I am just back home from an incredible trip to Qinghai Province with Marie, Tormod Amundsen (Biotope) and Will Soar from the UK’s Rare Bird Alert. Our visit was to support the Chinese NGO, ShanShui, and the local government in developing sustainable ecotourism. We were hosted by, and owe huge thanks to, local yak herders – especially Sen and Chairennima – who welcomed us into their homes and entertained us with stories of Asian Brown Bears breaking into their food stores and Snow Leopards strolling through their back yards.
It was a magnificent trip in so many ways and we have some exciting news to announce very soon.
In the meantime, here is a short video of one of our encounters with SNOW LEOPARD. We were fortunate to enjoy three encounters with Snow Leopards in four days, without any pre-scouting, illustrating just how intact is the ecosystem in this wonderful place. Add in other special mammals and birds, together with the breathtaking scenery and unique Tibetan hospitality, and you have the ingredients for a trip of a lifetime. Stay tuned for some incredible footage by Tormod of this stunningly beautiful and unspoilt part of China and an opportunity to experience it for yourself.
Big respect to Marie, Tormod and Will for being the best travel companions one could wish for.
Almost every yak herder in this area has footage of Snow Leopard on his/her smartphone.. so we now feel part of the club!
Here’s Tormod’s reaction after seeing his first Snow Leopard…
You can read Tormod’s account of the trip, and see his video containing some stunning drone footage of the area, by clicking here.
All Snow Leopard footage taken using an iPhone 6S with Swarovski Optik ATX95 and iPhone adaptor.