Ulan stayed with horses while I and Turat ran down for about 200 meters and tried to approach, using the ridge as the shelter. It was uneasy to run on the height 4000 masl that's why I followed the guide’ advice, restored my breathe and only then crawled to the herd. The rangefinder showed 240 meters distance to the group. The rifle was tested on 300 meters. I made the corrections and prepared for a shot.  Carefully I leaned out from behind the rock and looked at those ibexes. The guide whispered me advices which I could hardly hear. I caught the male into the cross, took the breath and fired. But meanwhile a small digression. The ibexes stood by chain from up to down and were on guard. The guide recommended to shoot the fifth one from the top. But it was partially closed by the six males. The goat fell after the shot. The guides began to congratulate me (I didn’t know when the second one joined us), I stood up and was almost glad when notice how the killed ibex were jumping towards to the top and did it faster and faster. In a second it could disappear behind the ridge. I fell down, catch it in the cross once again and shot. It fell! The third time I shot, when it was rolling to the abyss but tried to stood up. The guides shouted once again that I got it! At last I deserved those congratulations. I didn’t know why but was not sure in my shooting. Later in the camp when we analyzed the situation I understood that first time I hit the six’s ibex nape and stunned it. It wasn't wounded it but it couldn’t move for a while. There was the next perspective hunting place just in front of us in case if we failured the first attempt. The moody peaks and rocky cliffs from the opposite side beheld us in silence. Fortunately they told me about it after I got the trophy because I wouldn’t be sure in the confident shooting at all. Then we had made pictures where tried to look in the best way. The way back, after we cut meat, took us several hours but I was so happy and didn't feel tiredness. The vultures appeared. I had noticed eleven of them, sitting in a row on the on the far side of the mountain. They sat as if thought about something. We talked while riding back to the camp and I asked guides if the wolves caused troubles to the horses. They replied me, no. But next morning my horse had been attacked by wolves and it was a miracle it could escape. It was pleasure to go back to the camp. Everybody waited for us. We replied endless questions, described what had happened and shared our mood with all. Yuri was also successful. His hunting was full of adventures and emotions. I could hardly believe that the human being were in condition to feel the full spectrum of emotions, describing the hunt. But it was so. I guess, I was one of them. You can only envy those, who just going for the first hunting trip. Yuri's hunting was different. But I think that all hunts are different. They found the group of ibexes on the opposite side of the gorge. It was far from them but there was the possibility the herd would come close while feeding. They had nothing but wait measuring the distance from time to time. Everything was going pretty well; Yuri was ready to shoot and needed only the guide’s instruction. It is always hard to wait for something but not in the mountains when you watch those giants. They stood around you in snow caps, sewed by the Kyrgyzstan style. You could observe gorges and abysses, and even rocky cliffs. The main zest of that landscape was the desirable first mountain trophy! Each day we went back to the camp in the full darkness. The mountains were left behind in the darkness and we stretched out in a row and entered the gorge. The only light sources were our lanterns and the only sounds were hoofbeats on the stones. One of the days Ulan showed me ancient cave drawings. It was getting dark; the horse wanted home and didn’t understand why we stopped and made pictures of that stuff. I decided to go back there next day. It was hard to imagine that human dwelled in those mountains long time ago before us. The ancient people climbed those rocks to leave signs from the darkness of the centuries. I used to see such things in museums or books only. But my emotions were absolutely different! Once we even took hot shower! We enjoyed hot water, friendly conversations and tasty dinner, prepared by our professional cooks from the trophy meat. I slept like a baby when we went to bed. I can't but say few words about the variety of birds and animals in those mountains. I watched lots of partridges, crossed the road just in front of us, hares which preferred to dwell in the river valleys and pheasants, known by their low-level flights down along the slopes. I noticed and not once, Alpine jackdaws and other animals who decorated our trip and filled those mountains with life. At last the time to drive back to Karakol came. The way back was much easier. The sun was shining and we couldn’t but admiring a brighter blue of the sky. Yuri and I looked back furtively, to the place where we left the parts of our hearts. I wouldn’t never forget that trip. We visited one more mysterious place, shrouded in legends, while were there. It was “the accounted stones” or Santash in Kyrgyz. Genghis Khan had asked his warriors to throw stones in the pile when they were going to the war in Asia. They did it to account their losses when they’d came back. The second legend is that he has hided his treasures under those stones. We discovered the foundation under one of the dismantled heaps. Why or for what? It was a rare possibility to touch the relic as the ancient warriors did. At the end of the trip we could even take part in fishing, organized in the neighborhood! I caught just few fish but really liked the process. We were overwhelmed with emotions. I fully agree with people who say that if you have been in the mountains you will definitely come back. I want to believe it’ll come true!

Труды Зоологического общества Лондона, Том 42, номер 1, стр. 143-145, январь 1874 Голова и рога барана, о котором я сейчас пишу и для которого предлагаю название Ovisbrookeiотличаются от всех голов диких баранов, с которыми проводились сравнения. Таково мнение г-на Блита (Mr. Blyth), сэра Виктора Брука (SirVictorBrooke), мое и других. Таким образом, есть уверенность, что эта голова принадлежит неописанному животному, что могут показать представленные измерения черепа, рогов и их характер. Длина черепа O. brookeiот междурожья до конца примерно 11 дюймов, что на дюйм с четвертью длиннее, чем у двух образцов O. vigneiв Колледже Серджонс (Surgeons), а также у O. vignei, имеющегося в нашем распоряжении. Ширина между глазницами составляет 4 5/8 дюйма, тогда как у O. vignei4 ¾ дюйма. Рога данного образца O. brookeiхотя и принадлежат молодому животному (что подтверждают зубы и 4 развивающихся годовых фазы рогов), в длину составляют 33 ½ дюйма, окружность базы – 13 3/8 дюйма. В то время, как у восьмилетнего O. vigneiдлина рогов 31 ½ дюйма, база – 10 ½ дюйма. Таким образом, у O. brookeiбаза на 3 дюйма больше в окружности и рога на 2 дюйма длиннее, хотя это и гораздо более молодое животное. Путем измерений черепа и рогов O. vigneiв Музее Королевского Колледжа Серджонс, на который я уже ссылался, отмеченного номером «3778» и описанного как «Ладакский аргали (O. vignei), предоставленный Капитаном Стречи (CaptainStrachey)», а также образца, маркированного «3778а», предоставленного Др-ром Склейтером (Dr. Sclater), апрель 1868 (его изображение публиковалось в этих же Трудах Общества за 1860г. на стр.127), я установил, что эти образцы отличаются от O. brookeiдаже больше, чем крупный образец O. vignei, о котором я сейчас упоминал. Во всех образцах, изученных сэром Виктором Бруком и мною, мы установили, что подглазничные ямки данного образца (O. brookei) не так глубоки или они не так глубоко заходят под глазную орбиту, как у O. vigneiи O. cycloceros. В этом отношении Ovisbrookeiбольше напоминает Ovisammonи O. arkar. Опять же, проекция орбит гораздо меньше, и ширина частей черепа под орбитами больше, в сравнении с длиной черепа, у новых образцов, чем у любого из описанных выше. Более того, сильно увеличенная длина морды дает вместе с этим очень отличающийся внешний вид, особенно при взгляде анфас. Таким образом, новые образцы демонстрируют в принципе большее сходство с O. ammonиз Гималаев (или Ovishodgsoni, как он сейчас определяется, насколько я знаю), чем с какими-либо другими формами. И можно сказать, что у O. brookeiрога не только более изящные, но также и более крупные, и ребристые, чем даже рога их крупных близких сородичей. Длина ряда молярных зубов также намного превышает эту величину у O. vignei. Сэр Виктор Брук, который сейчас посещает крупнейшие музеи Европейского континента, сможет, нужно надеяться, по возвращении в Англию предоставить нам дальнейшую информацию по видам Ovis. Конечно же, я могу здесь отметить, что предложил название Ovisbrookeiиз уважения к выдающимся усилиям, приложенным этим джентльменом, который сейчас готовит монографию по баранам, иллюстрированную Вольфом (Mr. Wolf). Голова этого нового барана была добыта Сэром Моррисоном Барлоу (SirMorrisonBarlow) несколько лет назад в Лехе, Ладак (Leh, Ladak). Она была затем передана другу, от которого пару лет назад перешла в мое владение. Г-н Блит (Mr. Blyth), который был очень большим авторитетом по баранам, очень хотел описать этот образец, но я предпочел отложить это описание до того времени, когда удастся получить головы упомянутых выше видов баранов для сравнения. Надеюсь, в скором времени смогу предоставить дополнительные материалы в поддержку этого нового вида. Врез: Современные данные о баране Брукея Аргали тибетский – Ovisammonhodgsoni(brookei, biythi, adametzi, dalai-lamae) Надкласс ·Четвероногие - Tetrapoda, Класс ·Млекопитающие - Mammalia Отряд ·Парнокопытные - Artiodactyla Подотряд ·Жвачные - Ruminantia Надсемейство ·Антилопы, ·быки, ·козы. ·овцы - Bovoidea Cемейство ·Полорогие - Bovidae Подсемейство ·Козьи, или ·Козлы и ·Бараны - Caprinae Род Горные ·бараны - Ovis Назван в честь британского натуралиста Брайана Х. Ходжсона (1800-1894). Выделяют ряд подвидов: ammonoides(Гималаи), bambhera(Непал), blythi(Тибет), brookei(Ладак), henrii(Тибет), а hodgsoni(Тибет-Непал границы). Высота самца в холке 43-46 дюймов (109-132 см), вес 200-220 фунтов (90-100 кг), иногда больше. Крупный архар. Рога менее массивны, чем у алтайского или гобийского аргали. Они образуют более плотную спираль и, как правило, меньше, чем полный завиток. Концы, как правило, обколоты, поверхностные морщины расположены близко друг к другу, и только умеренно выпуклые, лобные края закруглены. Самые длинные рога были добыты в Ладаке (55 ¼ дюйма, или 140,3 см), они имели самую крупную базу – 19 ¾ дюйма, или 50,2 см (RowlandWard, 1898). Зимой шкура сверху серовато-коричневая, на горле, груди, крестце, нижних конечностях и внутри ног – белая. Существует темная полоса внизу по передней части ноги. Голова коричневая с белой мордой. Самцы имеют воротник из длинных белых волос на шее и горле, и темный гребень на задней части шеи. У самок короткая и темная шерсть на горле. Места обитания – плато на высоте 12000-15000 футов (3,600-4,600 м). Распространен очень широко – Ладак (северная Индия), Северный Непал, Северный Сикким (Индия), возможно, есть в северном Бутане, на большей части Тибета, в северо-западном Сычуане (Китай), на крайнем юго-западе Ганьсу (Китай), в южном Цинхае (Китай), в горах Кунь Лунь и Бурхан Будай. Состояние популяции оценивается как угрожаемое. Численность распределяется следующим образом: 400 (1987), 180 (1976, Ладак), 175 (1898, Тибет),занесен в Приложение I СИТЕС (1975).    Врез к фото Сэр Виктор Александр Брук, 3-й баронет (5 января 1843 - 27 ноября 1891), был англо-ирландским натуралистом и охотником. Родился он в семье сэра Артура Брука на севере Ирландии, унаследовал его титул и владения Колбрук в 1854 году. Учился в Харроу, регулярно выезжал за границу, будучи страстным охотником на крупного зверя. Его большая работа, посвященная африканским и другим антилопам, осталась незаконченной в связи со смертью. Брук умер от пневмонии в ноябре 1891 года в возрасте 48 лет в По, во Франции, где проживал со своей супругой Алисой Софией и шестью детьми.     

Hussein Golabchi is the man, the legend, who has several world record trophies of the “celestial king” - Marco Polo. Yuri Morozov, the member of the Board of Trustees of the CMH interviewed Hussein Golabchi, who is known among the hunters as Sudi. It happened during the GRAND SLAM CLUB / OVIS Show which took place from 29 to 31 of January in Reno (USA).   Quotes: Hussein Golabchi is better known by his nickname Sudi. Sudi Golabchi was born in Iran but immigrated to USA when he was young. He is the owner of the successful and profitable Golmar Construction and Development Co. Sudi began to hunt when he was 16 years old. He has hunted so many sheep at that time that don't remember the number. In 1980 he became the US citizen and was keen in trophy hunting. That date was the beginning of his trophy hunter career. He traveled and hunted all over the world and including his motherland Iran. He got about 50 sheep species and more than 30 ibexes. There were about 25 subspecies of ibexes and 35 sheep subspecies. In 1990 he felt in love with hunting for Marco Polo in Tajikistan. That’s why he visited the Pamir mountains more than two dozen times. He is the owner of more than a dozen world record trophies of Marco Polo. He took an active part in the education programs for young people about wildlife conservation in his home state Georgia. He also established the Museum of hunting trophies where you can see about 400 samples of wild animals from all over the world, which are presented by 220 different species. He often gives lectures and conducts seminars for the young people there. Sudi takes in active part in the programs of GSCO and SCI, aimed to update the trophies classification. He is the head of the Iran Trophy Committee.   Yuri Morozov: The first question is very traditional for the hunter. When did you start to hunt and why did you keen? Hussein Golabchi: I started to hunt at a young age. I admired the wild nature. My family had a summer house in the Iran mountains. Where we spent summer and there, I used to hunt pigeons with a slingshot. There were several cases when I missed and broke the windows and was punished by my Dad. My father was against of hunting that’s why I couldn’t buy the gun even I was fourteen. But the friend of mine had the rifle of 22 caliber and we hunted together. I was sixteen when got my first sheep. And took several more before graduated the school. They all were shot by that 22-caliber rifle. After leaving the school my Dad send me to USA to get the high education. There at last, I bought 2 used guns, 50 dollars for both: the carbine and the shotgun. But I had to study and didn’t have time and money to hunt. On Sundays my friends and I drove to the south of Chicago, where the junkyards were located and shot foxes and rabbits. Once in Tennessee I hunted the boar. Then I graduated the University and married (I met my wife when I studies, she was from Germany). We both moved back to Iran. Y.M.: Did you start to hunt seriously when came home? H.G.: Yes, I did. I earned money and could buy the gun. It was the shotgun and the Winchester 300 WM. I hunted a lot. But I didn’t think about trophy hunting at all, we did it for pleasure and could shoot 3 or 4 sheep in one time. I’m not proud of it. They were my mistakes of youth. I have many sheep trophies on my account and other animals too. In 1979, there was a revolution in Iran. The Shah had left and Hommein came into power. I did not support the new politics. We left Iran and settled in Georgia (USA), where I opened my own business and started building. Business was blooming and starting from 1982 I was seriously interested in trophy hunting. In 80s I got many sheep trophies in Mongolia, Iran and other countries. It was not possible to hunt in the Soviet Union at that time yet. But then the countries of ex USSR opened for hunting. Do you know Louis Zimmen? He was the owner of SafariOutfitters. We were friends and he booked all my hunting trips. When it became possible to visit to USSR, I was worried if the borders were closed soon once again. I told Louis that wanted to hunt all animals habituated there because was not sure that there would be such unique opportunity once again. He did what I asked and I went to hunt there for three months. I had been in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Siberia. I even flew to Palana where hunted for the snow sheep and got the trophy of Kamchatka moose. Y.M.: Do you prefer mountain hunting? H.G.: Of course not. I visited Africa for about thirty times. Each year I fly there for 5-6 times. But now I am exclusively engaged in trophy hunting. Y.M.: How many sheep and ibex’s subspecies have you in your collection? H.G.: 46 sheep and 34 or 35 ibexes. Y.M.: What hunt do you remember most of all? Is there any hunting trip which differs from others? H.G.: I think .. It's Pamir. I dreamed about that trip for many years. I flew there in 1991 when the borders opened. My guide was Sergey Kondratov. We both arrived to Dushanbe. Then we had to fly by chopper to our camp on Balankike. I didn’t know Yuri Matison at that time yet. So, we arrived to Dushanbe and the locals said us that weather was non-flying. I spent six days there waiting for weather. Nikolay Karakul, the representative of the local outfitter came to the hotel each morning and informed us that weather was bad. At last I couldn't stand and told him that I didn’t fly anywhere. There were just four days left and it was unclear if I could to hunt or not. I had other plans in four day and was going to fly to Turkey for the Caspian urial. There was a chance to miss that hunt too if weather in the mountains was bad on the way back. On the six-day Nikolay came to the hotel and asked me to pack the luggage. I didn’t refuse. Then he said: “Just trust me, we’ve discussed everything with Yuri. First day you’ ‘ll get the Marco Polo, on the next day you hunt for the ibex and on the third day I’ll deliver you to Dushanbe”. I agreed though was not sure. I had doubts concerning weather when we’ll fly back. But Nikolay had the only reply to all my doubts: “Everything will be ok! Just just us”. We arrived to the camp and I met Yuri and Mansur. Yuri advised to stay first day in the camp to adapt to the altitude. Next day he and Mansur left the camp at 5mp to examine the surroundings and I stayed and went to hike around. They both came back in the evening and notified me to be ready in early morning. We went hunting before the sunrise. Soon we detected the group of sheep and tried to approach but Yuri didn’t allow us to shoot because the animals didn’t have the trophy size. I doubted if we had time to find other ones. I shot and wounded the male. It couldn't run but I couldn’t see it and thought that lost the trophy. Suddenly I felt bad and fell down the snow. Yuri followed the wounded sheep and came back in 10 minutes. It laid in 50 meters from us. Yuri helped me to stand up and we went to the trophy. I was so happy! The trophy’s horns were just 49 inches (124,5 cm). We began to skin the sheep when I noticed that Yuri stared at the one point. He noticed the group of ibexes and suggested to approach them next day. I felt uneasy because was not sure that could overcome such distance. And tried to refuse. Yuri agreed easily. “Ok, we won’t go anywhere”. It was getting dark. The guides were still busy with the skin and suggested me to go to the camp alone. It looked as if it was close. I was descending and oriented by the river but soon I understood that got lost. I was really scared. It was my first time on Pamir, I saw the wolf's and snow leopard's tracks not far. That was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. At last I found the way and came to the camp. Yuri came much later. Next morning in the darkness we went for hunting once again. I didn’t understand where we were going. But it was a long way. It seemed to me that I knew that area. As you guess, we’ve came to the place where we saw ibexes yesterday. And I got my Ibex. It was a very nice trophy with really good skin and horns. We buried it in the snow and went back to the camp. Next day I had to fly back to Dushanbe. In the morning I woke up and looked up the sky. It was overcast. But I packed everything and prepared to wait the chopper. Snow began at noon. There was not stable radio connection with Dushanbe at that time and we couldn’t communicate well with the staff who stayed in the town. I was thinking to myself: "If I see Kolya, I'll skin him!" But suddenly at 1pm I heard a noise. And ran out the tent. I heard the chopper but it was impossible to see anything. At last the wonder machine appeared. The pilot of the chopper was Sasha, a high-class professional, and we became friends later. He asked us to load the bags as soon as possible and so we did. Next hour we flew very low above the ground, not higher than 100 meters and oriented by the river. There was a terrible snowfall. But just we left the mountains we saw the shining sun. Later I asked Sasha and Kolya, how did they manage to do it? Kolya told me that they asked for the flight application to another place but changed the route after takeoff. He repeated again and again: “I promised to pick you up in time!” I’ll never forget this hunt. I became friends with all those guys in two days and started to fly to them each year. A couple of times I visited them three times in a year. Y.M.: How many times have you been in Tajikistan? H.G.: I don’t know exactly but more than thirty times. Telling the truth, last years I arrive back home without the trophy. I don't want to shoot the trophy which I have already had. For example, I visited Tajikistan three times to get the last Marco Polo. Yuri found that male in April and wrote me. We are friends and our families are close. We often meet each other. I arrived to him in November after he told me about the sheep and spent 5 days there but not successful. The next time was in March but there was too much snow in the mountains. We loaded the snowmobile in the back of the car and drove. We tried to drive as far as we could, then got out the snowmobile. Yuri and I were the first. We drove about two km when Yuri detected the animals and stopped. The idea was to approach close. We drove one more km and Yuri began to look through the binocular and said: “They went to Afghanistan!” I think, they heard the noise of snowmobile. Thus I had to fly there for third time. And we found that male. Y.M.: What was its size? H.G.: 72 inches (182,9 cm) My first good trophy had 60 inches horns, the next one had 66 inches. It won the first prize by the SCI system. Three years later I got the argali with horn 68 inches. In two more years, I took the trophy - 70 inches. My last one is 72 inches. Y.M.: How old was it? H.G.: Eleven and a half years old. I didn’t hunt Marco Polo sheep which were older than 12 years old. The animals at that age are not in the best form. The usual age is 9-10 years old. Y.M.: Are you going to fly back to Tajikistan? H.G.: Or course! I hadn’t been there last year because of the operation. And hope to do it in the March. I’m not sure that will hunt there but want to breathe that air and to feel the atmosphere of the Pamir mountains. Moreover, I’m going to fly there in November. It’s hardly believed that everything had started with bad weather and the sheep with 49 inches horns! I was so proud because that trophy was in the record Books! I made a full-length effigy because was very proud. I didn’t know at that time what be next. Y.M.: Very interesting story. Thank you. Will you give recommendations for the mountain hunters? What medicine to use from the mountain sickness? H.G.: When I flew to Pamir first time, I had Diamox and other pills. But I didn’t need them when I arrived there next times. The doctors say that it’s possible to be used to the mountains and when you arrive to the same conditions next time your body activates the mountains regime. It’s much easier next time. Your mind remembers what’s going on with the body in the mountains. I don't use any additional pills now. Y.M.: What are your common recommendations? H.G.: There are two of them. You have to control yourself in the mountains- to control your finger. You will never get the worthy trophy if you shoot the first animal you notice. Lay your finger to the trigger when you see the animal and control it. It’s very important. The second one is to treat serious to the mountains. There were several times when I arrived to Tajikistan just for the preliminary scout of the area. Once Yuri, Mansur, the son of Yuri, four other ibex hunters from Switzerland and I arrived to the mountains by the helicopter. Weather was fine and we set the mobile camp and spent 6 days there. All that time Yuri tried to contact the group of Austrian hunters who hunted near another camp. At last he called to Dushanbe (fortunately we had satellite phones) and ordered a chopper for us. On the way back we landed in Balankik to take the Austrians. We just landed when interpreters ran to Yuri and began to explain him something. One of the hunters died as we knew later. There was a rope bridge over the river. The hunter wanted to cross it running and fell down. They found the body in two km downstream. It laid six days in the camp wrapped in the carpet. We flew back to Dushanbe and Yuri informed the Austrian Embassy about that tragedy. They organized the special flight to take the body. Mountains are the serious matter. Life and death are close there. But if you realize it they turn to be the most desirable gift from our destiny. Y.M.: Thank you very much for this interview once again.

Equipment recommendations Shooting in the mountains has the specificity which depends on many facts; the subject of the hunt, shooting distance, altitude, temperature, an angle of the shot and the wind direction, shooting position, tiredness, adrenaline level and others.  The value of the shot in the mountains is higher and the requirements to the shooting complex and equipment grow in proportion. Here we publish recommendations of our Club member, based on the experience of planning and participation in the mountain hunting expeditions. Shooting complex 1. The hunting carbine Calibers from 300 ot 338 These calibers allow to shot for long distances and to keep enough energy to hit the animal. The main types of 300 caliber cartridges are: 300 Winchester Magnum, 300 Winchester Short Magnum, 300 Weatherby Magnum, 300 Savage, 300 Ruger Compact Magnum, 300 Remington Ultra Magnum, 300 Remington SA Ultra Mag, 300 H&H Magnum. They allow you to shoot to 800 m distance. The caliber 338 Lapua Magnum makes possible to fire to 1000 m and more.   The hunter should be guided by the optimality principle when choosing the weapon among the wide range of the gunsmiths. Usually, it’s not the semi- automatically guns with the barrel accuracy to 0,5 minutes of arc., what means 1,5 cm error on 100m. It's not difficult to account that if you shoot to 800 m the ballistic tolerance will be 12 cm, within the size of the animal. It would be too easy if it is the only factor influenced the shooting accuracy. The weight of the rifles in 338 WM и 338 LM caliber together with other equipment is about 10 kg and more. They are heavy enough even for the experienced and trained hunter. The weapon of 300 calibers is lighter. There are several Ultralights variants, seem weightless in comparison with others. But shooting from such guns has specificity. It’s harder to aim with these rifles. We all know that hard barrel is more stable when you are aiming. The recoil of the light weight gun is very tangible. It's not a problem fro the experienced hunters but can make more difficult to aim and to shoot for the beginner.   Usually hunters use caliber 243 when hunting for chamois but we can claim that different variants of 300th calibers , are the most optimal ones, by bullet's weight, energy they keep to hit the animal and the shooting distance. We talked about such guns as Orsis, Blazer, Sako, Heckler-Koch, Remington but there are lots of them. Heavier 338 caliber rifles include: HS Precision, Accuracy AW, Barrett and others.  They are the complete sniper's weapon, the best from its class. 2. The gun sight It's better to use the tactic sights, allow to make vertical and horizontal corrections. It has to have variable multiplicity to optimize the target acquisition and shooting for different distances. We consider Schmidt&Bender, NightForce, Carl Zeiss sights to be the best variants. The sights made by the Dedal company are the best among the domestic producers. The maximum multiplicity is 25 times. The sights of greater multiplicity are for sports. It's hard to shoot for the running aim and these sights are heavier what is critical for the mountains. One more factor you need to pay attention when choosing the sight is its metric measures.   Some people use to work in cm, others in MOA, the main thing is to calculate right. Mil-Dot net with the transparent dots is the optimal variant. The dots can close the target when you aim for a long distance. It’s not comfortable.   Moreover, that net allows to shoot with an extension. Few words about thermal imaging and night sights.  Nobody shoot at night in the mountains. The most of mountain hunters will agree with these words.   It has not sense to waste money buying the expensive tools. I assure you with 99% guarantee that you won't need them at all. Some of domestic companies did a great progress in the thermal imaging systems production during the last time. The equipment produced by the Dedal, IWT, Infrtech companies and the ARCHER company from Ukraine, can help on the distances from 200 to 800 m. But its the expensive and not necessary accessories for the mountain hunting. 3. Ammunition Taking into account that the hunter has to be ready to shoot for 300 meters and more, the ammunition has to have good ballistic as Scenar. Don't use different types of ammunition. Test one type of ammunition to different distances and calculate the ballistic tables beforehand. The different types will fly different and it could mess shooting and make it unpredictable. 4. The binocular It's better to have the binocular, combined with the rangefinder. It’s the optimal combination or you’ll need to have both tools. The Leica binocular with the multiplicity of 10 with the ballistic calculator allows to get all necessary data for shooting: the distance, the shooting angle, pressure and temperature. 5. Scopes Wild mountain ungulates have sharp eye, they behave very carefully and it's really difficult to discover them on the mountain landscape. The hunters can hike to 20km per day looking for the trophy. It’s important not only to find the animal but to define its gender and to estimate its trophy characteristics. There are serious penalties for shooting young males in several countries. The scopes with the multiplicity from 25 to 50 times are used for estimation of the trophy. Such companies as Leica, Swarovski, Carl Zeiss present the wide variety of products. All of them have high quality light optic but you need to remember about its when you choose the define model. The scope set includes the tripod and the pan head for it. We recommend to use the heads, produced by the Manfrotto324CR2 company. It's important to fix the scope position while working with the high multiplicity tools and that kind of the head does it well. Follow the compactness, reliability and durability principals when choosing the tripod. The flimsy one quakes in the wind and the picture won't be clear. It makes the work with the optic more difficult. The alternative variant is to use the 25x rifle sight or camera with 30x zoom. The sight, which has less then 25x times, don’t give the clear picture of the trophy when it’s far. 5. Casio Protrek wrist watch It's made in a light and reliable housing, powers by solar power and provides all information for shooting. 6. Meteostation For measuring wind speed and direction. The best samples are produced by Kestrel company. If you shoot to 300 meters you don’t need to pay attention to the wind but it's a mistake to ignore the wind direction if you shoot for long distances. The miss will be the result of such neglect. Everybody, who shoot in the mountains, knows how difficult it is to define the wind destination and the bullet trajectory. The wind in the gorger can change to 180 degrees. 7. Ballistic calculator It can be made on different platforms and mobiles, as for example Getac p535f.  The main principle is waterproof and easy to use. My recommendation is to use the shock-proof SLXTreme case for IPhone 5S. You’ll get the good quality camera, navigation system, and ballistic calculator and a phone.   The ballistic program, created by the snipers from the Special purpose center of the FSB of Russia, can be loaded to the Windows mobile 6.1, IPhone and Android. You can find it in the special section on our site. 8. Ballistic tables We suggest you to calculate the ballistic tables by the main distances and altitudes, for 1500, 2500, 3500, 4500 meters and for the distances from 100 to 800 meters with the lag not less than 25 meters. It's comfortable to print it and take with you for hunting. Don't forget to pack in into waterproof cover. Some hunters have done on the metallized self-adhesive base and fixed it on the gun. Thus, you’ll always have a hint by the main shooting distances. 9. Covers on the optics These indispensable accessories belong to the shooting complex.  The covers on the optics and for the gun’s barrel are the important element for the gun's transportation.   The cargo frame allows to fix and to carry the mountain rifle while hiking . Platform T11, we consider to be one of the best samples, produced by the domestic company Group 99. It is a necessary and important detail for the convenience of carrying a shooting complex. 10. Mountain bipods The carbine has to be completed by the mountain (long) bipods (Harris, CALDWELL). They allow to shoot at different angles from different shooting position. It’s no matter if the hunter seats or lays. Based on my own experience, I recommend all beginners to add this kind of shooting to their training course.   The short bipods are not useful in the mountains. The possibility to get a scar between the eyes from the sight when you use the short bipods is very high when you shoot at the high angle. It happens because of the short distance between the bipod and the hunter. The common mistake is to hit the obstacle in the way of the bullet's departure when you shoot using the short bipods. It seems that you can shoot but the bullets enters to the stone or grass, located just under the barrel . Be careful when you shoot. 11. Gun cleaner It’s obligatory to have cleaning rod, rags and oil to clean your gun. Anything can happen. But the widespread phenomenon when snow gets in the barrel. Keep it safe. 12. Moderator Sometimes the hunters use the moderator (a flame suppressor or silencer). It allows to mute and to disperse the sound of a gunshot. But its’ not possible to make it absolutely mute because of the supersonic ammunition. The usage of the moderator changes the barrel ballistic. The bullets flies in 15-20 cm lower then you have tested without it. The horizontal deviation can take place too. You’ll need to change all calculation tables. Don’t hope that the moderator will make your shot inaudible for animals. It’ll mask it a little bit while the rapid spread of the sound from the shot without teh moderator is the a factor in reducing anxiety.   You also need to know that the carabine has to be tested once again, each time you take off and fix the moderator. 13. Military sniper complexes Few words about tools which are not the obligatory but some of the hunters have. They are the professional Military sniper complexes. The laser rangefinder and optics, produced by the companies Wilcox and Vectronix belong to them. These tools can measure the ultra long distances, define target coordinates, azimuth calculations, and target designation for various systems for hitting enemy targets.  They have a lot of extra devices and calculation algorithms. They are not available on the open market because made for the military purpose. Electronic devices needed for the mountain hunting Technologies never stop and enter to all spheres of our life. Mountain hunting is no exception. There are some recommendations. The most important element is the connection. 1. Two radio stations We advise to use two radio stations with additional accumulators. No one can predict if there is the conditions to charge the accumulator from the generator or a power grid. It's more reliable to use the battery. You can ask beforehand how much you need and to prepare the needed quantity. The local outfitters will use their own radio stations but not always.   The right collaboration during the hunting trip is the keystone to success.2. Satellite phone There are several satellite systems, Iridium and Thuraya are one of them. But it’ll be better if you add all necessary contacts to the contact list beforehand. The active regime of satellite phone is about two days without charging the battery. 3. Satellite tracker The satellite tracker is more adapted for the long-time expeditions. Its active regime depends on the settings and can function till 3 months. It’ll send the signal about your position to the center or to the mobile app from time to time You can send sms using this device what makes it even more useful. It would do no harm to mark the important points or to ask for the weather forecast in the region where you hunt. But the most important thing is that you can send the emergency call if something will happen. The main factor which allows to provide assistance in the emergency or even extreme situation, it to send the urgent information about the accident and the correct coordinates. We advise to use waterproof cases, made by the Aquapac или DRUPAK companies, to prevent the satellite trackers from the damage. 4. Mobile satellite station for Internet access It’s significant to stay on top what is going on in the world or in the country. The managers want to know what is going on with their business while they are absent and need to have the possibility to control the process. I recommend to have the mobile satellite station for Internet access for those purpose. The main providers on that market are Iridium, Inmarsat and Thuraya as well.  These companies offer different devices which allow to have the stable Internet access. The speed of those gadgets are not perfect but you can use them for the cases, mentioned above. 5. External batteries and solar panels None of those devices wont’ work without charging. There is not always the possibility to charge in the mountains, in such cases you can use external batteries and solar panels. There are many companies, domestic and foreign, which offer different variants. There is the great variety of batteries from the light rags to the heavy cases. Some of them can be used for the long hours work and you can use them for autonomous lighting too. There is always the possibility to leave heavy luggage in the Base camp. Usually, all equipment is delivered there by car or by chopper. It’s not necessary to take it to the mountains. It's fine to uphold to have and to keep it in the Base camp. 6. Camera All hunters make video or make picture of the taken trophy to fix the result. It's the mandatory ritual one never could escape it. Moreover all Hunting clubs ask for the picture of the hunter with the trophy when you register it. That’s the reason why we need to thing about the equipment reliability. The main priorities when you choose the camera have to be the weight, size, how reliability it is and to have good zoom. I've mentioned the hermetic case for Iphone 5, SLXTreme. It’s known that pictures, made on this phone model has good quality and more important that you can use it as the navigator. Canon SX700 HS with 30 times optical zoom has good reviews as well. It’s not big but makes good quality pictures and you can take a long-range shot. It helps to defines the trophy guality. Garmin produces navigators with a built-in camera. 7. Navigators They are the obligatory accessories for each hunter. Navigators solve a complex of navigation tasks, help to search to fix the position and events that occur with the hunter. You need to know the correct coordinates of the camp, the place where the trophy has been taken and others. The existed models are quite energy intensive and need extra batteries. 8. Electronic book, on the Nook platform Weather in the mountains is unpredictable and can change quite often. There were situations when it was rain with storm wind and fog for several days. All hunters try to kill time in such moments. We know one gadget which can help you. It's the electronic book, on the Nook platform. It has a large amount of memory and low power consumption. You can load the needed number of book before the trip and to pass the time reading if necessary.The necessary equipment and the clothe for the mountain hunting. 1. Roomy bag The first essentials from the list is the roomy bag. It has to be waterproof and to keep everything in safe. As the Tatonka Barell L bag or other bags, produced by Beretta. 2. Backpack The backpack is also one of the most important things from the must have equipment. More details. A huge variety of different backpacks for tourists are produced but not all of them fit for the mountain hunter. The experienced hunter has several backpacks for different purpose and conditions. Some hunters differentiate them by volume; 20-30-40L, the other ones by the purpose; for one, two or more days of hiking. It's no matter. Each backpack has its own destination. One of the main requirements are waterproof and moisture resistance. We trust GoreTex material but advice to have the rain cover as an additional element of protection from moisture. There are several models made from the rubberized materials. Each backpack has to have comfortable straps, to distribute the load evenly.  It's convenient if there is the special bracing to carry the rifle. We all know that it's taugh to carry the carbine on the belt for a long. The gun, secured in a special pocket, balances well and distributes the load evenly. The backpacks, made by the Group 99 company, is a good choice for the mountain hunting. The typical set of things, the hunters take for the long-days hike. They are: A single tent with a vestibule. A sleeping bag Travel mat Extra cloth A bottle of water and food Electronic gadgets from the shooting complex Ammunition 3. A single tent We recommend to have you own single tent. Don't forget to mann the moisture-proof canopy. Otherwise, rain and condensation will create discomfort and get inside. The main criteria is its weight. 4. A sleeping bag The very important element. You need to have rest, to restore forces and to sleep after a long day of hiking. The sleeping bag has to suit to the temperature conditions where you use it. It’s better have several sleeping bags for different temperatures; from -15, -25 to -40 or even -60 degrees. Austrian Carinthia , Holland Arctic and Russian BASK can help you. You need to take the sleeping bag which will meet weather requirements. 5. Travel mat It will protect you when you lay on the ground or snow. They are inflatable, self-inflating or made of polyethylene foam. You need to choose the mat according its heat-insulating properties and a compact configuration. We recommend to use a travel cot when you are in the Base camp. None of the mat can compare with the touristic cot. But it's better to have both because they have different purpose. 6. Individual first aid kit The Group 99 and Transcript NPC companies offer the wide range of individual and group medical kits. They are completed according the potential health problems the man can have but you need to add your own medicine with regards to your body. You should buy broad-spectrum antibiotics, cold remedies, painkillers. Don’t forget about pills which speed up acclimatizing such as Glycine and Aquagen. 7. Boots Your boots belong to the vitally important things you have to have in the mountains. Incorrectly selected shoes cause bruising and calluses. It can also be the reason of the premature hunt termination or even the tragedy. Let me give you few advices how to choose the right ones. The boots have to be specialized for mountains and have Vibram soles. If it has the right firmness, it has excellent grip on any surface. They have to be stiff enough to fix an ankle and to be made by the GoreTex technology, to be waterproof. It’s better buy boots half a size larger to wear warm socks and to keep your thumbs off the toe of your boots when you are descending. Our recommendations are MAMMUT and LOWA shoes. The mountains shoes differ by their wide rubberized stripe, covers their tips and the sides near the soles. It’s not a problem to choose the shoes, produced by leading brands. The seller will inform you about each model features. We advise to use quick-release gaiters for the shoes when hiking on the snow. They will protect you from snow getting inside and help you to stay dry. Probably you’ll need snow shoes and crampons if you hunt on the Pamir or the Tian Shan mountains. But you’ll also need shoes for being in the camp. There are lots of variants and they depend on your choice, snow cover and temperature. That kind of shoes have to be comfortable, don’t fix your foot and easy to dress up and take off quickly. Pay attention to clog CROCS in summer or winter variants. The downy boots on the rubberized soles are good for the low temperature. You can find many offers in the specialized and online shops. 8. Hunting knife Knives for the hunting on the valley can be different sizes but the main criteria for the mountain hunting knife is its size and weight The knife is the mountains is the obligatory thing, the hunters use it for cooking, butchering animal carcasses and other improvised tasks. We don’t advise you to choose the exotic machetes, with Damascus and Bulat. The switchblade knife with the blade 10-12 cm is enough. The ideal variant is multi-tool Leatherman knives. 9. Head lamp You need to have one not matter when you are going to came back. It is extremely difficult to move at night in the mountains. 10. Rope We don't talk about the Alpine rope but just about the rope for any case. The best variant is Paracord bracelets. 11. Sun glasses If you are going to hunt on the height from 3500 masl and more you’ll probably walk on snow. The reflective effect from snow will lead to the eye burn if the eye doesn’t protect by sun glasses.  Thirty minutes is enough to feel pain in the eyes and to get so called mountain or snow blindness -ophthalmia. You have to take all measures and to protect your eyes with glasses with protection from the ultraviolet rays. In an emergency case we recommend to cover your face with the scarf, to close eyes and to leave just small slits for observation. It's better to choose sport glasses or the mountains ones which close eyes from the sides. It’s good if they have cord for fixation. 12. Scarf This accessory came into use from the middle East and became the military symbol, used by warriors from all over the world. The reason is in its functionality. The Arabic scarf can be useful in a hot day or in the frosty night.   The scarfs can be different colors but the most popular ones are red, white or green. You can cover by it your neck, face or head if necessary. 13. Sunscreen for face and lips. 14. Clothes We can say a lot about it. Nowadays none of the hunters use natural cloth such as cotton or lamb skin. Today they were replaced by light, membrane and multifunctional synthetic materials. Five layers principal decides different tasks as warming, moisture removal and protection of the body from external influences of moisture, wind and low temperatures. The thermal underwear, different warmers, GoreTex jackets and clothes which provide windproof and warm effect are the standard choice for the hunter. There is a wide range of different offers from the very popular clothes, produced by the Canadian company Sitka, American 5.11 Tactical to Russian producers as BASK or Group 99.   We recommend to buy pants with the built-in flap covers kneecap opening when not using knee pads. Sometimes you need to fall on knees or even crawl on them and that accessory will help a lot. We recommend the next clothes set: The underwear. It’s better to have not less then 3 sets. You need to choose goods without rough seams which will make you to feel discomfort during the long hiking. The thermal underwear for hiking- two sets. The warm underwear to sleep - 1 set is enough. Multi-functional warm and a light jackets- Polartec, Softshell. Warm Outdoor Padded Puffer Vest Gore Tex membrane jacket Windproof jacket Down jacket Camouflage coverall Poncho-completely hiding the hunter from the rain Clothes set for the camp Warm pants for low temperatures Warm socks - 2 pairs A cap It's better to take not the knitted one because it's easily blown by the wind. Sometimes when it's cold I use two caps. Gloves. One pair is for hiking and one more for low temperatures. 15. Small karemat mat 16. Vials for collecting penomateriala You can take the needed number of vials in the Club of Mountains Hunters. Or you can use the small boxes or bottles with ethanol if you don't any. Russian science will be grateful to you for providing biomaterial from mountain expeditions. 17. Waterproof doc cases, made by the Aquapac company. 18. Extra batteries of all types 19. Individual cutlery set Made by titanium alloy or durable plastic. 20. Duck tape You’ll need it in different situations when setting the camp or reparing something. 21. Set of threads with needles 22. Lighter 23. Chemical or other warmers They will help you to warm hands or feet or to keep comfortable temperature inside the sleeping bag or the tent. This is a quantitative list of equipment and clothes you’ll need to have in the mountain expeditions. You can use these recommendations as you want and follow your own experience as well.

From the editor: We are going to publish the series of interviews with the experienced mountain hunters and the beginners who have just started to hunt in the mountains. Today we suggest you the interview with Vladislav Reznik - the Deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation.   Vitae: Vladislav Reznik was born on May 17th, 1954 in Leningrad. In 1976 he graduated from the biological faculty of Leningrad University, candidate of biological Sciences. He worked as a Junior researcher at the Institute of antibiotics and enzymes for medical purposes, was a Director and performer of tricks at film studios. From 1987 he worked as a chief deputy of the company «Russian video», From 1989 - the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bank  «Russia». At the beginning of 90s he was member of the political Council of the St. Petersburg branch of the movement «Democratic choice». From 1990 to 1995 he was the President of the insurance company “Russia” (Saint-Petersburg). He was included to the management of several insurance companies, banks and join-stocks companies. From 1995 - he is the Chairman of the Board of ROSGOSSTRAKH JSC. In 1999 he headed the Supervisory Board of Russia insurance company. He also served on the boards of Directors of Mosbusinessbank and St. Petersburg oil Bank. In 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 he was elected to the State Duma from the parties “Unity” and “United Russia”. He is the member of the Supreme Council of the “United Russia” party.   “The Magic of the Real Safari”: Vladimir Matusovich, Let’s start from the traditional question. When and how you hunting career has started? Vladislav Reznik: As long as I can remember I interested in hunting. And began to hunt when could do it. My first rifle was the air one, I hunted for birds and squirrels when we lived near Leningrad. My relatives had summer house in a small village not far from the town. I didn’t know the difference between hunting for a game and not game. I tried to skin and to fabricate squirrels but wasnt’ successful in it. My first hunting trophies were thrushes. My friend and I shot them on rowans near Leningrad, in the village Siverskay. My friend's granny cooked them and It was very tasteful! So we tried the fall thrushes from time to time. The famous writer Aksakov highly appreciated their taste. From that time, I began to collect books about hunting and now have a really good library devoted to this theme. The first book, which opened me the world of hunting, was “The hunter's calendar” written by Leonid Sabaneev. The Magazine: What was your first real rifle? V.R.: A single-barreled TOZ rifle. I entered the Hunters Society at 18 years old and bought it. From that time, I used any opportunity to drive to suburban and to hunt there, but usually not far than the Karelian isthmus. Often, I hunted for birds because it was the most available hunt for everybody. At 90s I’ve purchased the rifled weapon and this hinting was much interesting. The Magazine: How do you treat to the weapon? V.R.: I respect it but not fetishizing. My first rifled carbine was “Tiger”, the sniper gun DSR, improved to the civil weapon. I think, it was the unfortunate alteration. But the accuracy of shooting for 300 meters was good enough. I began to hunt for boars and moose in Pskov and Novgorod regions. Few times I tried to hunt for a bear in a den but that gun didn’t suit for such kind of hunting. The bullet came through the body and wounded the animal. The Magazine: Do you collect trophies? V.R.: Till last years I hunted just for food. We always shared the game between the hunters and our friends and I divided all game into edible and non-edible. The first time, I thought to hang the trophy at home was in 2010. I seriously interested in the trophy hunting just in the last years. The Magazine: Did you start from the mountain hunting? V.R.: Not so, I started from Africa, Tanzania. Edward Bendersky introduced me to Yury Morozov and Ludmila Baranova, who organized for me the 21- days hunting trip in 2010. I was impressed by the variety and plenty of game there. There I began to realize what did the trophy hunting is. My first trophy was the Hartebeest. I perfectly remember that trophy but telling the truth, I remember all my shots. I used the rented Blazer 300 WinMag and fired from 250m. The results of that trip were 11 trophies - 10 antelopes and the leopard. I was really scared from it. Three days I sat near the bait. A leopard is a smart animal but mine was the smartest one. It went to the place where the bait was before or after my leaving. And fully understood where I waited for it. Once I came to the blind and found its excrements inside. The animal explained me that he knew where I sat. I sat in 100m from the bait. We had to remove it to 250m from that place after that case. The male came at the early dawn. It was the old cat. Not big, about 50kg. It’s very hot in Selu, where the hunt took place, and all leopard there aren’t big. I shot, but the bullet hit him in the moment he was pulling the bait, and went in 2cm below the heart but punctured a lung. He jumped down, made a circle around the tree, howled and ran away to the Bush. We waited about two hours. It was morning. Somebody gave me the shotgun and out group, which consisted of me, PH and two scouts, followed the wounded animal. We followed the bloody tracks. Each time we saw the bush we throw the stones or sticks there. Suddenly we’d heard the noise. The PH sat down and shot to the bush from his Chezet, cal. 416. The noise became stronger! The PH flipped the shutter but the the cartridge jammed. He shouted: Run away! I ran but understood soon that it was much harder to ran for me then for my companions. I was 56 years old not 29 like my PH. My physical form was much worse in comparison with them. It meant that the leopard catches me first. I stood in time and turned around; the leopard was in 15m from me. I shot a doublet. The leopard disappeared in the grass. The runners stopped and came back to me. We began to look for it and found very quickly. It laid in a thick grass and was dead. I didn't feel nothing except magical happiness, the hunter felt after getting the desired trophy. I realized that avoided the very serious problems. The Magazine: Did you want to visit Africa once again. V.R.: Yes, I did. The second expedition was to Masaland. I’ve got there very interesting endemic species such as gerenuk, and several antelopes. Unfortunately, there weren't tsetse flies and the area, where we hunted, suited for cattle and people. There were several expeditions to the South Africa, which I did after Tanzania. I was interested in hunting for the Big Five. I got it twice. We followed the lion's tracks both times. A lion always stood up and left when heard a human approaching. It can do it several times but at last it grows impatient and it can attack. But you never know when it’ll be. There were elephants. I also followed them by tracks. The same method we used when hunted for rhinos -white and black. The second leopard I took in Zimbabwe and we used dogs when hunted for it. The Magazine: How did you dabble in mountain hunting? V.R.: It started in 2012 when I flew to Mongolia to hunt for the Gobi argali and the ibex. The trip began from hunting for the ibex. I got not bad but not a big trophy though it was old. I prefer to get large trophies but always try to look for the old males who had got out of reproductive age, not younger than 9-10 years old. I shot from the rifleAccuracy InternationalAWM.338 LapuaMagс distance 360 meters. After I hit to its lungs the ibex went about 200 meters more. I have to note that after 2007 I began to interest in the long-distance shooting. For long distances shooting I use the gun, I mention above, created by Malcolm Cooper. It's heavy but allows accurate long-range shooting. I couldn’t take the argali at that time and even didn’t see it during the week while we were hunting. Then we drove to Hangay mountains where I got the Hangay argali. That trip showed me exactly that the best hunt which could ever be was the mountain hunting. It’s more interesting than hunting in Africa even hunting for the Big Five. After Mongolia I visited several countries in Asia. Today I have 23 sheep and 15 ibexes in my collection. 20 sheep are ranked in OVIS classification and 12 ibexes in CAPRA. The Magazine: Did you hunt in Russia? On Kamchatka, for example? V.R.: Yes. Hunting on Kamchatka is amazing. I got Kolyma, Kamchatka and Koryak snow sheep there. Also, I took part in the hunting for moose. I’m impressed how Sergey Kallin organized there everything. The Magazine: What outfitters do you prefer? V.R.: The Stalker company organizes most of mountain hunts for me. Evgeny Kharitonov accompanies me often. He is the professional game-biologist, who has defended his PhD thesis on sheep. The Magazine: Let's talk about highlands… V.R.: Yes, I reached Pamir and the Tian Shan mountains. I shot my Marco Polo on the altitude 4800masl. It’s a really good trophy -63 inches. The Magazine: Is it necessary to be in a good physical shape for such hunts? V.R.: First of all you need to have a great desire to hunt in the mountains. It’ll make you to keep the form. When I began to hunt in the mountains, I lost about 30 kg. My wife jokes: “It’s one of the most expensive fitness”. The Magazine: I want to ask you to share your hunting life hacks you have known during your hunting career. V.R.: I’m not very experienced yet. I use the heavy weapon and always carry it by myself, as the backpack. And use the sight “Schmitt and Bender” 3X20. This classical sniper sight allows to shoot on 700 + meters. The average distance, I shoot, is 550-600 meters. The Magazine: Do you prefer to shoot on the long distances in the mountains? V.R.: I’ll be favor to shoot at 50 meters to be sure. But it's almost possible in the mountains to approach the animal for such a short distance. Moreover, you always have time limits. The closest distance I came to the trophy was 130-140 meters but it was the exclusion. Once in Mexico I came to the bighorn so close and another time in Mongolia, when hunted for the Altai argali. When I talk about shooting for 600-700 meters I mean, that not all hunters like it but I interest in that kind of shooting. The Magazine: What was your longest shot? V.R.: The longest one was 819 meters. It was in Iran. I got the Bezoar Ibex by the one shot. It stood on the rock. First of all I did all calculations, then shot and missed. The bullet was taken down with the wind and the male didn’t understand what had happened. But it helped me to understand what the correction had to be done and I took it by the second shot. The main factor when you shoot at long distances is the wind. The Magazine: Does it mean that the hunter relies on luck more than to the calculation? V.R.: I hunt with the ballistic calculator and the “windblower”. And always take the slope. Not go back and forth again. In recent times I try to shoot on 50 meters further each year. Because I’m not a good walker at the last time. I don’t have joints problem yet but better to be ready… МНС: You need to train to shoot at such distances.… V.R.: Yes, I have to. I have hunting lands in Smolensk region where I've built the “shooting paradise”, as my shooting teacher says. There is a cabin with tables which you can use for shooting from the position of "lying", "sitting". The rolls open the target field for 750m long. There are targets or gongs - for practical shooting on that field. It sounds if you hit it. I train a lot when I arrive there. I always drive there before each hunt and do not less than 30-50 shots. The Magazine: What cartridges do you use? V.R.: 250, gran bullets Scena, made by Lapua. The Magazine: Do you train yourself before hunting? V.R.: I do special exercises with the training mask- the simulation of rarefied air. I do it regularly not only before hunting. I drink diuretics and vitamins for the highlands. It helps to reduce the adaptation period. I don’t eat fat food when being in the mountains. It makes me feel bad and is the stomach ache reason. Fat meal doesn't suit to the highlands. The Magazine: What do you have in your backpack when go to the mountains? V.R.: A bottle of water, an apple and dry fruits- dried apricots, dates. I like it. The Magazine: What you like in the mountains except trophies? V.R.: I just want to tell about it. I love mountains not only because of hunting or impression they make on me. I enjoy meeting with new people, culture, countries. The reality exceeds all expectations often and turns everything upside down. I’ve known Iran from another side and that new knowledge was far from the image created by mass media during the last years. I was astonished by the hospitality and open-mindedness of people who live there. I didn’t see any woman in the veil when I was there. They all were dressed according their Islamic dress code but all smiled and talked to me. Once when we changed a wheel while driving to the hunting lands. It's prohibited to transfer weapon by the domestic airlines and the hunter has to be ready to drive a lot. The owner of service got us coffee and cakes three times! This is an indicator. The Magazine: Vladislav Matusovich, thank you very much for the interview. We know that few month ago you celebrated your 60th anniversary and did a present for yourself. It was the needed number of sheep and ibexes to get the Ovis World Slam, Ovis World Slam Super 20 и Capra World Slam. The editorial team of our magazine congratulates you and wish not to stop.

Sergey Yastrzhembsky considers himself to be the African hunter not the mountain one but his hunting achievements in the mountains hunts are also significant. He got more than 20 ibexes and 12 sheep. That's we mostly talked about mountain hunts.   “The Magic of the Real Safari”: Sergey, what was your way to the mountain hunting. Was it consistent? Sergey Yastrzhembsky: It wasn’t consisted at all! I’m sure the most desperate of mountain hunters choose hunting in Africa or in the mountains or both variants. It happened so that I visited Africa first and fell in love with that continent. It filled me and didn't let any space for the mountain hunting. Only when I got enough African hunting and used all programs, the only trophy which I have to take now is the mountain nyala, I began to interest in the mountain hunting. I took part in the mountain hunts but did it simultaneously. I’ve got about two dozen of ibexes and 12 sheep. I try to pay attention to the mountain hunts now while I’m in a good physical form. “The Real Safari Magazine”: What is the going with the HuntEssentialFishFantastic company. I know you are one of the co-founder of it. Sergey: It still works but we reduced the areal. We've lost several interesting territories in Angola and Mozambique. It happened because of the authority’s decision. Botswana prohibited several kinds of hunts and it’s a pity because hunters visited that country to get the big trophies of elephants. We still have territories when the hunters can take antelopes, but there are not many people who are interested just in those animals. One of the perspective places we have, is the territory, about 14K ha with the altitude to 700mals in the South Africa. It’s the habitat for about 20 species of animals and good hunting conditions. People arrive there for... «Safari»: Do you remember your first mountain hunting? Sergey: Of course, I do. I remember everything. It happened in Kabardino-Balkaria. The wonderful man, the president of Republic Valery Kokov was still alive. I arrived there for a couple days, what happened very rare when you have two days of vacation when working in Kremlin, and was met with the real Caucasian hospitality. The president, his wife and the home Secretary were my hosts. We sat till 2am but the hunting had to start at 4 am. I had no idea what the mountains hunting was and wasn't ready at all. I mean not ready at all. I didn’t have the necessary equipment and wasn’t in a good physical form. The first experience was really tough. I was 43 years old and was in a good physical form thanks to the regular sport training. It saved me. We arrived to the aul, located on the height 2000masl. They treated me like to the distinguished guest and send with the militia major and two lower-ranking officers to accompany me. There were also two guides. We began to climb and alcohol started to come out with the sweat. I was too much extra clothing on. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Were you going to hunt for the tur? Sergey: Later I’d known that we were going to hunt for the Mid-Caucasian tur. But I knew it much later. I didn’t know about three sub species and just walked to get the tur. Telling the truth, I liked that I stood the test. First of all, one of the officers said that he could not go further, then another one and the last was the major who confessed that he couldn’t go anymore. “We are the mountain citizens, - he said, - but not liked that”. I left them some clothes and went on climbing with one of the guides. There on the top, we found the turs. Fortunately, they didn’t see us. It was November and all slopes were covered by ice. The guides went up confidently and hid behind the rock. I stood up, straightened on the slope and felt that could roll down. The fall was high. The only way to reach the guides was to jump and to seize one of the small rocks. It took me time to gather my courage. I did it, caught the rock and crawled to the stone which hid us from the male's group. The guides looked at me and suggested to shoot at the same time with me but I refused. I said that would shoot first and the guide can fire next but after the pause. I took the breath, aimed and pushed the trigger. The tur fell. We stood up and came to it. The tur also stood up and began to move up the mountain but it was seriously wounded. Then the curious thing had happened. It never repeated again. We close came to the male and it attacked us! The guide seizes one of its horn while I caught the another. At first we both were shocked but then there was a fit of hysterical laughter. - We should kill it, - said the guide after laughing. - I know, but how? At last another guide came and took the horn, I held, while I got the carbine and finished the male though it was dangerous. I accounted to three, they pushed it away and I shot. The descent was much harder than the way up. But the guides taught me how to go down using the trekking poles. You need to slide or to run by tack and to lean to the strong stick. The gravity center has to be closer to the slope. You need to sling the pole to another arm when changing the tack. It should always be from the slope side. It’s very effective when descending the icy grass. I felt I lost several kg when we arrived back to the camp. And I made the appropriate conclusions. The first one is to exclude alcohol completely before and during the mountains hunting. The second one is to buy the appropriate equipment for the mountain hunting. I wanted to go on hunting. I'd really liked the moment when had to overcome myself. You feel that you can’t do a step but go on moving and it’s fabulous! “ The Real Safari Magazine”: When did you come to the mountains next time? Sergey: The break wasn’t long. When I had time and wasn’t going to Africa I tried to hunt in the mountains. I visited the North Caucasus several time. I hunted twice in KBR and in Karachay-Cherkessia. I took the trophies of Caucasian chamois and the Caucasian subspecies of the Brown Bear near Sochi. I’ve been in Kyrgyzstan twice where hunted for Marco Polo and the Ibex. There were hunts for the Siberian Ibex in the Altai mountains. I took part in the hunting expeditions for the Kamchatka and Koryak Snow Sheep on Kamchatka. And I gathered the collection of chamois, which includes almost all subspecies excluding two. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What hunting had impressed you most of all? Sergey: I remember two of them. The first one, I've just talked you about and the next one was in Nepal. It was a real adventure. One of the most interesting hunts! First we hunted for the muntjac, then for the Blue sheep (the subspecies which habituated in Nepal). The last trophy was the Himalayan Tahr. That hunt was one of the most difficult one because of the complexity level and the most dramatic. It happened so that my guide wasn’t experienced. He couldn’t differ a male from a female. These animals of both genders have horns. I hadn’t seen those animals before. We crawled on the bellies to the animal and I took it. But it happened to be a female tahr. We were going back to the camp when heard the animal was moving across the loose stones. I detected the tahr was going from the one slope to another. I had no doubt, it was a male. It was difficult to confuse with a female. It was a good size male. I raised the carbine and began to shoot the running aim. I hit its leg by the second and the third shot. The tahr went over its head and fell down. My guide was old (I even thought that he was older than he was. Later I knew that he was younger than me but looked not well) and couldn’t speak English. He gestured that we had to go down. I was tired after the day of walking and slipped when going down. It was enough to fall down like the tahr in a few minutes earlier. There is the technique of braking for such cases. You have to spread your legs, arms and try to catch any obstacle. But I worried about the gun more than for myself and pressed it to the body. The slope was covered by the small bushes of wild rose and I closed the eyes to save them from thorns. The consequences were not so sad if it happened during the day when I wore sunglasses. It was twilight and I put them in the backpack. At some point I opened the eyes and the thorn slashed hard across the left eye… The eyes were full of tears when I stopped. The right one joined the left out of a sense of solidarity. It found the paper napkin and rubbed the right eye. The first thing I saw, when did it, was the tahr. That ill-fated wounded male laid in 20 meters above me. It braked earlier than me. I tried to get but couldn’t do it. Tears were streaming so hard that I couldn’t see optics. I had to wait for the guide. At last he went down and did the next. He took an incredibly dirty handkerchief from the pocket (I could see it even through the tears), put it on my closed eye and breathed on it. I felt the handkerchief became warmer and the lacrimation stopped. The eye dried. Only then I could come to the animal. It took us three hours to go back to the camp. I completely tore the meniscus on his left leg to all my troubles. It hurt me much. The guide broke the stick which I used while walking to the camp We got there in the dead of night. I was devastated but was fully happy at the same time! It took a half of the day to get the male tahr from the gorge and then we went down from the height 4500 meters. I didn't let go of the stick till the plane and then flew to Israel for the operation. The serious mountains hunts are the hard work. I can compare with them just the hunting in the tropical rainforest in Africa. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Do you want to get record trophies or the species composition is enough? Sergey: I’ll lie if say that don’t care the record trophies. I always want to get the record trophy. Not the world record but enough for the medal. But each time when I lose strength in the mountains by inner representations and requirements to the future trophy reduce. There were the situations when I was happy to take the average size trophy and finished the hunt. Not far ago I hunted in the Low Tatras for the rare subspecies of the local chamois. There are only 5-6 licenses for this kind of hunt per a year. In the first day we hiked 8 km but it took us 8 hours and I’m 61 not 43 now. We were going down and to one km up so all the time. We did it in such thick fog that the 50 meters visibility was great. The element of uncertainty was the highest. We didn't see any animals except the only moment when the fog lifted for a couple seconds. I didn’t have time to get ready the carbine when the chamois disappeared. I had two more trips and my family waited for me at home. I was ready to take the any chamois with the minimal trophy size. Next day the weather changed and fog lifted. I saw 14 chamois during 3 hours and could choose the trophy I wanted. Thus, I got the chamois with really good trophy characteristics. I’m going to come there back to hunt the bigger one. I very seldom come back to get the same species or subspecies which I’ve hunted already. I don’t strive to improve the result if I have the trophy which is the good enough. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Where did you go back? Sergey: I hunted for Marco Polo in Kyrgyzstan twice but not because wanted to improve the result. I just liked that hunting. It’s unbelievable beautiful. I hunted two times for the Alpine Chamois. It just happened. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: How do you treat to your weapon: as to piece of art or the working tool? Sergey: I like good hunting arms. And have several carbines for different kind of hunting. But if you ask me about the passion to it, I haven't. I don't collect rifles, not try to buy the new models. It’s not a fetish for me at all. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What special devices do you use in the mountains- the ballistic calculators or meteostation? Sergey: Nothing special. Just shoot. The only thing I use is the rangefinder. To know the distance to the aim. I don't have scope but the outfitter or the guides always have such. I've always asked them about the scope before and now nobody takes offense when I do it. I don't use any kind of the ballistic calculators. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Do you prefer to shoot at short distances? Sergey: I don’t have any complexes before the distances. But I had it before. The more you shoot, you become more confident. I know the ballistic and have studied how to make corrections by eye. I like when need to shoot 300 meters and more. But I don't shoot at ultra-long distances. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: To the conclusion I want to ask you about your secrets of the experienced hunter. Sergey: It’s the ungrateful thing to share the experience because each hunter thinks that he knows everything much better than the others. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: What do you think to be useful for yourself? Sergey: I am convinced of the importance of good physical form. I always give up to drink alcohol in two weeks before the trip. And start to walk not less than an hour a day by the rough terrain with a good pace. It helps a lot. The body remembers what you’ve taught it before. The universal advice- don’t be in a hurry when you are in the mountains. No matter if you go up or descend. Your chance is higher to finish the hunt with a good result. The small backpack is a very useful thing. I always have some snack which are not heavy but help to recover such as chocolate, raisins, dates, dried apricots. I don’t drink much in the mountains. And never take a thermos with tea. The guides usually have and I do a couple of sips if necessary. But I pay extra attention to the thermal underwear. There are lots of brands now. I use the one which the professional climbers use. I won’t tell you the name but I buy it the shops for the climbers and mountain skiers. And don't forget to take the extra one. It's a pleasure to change the underwear to the fresh one when hunting is over. I use the stiff boots which hold the foot well. For fall or winter hunting I take the crampons. They help to move by the icy slope. I'm used to wear special sunglasses with extra sun protection. It’s very important in the highlands. You can buy them on e-bay, but I’ve bought mine in France. Telling the truth, I hate wind in the mountains. It's the feature of my body to catch a cold easily. That's why I always have the cap with a visor and a clasp under the throat. And don't’ forget to close the neck and ears. I prefer the knitted cap. And the scarf. I feel comfortable when the neck is warm. “ The Real Safari Magazine”: Thank you very much for this conversation. Break a leg! Sergey: Thank you!

It was definitely a sheep male. We bended immediately. The male and other animals were very close, just in 100-120 meters from us. From the one side it was good but from the other. The any movement could signal our presence. Zhaisan, led by Alik, racked the bolt and moved down, bending to the ground as low as it was possible. I followed them like shadow. Got the camera and started to make video our approached to the male. The herd, consisted of 35-38 individuals, stood beneath us in 100 m. They all were males and most of them had good trophy qualities. We had not to miss the chance. Zhaisan took the comfortable position and prepared to shoot. Alik chose the worthy male and pointed to it. But suddenly the herd discovered our presence and got moving. Alik shouted to Zhaisan: “The last one! The last one! We heard the shot but the sheep kept running. I tried to follow animals through the camera sight though it was difficult. The sun was setting and shined right to the screen from my back. But I still watched them. Zhaisan missed because didn’t understand what male was the last one and aimed not the right one. The needed ram strayed from the main group but Zhaisan tried to catch the last in the group and it was difficult to do. We understood what had happened and both (Alik and I) shouted before he fired the second time: “The latest!” He shot once again and I noted a fountain of dust from the other side of the sheep. That male differed from the others by its configuration and the luxury horns. It slowed for a moment but then followed the group. The hunter fired the third and the fourth times. But he missed as we could judge by the dusty fountains aside the sheep. You need to remember that the hunter has spent walking more then 7 hours on the exorbitant heights till that moment. He couldn't calm the breath before shooting and had to fire by the running aim. The second obstacle was that he needed to choose the right male among the running ones but the sheep ran very fast. The sheep disappeared behind the ridge. The desired trophy didn’t fall down as we dreamed. But we still had the only and weak hope. Mansur and Alik followed the herd and found some blood. I was right, he hit it by the second shot. It strengthened our hope. We watched the video once again. It confirmed our thoughts. The second bullet hit the sheep, we pointed to. All argali, are known for their endurance. The male was wounded but it ran away. After a shot discussion we decided not to chase it. Moreover, it was getting dark. The sun was setting and soon we wouldn’t see anything. The way back to the car was not so easy as we wanted. We all were tired but Zhaisan and I could hardly go. The most important thing was that we passed the height test and the hunter could even engaged the goal. Telling the truth, we wanted to have the trophy when coming back to the camp but hunting had always its own scenario. Feeling of uncertainty began to hurt our hunter. He was not sure would we find the trophy next day or not? We fell like logs to the beds when arrived to the camp. In an hour we both managed to come to the canteen and ate something. None of us had appetite but it was necessary to eat for restoring power. We were not sick or throwing up in spite of the distance we went at that day on such heights. The only unusual thing, we all did, was that we drank 1 L of tea each. That night didn’t bring us calm. Zhaisan said me later that didn't sleep a wink that night. The real hunters know what must had been going through his mind. I also worried because we did everything, we could but still didn’t get the trophy.   Getting of the wounded sheep. Next day we all got up before the sunrise. At 5 am everybody was ready to go. Yuri and other guides assured Zhaisan to stay in the camp by many reasons. But he wanted to come. The first one was that it was really dangerous to go back to such altitude. The second was that Zhaisan and I were the encumbrance for the guides who are used to work and to hike on the heights. We both agreed and went to see off our guides. They were the angels who could bring good tidings. After their leaving the rest of the staff and we began to discuss the chance to find the wounded male. It was the usual behavior of people who could not influence the situation but hoped for the best. Zhaisan could not find a place. I had to calm him from time to time and assured that everything would be good. According to my experience, I worked in the hunting business for a long time, the wounded sheep had passed away at night. It was seriously damaged. I thought it had the internal bleeding and it had not chance to go far. The only obstacle was to find it first. But the hunters never forget about their natural helpers. I talk about birds - from crows to vultures and other predators. These nature representatives don't give any chance to waste of high-calorie food. They begin to circle over the wounded animal and to wait when it’ll pass away and then landed to feast. It’ obligatory to be in time and not to allow to damage the trophy. Taking into account that we shot in the evening and the guides left the camp before the sunrise, our chances to find the trophy in a right condition was very high. The sun shone the tops of the mountains and then the valley with the lake. Zhaisan and I came to the canteen. I dreamed to drink a cup of hot green tea. Each of us drank about a Liter of water during the night but I prefer tea to water. Tea always make me more active and to warm me up. Everything on the East starts and ends with tea. We did not violate local traditions. It was obligatory to restore the water balance when being in the mountains and we regularly did it. We didn’t notice how we ate bacon and eggs while drinking tea. The first news from our guides arrived. One of the radios stood in the kitchen and we could hear what was going on. We stood and listened to Yuri who coordinated Mansur, Ruslan and Alik. At last he found “our” group of sheep. The night before I told Yuri that our male was different from others in the grey skin color and huge horns. The guides replied that there was not the yesterday’s sheep among the group. We were glad but where was it? The guys lost the bloody track because the animal crossed the wide part of loose stones and it was problematic to find blood there. But Yuri identified a circle where the ram could lie down. They just needed to find it. It was easy to say: There were lots of deep and different size gorges and it could be a real problem. But birds helped them, as the guides told us later. The radio battery had been dead and we knew all details later. The sheep crossed that part with the loose stones and found the place to lay. It couldn't get up and passed away there, then it rolled down to the small gorge where they found it. But they could hardly to find it if the birds didn’t help them. They had already begun to circle above the food and the guides noticed the sign.   The trophy. You could hardly imagine the hunter's face when he saw his trophy. Zhaisan was shining and his jubilation transferred to all of us. The length of the horns was 148 and 149 cm. It was a luxury trophy especially for the debutant in those mountains. Some hunters arrived back several times to get such trophy but he got from the first time on the second hunting day. I guess that guy lives in the harmony with nature and don't make harm that's why our Mother Nature decided to award him. We couldn’t but make the photo session! Thus, we put the trophy on the hill, not far from the lake and did several shots. I tried to make video but it was windy and it hindered a lot. Everybody in the camp congratulated Zhaisan with the trophy. It was time to relax. Zhaisan’s eyes shone all the evening and he thanked all team for that great hunt. Especially that they found the sheep. It's a real disgrace to lose the wounded animal. My hunting principals are to get the animal only if you are going to use it as the trophy, for food or for a medicine. Nobody will eat meat of the Kamchatka brown bear because 90% of all animals are infected with Trichinella. But the hunter can take its skin and skull or to use its gallbladder or fat for medical purpose. Our cook Shot prepared super gala dinner to celebrate the successful end of the hunting. He started to do it after getting news by radio.   The team. It’s time to tell you about Yuri’s team. I can’t say that they work there. They just live by the atmosphere, which they create during the hunting expeditions. There are not identical people on the Earth. We all are different but it’s great because we become stronger when gathere together. It took him many years to create such cohesive team, - said me Yuri. Lots of people left the company. Only men of spirit and real professionals, who loved their jobs, stayed with him. They are far from the families for the most part of the year. How strong do they love their work to sacrifice the proximity of the most loved people - the wife and kids? It's very difficult to explain the families why do they need to work so long and on such heights. A human being doesn’t adapt to live on such altitudes. The best example is the small mountain town Murgab, located further down the road towards Afghanistan. The most widespread diseases among the locals are problems with hearts and lungs. It is difficult for women to give birth there. But Murgab is located on the altitude 3600 masl, its in 400 meters lower than the base camp. I could hardly imagine what did the guides feel during the year they spent in the mountains, because they all were born and lived on the plains. I want to say some words about Yuri, whom I know many years but still don’t know well. He is still a mystery man for me. He doesn’t hurry to undress his soul not to the fist comer not to people whom he knows for a long time. His main feature is his love to hunting and Nature. I noticed it and not once when we talked. I’m not sure that have met people who are in love with mountains, mountain hunting and mountain ungulates more than Matison. Now he is more interested in making pictures of mountains animals than hunting and sometimes it’s more difficult than to shoot for a long distance. You need to come close to make a good photo. Moreover, the photo-hunters have to carry the heavy equipment which is heavier than a gun. Yuri showed me his backpack. Its weight, with the camera, lens and a tripod, was 18 kg. And he has to hike dozens of km by the mountain relief, on the heights more than 4000 masl and haul it with him. But the shots, made by Yuri, can win the Grands Prix of any international show. What may be worth the series of pictures devoted to the snow leopard when it hunts for Marco Polo. He managed to approach the predator, hidden behind the rock, within two meters. None of the camera trap can do it. But Yuri succeeded to make several shots. The most interesting thing was that the sheep could slip away. Yuri went about 50 km per day, crossing the snow passes, from the one camp to another. You needed to see his eyes when he described it. He gave me a quick glance and told: - Just imagine the White Silence! He is also very professional and can manage and control all aspects of that business. We all heard his famous phrase: “The East is a delicate matter! ». It characterizes fully the complexity of local interaction in all spheres. Moreover, he pays attention to charitable activities. I can confirm with all responsibility how hard it is to work for the European on the East. It does him much credit that he hasn’t gave up before the eastern bureaucracy. I’m proud to work with him. Thus we spent that evening with great pleasure. Though we were afraid of consequences of taking alcohol on the altitude but drank a few shots to celebrate the successful hunt. And said several speeches, devoted to our friends. Zhaisan and I are still alive, as you can see! These meetings help to understand each other better and to build new contacts. You can analyze what has happen when the tension is gone. Our guides and Yuri told us about interesting cases from their past. They were very experienced hunters and had lots of stories.   The way back. All good things must come to an end. The last evening was over and we went to sleep. We all needed to have rest before going home. Our old friend Said arrived to the base at night. He said that if we wanted to fly home in time it’d be better to drive to Osh as soon as possible. I woke up at night because somebody knocked to my door. It was strange. I just barely opened my eyes and went to open the door. It was dark and I could hardly recognize Said. He said it was time to leave. Telling the truth, that was the hardest thing which we had to do at that moment. I made myself to move, to pack all luggage, I had, and to load it to the car. The generator didn’t work at night and we did all manipulations, using the headlamps only. But hunters, as the military men, are used to act quickly. It took us just thirty minutes to pack and to load everything. All camp staff went to see us off. And with a warm and kindly shake of the hand, he left them. I’m sure that will never forget that moment. Our Mother Nature presented us her goodbye gift and allowed to look at her beautiful creatures. Three young kok-mok, as the locals called them, crossed the road in front of the car. They were young males about 2-3 years old. The animals almost flew up the slope and stopped that we could admire them. I made several shots of them. On the way back we crossed all border points and drove down to the valley. It was filled by OXYGEN and we could take a deep breath! They were inexpressible feelings when you smelt aromas of mountains vegetation and springs! It always reminds me paradise after the dry and thin air on the height. But that medal has the second side. Your body needs time to adapt to the new conditions. You can feel weakness, headache and even nausea. And if you remember where we have been, on what altitude! I felt consequences the whole week after that trip. Even at home in Vladimir, I tried to understand what was the reason of my discomfort. I was sure that had caught the infection while flew to home. But it didn’t look like virus. I was feeling ache and weakness. But then I noticed that was still drinking lots of liquid and understood what was the reason. That weakness was the result of my being on the 5000 meters above the sea level. I used the veloergometer to train the body and to mobilize the processes which would help me to recover.   Results and conclusions 1. It's better to start training to climb such heights in 2-3 weeks before the trip. 2. The best variant is to adapt 2-3 days in the camp and not to go hunting. Zhaisan and I were well trained before the expedition and it helped us to avoid problems on the altitude. 3. The hunter in the mountains has to be ready to shoot in any moment. The chance to get the worthy trophy can be just once. If you miss it the luck would leave you. I know it from my practice. The highest level of mobilization is the obligatory thing during the trip. I have to note that Zhaisan overcame all difficulties, endured the trials with dignity and managed to gather and to make the accurate shot. This gives him the right to be called the real mountain hunter. Only a few people will be able to pass the test at this height. Thank you very much to Yuri Matison and his team for their support and professional organization of that hunting adventure.