Another of the highlights in the Kazakh area was our visit with a man who hunts with a Golden Eagle. From a distance, we watched as the hunter and his eagle rode toward us.
Eagle hunters use female eagles because they are more aggressive and larger than the males. The female eagles can weigh as much as 15 pounds and can be one third larger than the males. Fledgling eagles are taken from the nest and trained to hunt. After several years the eagle is set free.
The human hunter, Chaimurat, and the 7-year old Golden Eagle named Khirar gave us an impressive demonstration of their hunting skills. One of Chaimurat's friends took Khirar quite far up a hill and waited while a herd of goats moved farther away for their safety. Then, Chaimurat held out the leg of a rabbit and called to Khirar. She flew down and grabbed the bait.
And, then we all had a turn at holding Khirar while she was wearing her hood.
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| I really must dress better and get a different cold-weather hat |
Either Chaimurat invited us to his home or we invited ourselves. Anyway, he rode off into the distance, and we followed.
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| Kulzira, wife of Chaimurat |
Chaimurat played and sang for us. He had a beautiful voice.
Because he was expecting our visit, he and his family had delayed their move to their autumn location. Nomads move their homes and animals three times a year: summer, autumn, and winter, to take advantage of fresh grazing. They moved on the next day.
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| Chaimurat, the eagle hunter, wearing his fox fur coat |
While most eagle hunters are men, several years ago a 13-year old girl named Aishol-pan trained to become an eagle hunter. The excellent movie, The Eagle Huntress, was made about her training and her triumph at the annual Eagle Festival. The movie was filmed in this area of Mongolia and the eagle hunter we visited had a cameo in the film.
This year's Golden Eagle Festival was held Oct 6-8. Chaimurat and his eagle, Khirar, won the competition for an amazing third time.
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