Day 3
We emerged from our gers at 7.00am, there was a hard ground frost, and it had been well below freezing during the night. The sky was so clear because there is no light pollution in the Gobi and the constellation was really spectacular.  I know this because I had to find my way to a suitable bush by torchlight.  It was difficult concentrating on what I was doing while waving the torch from side to side to frighten off any stray dogs that may have been lurking nearby. Even that was preferable to the "toilets" provided by the ger owners, two sandpits in a shed where it was only possible to breath early in the morning when the odour was trapped below ice!!
        The chopper arrived very early and the second casualty flown to hospital, we were still not sure of the extent of her injuries, as X rays were needed.
After a breakfast of hard-boiled eggs, bread and coffee we had another assessment of the situation. The camel boss appeared looking totally dejected; we only found out later that our doctor had to give him treatment.  In yesterdays confusion he was kicked in the testicles by one of his own camels!   

Horsemen rounded up the camels and herded them to a point outside the camp where they stood looking at us with that surly expression that almost said, " Go away, and don't mess with us"
The camel handlers had suffered a great loss of face and sat around looking totally crestfallen so we suggested a collection would be appropriate, as they had done their best in a difficult situation.  The money was collected and shared between them by our guide; their spirits were further lifted when Carol took small Polaroid photographs of them.  Mongolians love to have their photograph taken.
The original plan was now in tatters, two people hospitalised in Ulaan Bataar and no camels. We were taken by bus across the steppe to the ger of our guide Ajdia to meet his family, see his herd of horses and see his daughter milking his mares.
         Mongolians are very friendly and hospitable people.  His wife gave us bowls of bitter airag (fermented mares milk) defiantly an acquired taste, and pungent rock hard pretzel type things made of goat's milk curd.  A few of us trek back to our overnight camp for a supper of fatty mutton soup and plate of pearl barley with more fatty mutton. (I always carry a pot of chilli powder and a bottle of Tabasco for such occasions) By 10pm we were in our sleeping bags enjoying a nightcap of Chinggis vodka.

Day 4
I woke up with a craving for a fried egg sandwich but had to settle for a breakfast of semolina, coffee with black bread and jam.  News arrives from Ulaan Bataar; the injured ladies have been discharged from hospital to the Chinggis Khan Hotel and are awaiting an air ambulance to fly them to the American hospital in Beijing.  We continued our trek over the steppe and sand dunes our guide, a superb horseman riding ahead of the group. We realised how vast and remote the country is but it was a little disconcerting to see buzzards and vultures flying overhead.
The evening meal consists mutton and rice so we liven it up with our chilli powder and Tabasco and wash it down with a couple of Mongolian beers.
That night the ground staff attempted to teach us Mongolian songs.

Mongolian Throat music.
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Music.

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Day 2   Day 3 & 4

Day 5& 6