Mongolia's frozen, snow-clad winter landscape is a far cry from the scorched dry pastureland and searing temperatures that characterised this year's difficult summer and autumn. It was a summer that people would rather forget, but winter threatens to be even harsher, particularly for the country's nomadic herdsmen. The summer drought damaged grazing pastures and preparation of hay to feed animals during the winter.
"The Year of the Dragon (2000/01)
brings many difficulties," explains one of the soum (county) governors,
Mr Natsagdorj.
The Dandar household is expecting the winter to be difficult. "The summer was worse than before. The rodents have made the soil loose creating dust storms, the water has dried out and there has been no grass," says Dandar, father of four children. As a single parent, Dandar relies heavily on his relatives who live nearby, and on his eldest daughter, who has left school to care for the younger children.
Under normal circumstances, Dandar would exchange some of his sheep for wheat flour, but he has only a small number of sheep left. The Mongolian Red Cross, with support from the Federation, will be providing a six-month supply of wheat flour to 35,000 people over the winter. This flour is a vital lifeline: it means Dandar can keep his sheep - an important food source for his family over the winter.
As the skies fill with snow, the family brace themselves against the cold weather to bring the cows closer to their gers (felted tents). Although they need the snow to provide them with water for the winter, paradoxically, too much will stop the animals reaching down to the grass. Even if there is no snow, there is little grass for the animals to eat. A small amount of hay has been prepared and they have collected horse dung to mix with grasses to feed to the sheep. Still, they will need to purchase hay which will become increasingly more expensive as the winter progresses.
With only a handful of animals left, Tsoodol and his wife decided to move into the Aimag (town) centre to avoid another harsh winter at the mercy of the elements. "There is no life in the countryside without our animals," he explains sadly, and moving to the Aimag centre seemed a practical and sensible option. Tsoodol's wife is happy to move, but Tsoodol, given the opportunity and more livestock, would head straight back to the Mongolian steppes.
The distribution of Red Cross relief supplies is far from easy in this large country where the very nature of the herders lifestyle is characterised by constant migration in search of fresh pastureland and water for their livestock.
"The next challenge facing the Red Cross is the distribution of emergency assistance to the herders now that winter is well underway. We have to contend with freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall," explained Carl Pilkington of the Danish Red Cross, the Federation's field delegate in Ulan Batar.
The radio is a vital form of communication for the herders and through their weekly radio programme broadcast on Mongolian national radio, the Mongolian Red Cross has been able to update herders on Red Cross distributions. Throughout last winter, the radio was the only link to the outside world for the Mend family who found themselves completely cut off by the snow. As Mr Mend quietly smokes his pipe, he recalls the feeling of isolation that he felt during the long winter, battling to keep his animals alive.
At the mention of a photograph, there is a flurry of activity as the family gather themselves together. They stand tall and proud outside their wooden shelter reminiscent of the days when they were one of the largest herding families in the area. As we leave, the older family members kiss us all on one cheek saying they will kiss us on the other when we return. Our visit symbolises an important form of support that cannot be measured in kilograms. They are happy to welcome us to their home, grateful for the company.
The Mongolian herdsmen are facing another tough winter and spring. With winter well underway, the hope uppermost in people's minds is that the "Year of the Snake" will herald a change of circumstances and a turn for the better for Mongolia.