Volodya (the expedition scientist), Amadeus (expedition leader group 3&4) and are in Bishkek and getting things ready. We have retrieved the camp equipment from a container set up in the backyard of the NABU offices, and checked tents, yurts , car equipment, water filters and all the hardware we need to run our camp far up the mountains.
A NABU conference room is now our impromptu office with all the paperwork laid and sorted out on a big table – datasheets, maps, clipboards, etc. We have gone through activities, schedules and procedures, charged the radios and batteries and prepared the GPSs. We have purchased a few electronic and additional items for the medical kit. More equipment is coming with people on group 1 (thank you for hauling it all to Bishkek for us!). Together with our cook Gulya we will go for a serious food shopping trip tomorrow and hopefully two of our spacious 4×4 cars will be enough to take everything back in one go!
Then Thursday evening everything has to be loaded into the truck and taken into the mountains to set up camp 1 for group 1. Once set up, Gulya and Volodya will stay behind and I will come and collect group 1 for your time in the mountains, so get excited!
The weather has been pleasantly sunny and warm, but the temperatures will rise to hot (i.e. above 30 degrees over the next few days). I was told that it’s been a wet summer so far, so please come prepared.
Biosphere Expeditions: blogs from the frontline of wildlife conservation and the fight for a more sustainable planet 