24th July

Today saw us in the same place, but with an assortment of activities. Sami and I did a run to a town some 30kms away to get some more food and drinks. Sadly I dropped several litres of water and a 6 pack of beer off the back of the bike, which indicated that Tesco delivery man is not what I should be aiming for on my return to home.

When we got back, Dale had the idea of us crossing the river. We grabbed a large climbing rope from his car, and went scouting for a decent place to cross. Eventually we came upon it and I volunteered to go first. Kristian, the climber, tied a few knots in the rope to wrap it around me as a harness. This meant that if the current got me unstuck, they could haul me in, rather than leave me to the waterfalls downstream. It turns out that I was grateful for this moment of genius.

I got a big old stick, and gentle began to make my way across. Moving towards the middle it was noticeable more tricky to make progress. With your body angled against the current and the stick dug in and feet planted, you stood their knowing that if you lifted one food to move just a couple of inches, the current had you. I had a few cracks at it, but  eventually bowed out unsuccessful. The river had conquered me. It was time for Dale to see if he could tame the mighty river. No joy, with hoots and guffawing, we hauled him in a few times too.

While we were being little boys, Aga and Pawel went and scaled a mountain. Gesa sat listened to music and may well have written a track to be performed by her band ‘Munavoi’ when she returns. She (paving the way for everyone else) then got into washing some clothes. Kristian borrowed a copy of ‘The Road to Gobbler’s Knob’, which I had with me, and he could be heard chuckling to himself at various turns of the page. Pauli went and found the head of a dead cow and walked up the hill holding it as though it was a mask. Sufficiently spooked by our mad Finnish friend, Gesa promptly walked away like the boy had leprosy. Minutes later he was trying to de-horn it so that he could mount them on his motorbike! I made a start on my friend Kester Brewin’s fantastic new book ‘Other’, which he presented to me on the day I left London. Aga, who is a hairdresser, then embarked on the tall order of cutting everyone’s hair. I have to say, the Altai mountains are just about the nicest barber shop I’ve ever frequented…and it was free!

That night we ate, lit the fire, and Pawel, Aga and I decided that we’d go and do a little bit of moto-cross. The terrain all around us was perfect for it, with steep slopes, sand dunes, small streams, and various other kinds of terrain. We took off and played for about an hour, during which Aga, who had only got her test in December, was given a few lessons in preparation for Mongolia. Pawel was constantly telling me that my bike was too heavy and their little Yamaha’s were much better for this kind of trip. That was like a red rag to a bull, so when we got back, Tuomas described the session as like watching a ‘pissing contest’.

time to get up...

eating and relaxing

the heavies

dale and mal with kristian's help

local laundrette

Sami finds another use for Wolfmann panniers as he too does his dirties

you seriously want to cut my hair? let's see you do his first!

who's a happy boy then?

ok, if you can make me as happy as him

and another

studio altai

Pauli's best centaur impression, nuanced by the fact that it's a cow's head

now he's getting horny

the Altai library

and again

caught in the act

and the fun...

a future olympic sport?

he'll never do it!

deeper

goosed

and no I don't. scrambling out after being swept away. let's hope Mongolian river crossings are easier!

while we were at that, Pawel and Aga scaled the mountain above his head. This is their return

and the fun just doesn't stop

playful

Pauli kitting me out with some of his knee protectors

back at the fire, drying ourselves and our boots