My early adventures abroad were all motivated by my interest and thirst for falconry knowledge. In that way it has clouded my interest in the destinations I have visited, for I am not greatly interested in a country unless it has some falconry history.
As sad as this may seem to those who do not share such a passion, I do offer in my defence the fact that I do have my eyes open to many interesting aspects of the country I visit may have to offer.
My first big adventure was a visit to Lower Austria in 1968. I set off as a young boy to attend my first International falconry meeting organised by the Osterreichischer Falknerorden and held in a market town of Marchegg.
My next big adventure was a really a move. I relocated my life to live in the wonderful countryside of North Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. Here I had more space and freedom of movement than on my native island, and I attended many falconry meetings as well as expeditions to the highlands of Scotland to locate a young Golden Eagle.
As time marched on I began to realise that some of the great men and women I had met were coming to their end and some were slipping away.
I made it a goal to spend more time and to document some of their achievements.
It was with this in mind that prompted me to visit North America and visit a great falconer and conservationist Morlan (Morley) Nelson in Idaho.
Whilst there I met and cemented many friendships with falconers, wildlife biologists, conservationists, and Archivists.
This past decade or so has been the era of cheap travel, now due to the massive rise in the oil price and Government taxes inflicted for carbon emissions, I am pleased I have realised a few of my dreams and more.
In the year 2000 the opportunity came to me to visit the eaglehunters in western Mongolia. I had dreamed of the nomadic Kazakh eaglehunters for most of my life and so I grabbed the chance as a “once in a lifetime experience”.
I enjoyed the experience of riding and flying eagles in the winter landscape of Mongolia so much, I returned time and again.
During my flights to Mongolia I stopped off in Beijing China and used the services of a wonderful guide, Jane Yeo. As a tour guide she is exceptional, and easily earns her fee with her excellent knowledge of the sites visited and her wonderful infectious enthusiasm. If shopping for gifts back home then to have Jane Yeo with you will save big money, she is one of the toughest bargainers I have ever met.
I started to explore many areas of rural China with the help of Jane Yeo. It took a lot of time and patience but eventually I was accepted by the Chinese and have had some wonderful experiences and visited both north and south China.
Next with the help of the internet and a well known travel forum I located a great Kyrgyz guide called Daniyar Abdurahmanov. Between use we arranged for me to visit and spend a week with three Kyrgyz eaglehunters in the Tien Shan mountains.
I hope that I am still able to afford to continue to travel a little more before it becomes prohibitively expensive. |