THERE IS A LAND ... - Mongolia 2008

 

 

THERE IS A LAND ...

Where most of the land does not belong to anybody, where there are practically no roads and the average population density is 1 person per 2 square kilometres (and half of the people live in the capital city). 99% of water is crystal pure and the air is polluted only by periodic fires in the steppes. No wonder this "promised land" is a frequent destination of fishing trips for all those who do not fear the inconvenience of travel and lack of tourist facilities.

This country is -

Mongolia

 

I went to Mongolia for the first time with a group of friends in 2002. We slept in tents and did our own cooking. Despite spartan conditions, we felt very positive and I already new at that time that I would sooner or later go to Mongolia again. I just came back from another trip and in reply to the Editors' invitation, I would like to share my experiences with the readers of Rybolow Elite.

 

This time, I and some friends of mine decided to limit the hardships to minimum and to use what the Czech fishing tourism bureau INGOL ( www.ingol.cz ) had to offer. The agent enticed with nice accommodation, full boarding and assistance of a professional guide on site. I must admit we did not have any objections regarding that. Looking at the photos of huge graylings and taimens at the company's website we expected bigger fish anyway, yet we were satisfied after all.

 

We spent the first part of the trip (4 days) in the far Altai Mountains on the Khovd River connecting the lakes of Chomon and Churgan (2100 m above sea level). The Russian and Chinese borders are very near - it seems enough just to jump across the snow-capped peaks on the horizon.

We fished for graylings and Mongolian osmans, very similar to Nile perches.

The second, two-week part of the trip meant travelling to Tsagaan Urr - a sum a thousand kilometres away and further to the fishing camp on the river Urr. The river is famous for huge taimens which the guests of Ingol caught last year. Some of the fish was more than 150 cm long! Well, our appetite for adventure grew bigger and bigger.

 

From the very start our friends - amateurs of fly fishing - had their eye on the famous -

 

Altai graylings

 

There are four species of grayling in Mongolia: grayling (Thymallus arcticus arcticus - Pallas, 1776), Kosogol (Thymallus arcticus nigrescens, Dorogostaisky, 1923), Amur (Thymallus arcticus grubei - Dybowski, 1869) and Mongolian (Thymallus brevirostris - Kessler, 1879). We were happy to hear that the Khovd river is home to the Mongolian grayling, which is the biggest of all those four there. The books say that it may be up to 70 cm long. A glance at its giant mouth suggests the diet profile of this water bandit. Better take care while pulling the hook out of the caught fish. Sharp teeth, bent backwards, are more like those of a big trout than the small teeth of the European grayling. No wonder the best flies turned out to be streamers. They only had to be hung on an extra heavy line at the very bottom. We were also quick to realize that small wobblers are no worse than the streamers. You only had to use them just like the latter - across the stream. Unfortunately, we were not lucky enough to catch any exceptional specimens. Yet the abundance of fish between 45 to 51 cm in the beautiful and raw scenery of the Altai Mountains brought us plenty of unforgettable experiences. Information on the 70 cm graylings caught in the area was fully confirmed but it looks like those wishing to break the world record in grayling should hurry up a bit. Our Mongolian crew showed us breathtaking pictures. In some of them there were heaps of huge graylings, about 60 to 80 centimetres, and some must have even been around 90 - obviously caught and killed during their spawning. The Mongolians shamelessly invited us to visit them some other time. More or less in half May, when the fish travel to spawn from one lake to another and further, up the river - at that time full of great graylings easy to catch. Of course, it does not mean there is no point in going there. If you are lucky, you can still catch a lad of 70 cm and more. However, the practice of catching and killing spawning fish carried out for a number of years must eventually bring extinction to these treasures of the Mongolian nature.

 

Many legends we heard of the next species of the Mongolian ichtiofauna. It is similar to the Nile perch: big mouth, fat neck and golden and green sides... here is -

 

Osman

 

The full name of this predator is the Altai osman (Oreoleuciscus potanini, Kessler, 1879). It can be found in the deep and clean lakes and rivers of Asia. Searches for osmans in both Homon and Hurgan lakes brought only one medium fish caught with a streamer. Our Mongolian guides did catch two bigger ones (5-6 kg), yet they did it using a dead fish bait. We decided to angle just for sport - only spinning and fly. Searching for a shoal of predator fish in an unknown and very deep lake without an echo sounder and from a small dinghy obviously could not bring any better results. Even a superficial exploration of such large reservoirs takes months of research. Of course, the Mongolians knew only places where the fish gathered before spawning, good in May and not in September. Only on the last day of our stay did we find a way and place to fish for osmans. The fish were gathered in small shoals, in the river, not far from its mouth at the lake. The water was almost still there. Dressed in warm waterproof trousers, you could go far into the stream. Only when the water reached your armpits, you could reach the osmans which swam about extensive plant tussocks growing at the bottom of the Khovd River. We spent several hours having great fun jerking and towing those magnificent strong fishes one after. Several times the tree or four of us had to tow one at the same time! My friends used streamers and myself - wobblers, of course. Most of the osmans was medium size - 50 to 60 cm. The two biggest ones were 75 and 78 cm (and 6 - 7 kg) and I caught them using a small, 6 cm long wobbler. Towing such a bull on a 0.20 mm line is no picnic! We regretted we had not come up with the idea earlier. We could try approach the shoal on the dinghy from the middle of the river. It was about 2 km wide there, so despite our great efforts we practically from the river banks. I am sure if we used the dinghy, we could find really big and cunning fish nearer the middle of the stream. After all, the osmans grow up to 1 metre or even more! It was quite probable large graylings swam about, too.

 

However, we had to put off these plans as on the following day we were to go to the Urr River to look for fish that is the most frequent goal of anglers coming to Mongolia.

The first one, also quite common in the Siberian rivers is -

 

Lenok (Brachmystax Lenok, Pallas, 1773)

 

It is also called the Siberian trout. And actually these two have a little in common as regards body colour: brown and golden, speckled with dark spots and with characteristic pink and claret patches on the sides. However, their mouth is different than that of the trout. Most of trouts' mouth is terminal, while lenoks' - inferior, just like grayling. Also the habits of lenok are more like those of grayling than those of trout. The fish is not so predatory and likes the company of other lenoks. If you find one, you may be sure there are at least a few others of similar size. Those usually caught are 1 to 2 kg. However, literature says that lenoks can reach 80 cm in length and weigh up to 6 kg. We were unlucky to arrive at the Urr River when the water fell after big rains, so we spent the first few days of our stay looking for fish scattered in various places. We found quickly that the lenoks stuck to the quitter places with slower flow or just dead river branches with still water. They could be easily enticed both with fly and wobblers and spinners. In the evenings, we had great fun catching them with dry fly. As the water fell, we had to make more and more effort. Within 10 days the water level fell by about 70 cm. The fish became timid and in the end we had to approach them on our knees! Of course, we did it only in places where the Mongolian "anglers" could take us. With unmatched agility they threw their large spinners with their hands, without the rods! We met a few angling Mongolians aged between 10 and 40. Unfortunately, talking to them about catch&release was way of the mark! During several dinghy trips down the river, organized by our hosts, we found places where the lenoks went mad and could be caught with nearly anything. The reason was obvious - there were much more of them and they were not timid.

 

We remember with particular pleasure the whole-day trio to an inflow of the Urr River - the river Arig. We must admit, however, that our guides knew the Arig River like the back of their hands. They even knew how to throw the fly to get an instant catch. The most efficient in that situation turned to be very heavy nymphs and medium size streamers. Due to the flow being very strong in most places, we had to use very heavy fly lines on nearly all occasions. The picturesque scenery around the river and its crystal water were truly breathtaking!

 

Although lenok angling on the Urr River was not stunning. We would catch a few, up to a dozen fishes per person a day or so. Most often the reason was simple - we used quite big wobblers. All of us dreamt of catching the king of Mongolian rivers, that is undoubtedly -

 

Taimen

 

Taimen (Hucho taimen, Pallas, 1773) is a fishing legend. For many people it is almost a mystic trace of the ancient power of pure Asian nature. The largest species of the salmon family. The literature says its maximum length can reach 160 cm. Many tales, however, claim it can be much bigger. The biggest fairly documented fish was caught in 1943 in the Kotuy River. With 210 cm in length, it weighed 105 kgs! A taimen 178 cm was caught a few years ago in the Khövsgöl Lake. Also quite a lot of fish from 140 to 160 cm has been angled in recent years, yet their number dramatically falls year by year. The official world record in taimen is a fish of 41.95 kg caught in the Keta River in Russia. There are fewer and fewer inaccessible places. You can get everywhere by helicopter. The taimens are long-lived and strong and the biggest ones are hard to catch; yet despite all that and the fact that most of the fishes angled is released, quite a lot of them does not survive strenuous towing and the subsequent photo session. So if you want to catch the "king", you would better hurry with planning your trip.

 

We chose the destination of our trip to be the Urr River because in the recent years the guests of the "Ingol" company have caught several huge fishes there, including two of 152 cm in 2007 only!

However, we were not destined to meet such a monster. Yet, undoubtedly, a taimen of such size can still be caught there. As usual, it is both a matter of both experience and luck. Luck with weather, the level of the river or just fish. The best time, just like with other rivers, is the beginning and the end of the season. We were not that lucky. As I have already mentioned, the water was too high and bit too muddy and the ambient temperature too high (10 to 25^OC). It is best if for longer periods in the morning, after a frosty night, there are sheets of ice at the banks and the water is low and very clean. In spite of the difficulties, our group caught 32 taimens, the biggest of which (caught as a teaser on the very first day) was 123 cm long. Unfortunately, the Urr River is not very good for fly angling. It is simply too big and too quick and at this water level - not legible enough for the angler. That is why we managed to catch only one taimen with a streamer. As we thought, the most efficient were the trout-coloured wobblers. The first and the largest fish was a surprise - caught in the mouth of a small inlet with the sinking wobbler - imitation of a trout only 7 cm long! We caught most taimens with single and jointed 13 cm "trouts". Most taimen hunters know that a great bait for this predator is any imitation of rodents (mice, rats, gophers) led slowly on the surface. This is the best way to angle in the evening. Taimen is the ultimate predator in its surrounding. It will not let go any animal matching the size of its huge jaws. Prey moving on the surface is even more attractive as the fish judges it as easier to catch than fish, for example. It is easy to understand - a mouse swimming on the surface of the river is absolutely helpless confronted with the taimen's jaws full of big sharp teeth. Using this knowledge, I decided to try how the predators will react to the surface lure built to catch pike and the American muskies. It turned out to be a real success! The first taimen was caught in the mouth of an inlet called Ulran, practically in still water. The bait was Salmo Turbo Jack. I wrote about surface lures in the 4/2008 issue of our favourite magazine. Turbo Jack is a prop-bait. Its back part has a propeller whose turns cause a lot of muddle on the surface. In the mouth of the Ulran River the noise was enough to entice two taimens nearly one-metre long within less than 10 minutes! The catches were obviously spectacular and violent. I used the same bait the following day and caught a taimen nearly one-meter long in a wonderful hole below a bridge on the Uur River, destroyed by a flood. In order to get there, I had to cross the river to walk around the ruins of the bridge. The catch was one not to be forgotten for a long time. Already in the second cast, in the very middle of the hole in which the river swirled, a taimen approached the splashing bait. This time the hit was not so fierce. The catch was more like a trout delicately licking a fly. I could see the predator's head silently swallow my bait from the surface. Shortly after the hookset, there obviously came much more noise! What an adventure!

Another great surface lure was Salmo Maas Marauder, also described in the article I mentioned. It is a type of "stickbait" moving on the surface the "walk-the-dog" style. Not far from our camp, there was a straight section of the river, 200-metres long, which the local people call "the black pit". Many taimens are said to live there, including two over 1.5 metre! Do you need any other arguments to try yourself in a place like that? We angled there three times. Evening and night. When I went there for the first time, it was another time I tried Turbo Jack. I had 6 violent strikes, getting you a heart attack if you are sitting in the dark! Yet, I could not set any fish successfully. The next time, after exploring the "black pit" and wasting 3 more catches, I started to think about the reason of my failures. I came up with the idea that maybe the prop-bait, especially that big, in such a still place and in the dark, makes too much noise and the predators give up in the last moment. So I changed the bait immediately to Maas Marauder. It slips on the surface like a snake, leaving in the moonlight a zigzag trace. The decision was right. After another few throws I had one certain, although much quitter and easier "hit". Within a few moments I had a 90 cm taimen on the bank. The next evening, I took my 3 friends with me to that same place. First, they angled with various baits, including fur rat imitation. After my second taimen caught with Maas Marauder, they all changed their bait to this one and did not regret their choice. I managed to catch one more "night bandit" and my friends caught three more - all of them between 90 and 105 cm! Mission complete! Not only did angling with the surface lure turn out to be effective, but also extremely exciting. Before you set out for taimens, equip yourself with prop-baits and stickbaits and try your luck both at night and during the day. Personally, after a few short experiments, I decided to use a 2.8 m rod with a multiply reel. Especially with such heavy baits for a big fish, it is no use sticking to a traditional reel. Using thick braided line on a spinning reel can very quickly be felt really bad on the finger picking the line before the throw.

 

A nice surprise was when during one of the rafting trips down the Urr River we caught a few pikes. In an inconspicuous bay that the Mongolians showed us we caught 6 fishes of 85 to 104 cm within just several minutes! There were a few more, yet they did not catch the slowly retrieved wobblers.

 

Unfortunately

the times when the Mongolians did not hunt or eat fish are gone. They do not have access to good angling equipment, yet they do quite well wheedling various bits and bobs from the anglers they meet. There is also no chance they release the fish or refrain from fishing during spawning. They have always been near the water and can watch it all year round. This is why they can be very dangerous to the fish.

 

However, if you consider the size of the Mongolian rivers, such as the Urr, it will not be easy for them to catch all the fish. The hosts of such fishing camps like Ingol at Urr will have to find new fisheries - more remote from people's homes. They will also have to find a way to cope with the wild and uncontrolled fishing by the local people. If they do not come to understand it, the thriving business can soon wither! Obviously, it is not easy to achieve it - the local people must be made aware that the fish cannot be caught without end. And no fish means no tourists from abroad. Then it will be like in the old days - chasing the tarbagan in the steppe and dull songs over a mug of kumis. But maybe they are not afraid of such a vision? They have lived like that for thousands of years.

 

So, let us hurry up packing our rods and set out for Mongolia to meet the king, before it is gone!

 

Piotr Piskorski

 

To see more pictures click here...