Following the unusually hot temperatures, everyone was praying for little bit of rain. Yesterday evening, Novosibirsk got more than it bargained for. It went very dark just after 15:00 and then the skies opened. Hail, torrential downpours, floods, thunder, you name it. Our friend Zenja assures me this is still the driest year on record. Hard to believe from the picture.
This morning was rather busy at the car park. Our Land Rovers attracted lot of attention from a group of New Zealanders driving their vintage MGs from Shanghai to London. I also managed to help out a couple of locals who left their lights on overnight, flattening their car battery. They turned out to be owners of one of the largest sauna enterprises in Gorno Altaisk and invited me and the whole group for bit of pampering.
Jenny kept sending excited text messages about how beautiful the campsite is and how lovely the Altai looks this year. Only two days to go!

Update from our snow leopard conservation expedition to the high mountains of the Altai Republic in Central Asia