We pack the entire camp – boats and all – onto camels.
Travel deep into the wilderness for six full days of incredible taimen water.
An entirely unique and amazing fly-fishing experience.
The guides call this place “The Temple”. The river here is extremely isolated and strikingly beautiful. Steep, forested walls frame the boulder filled stream. The high-country river is very well protected and holds ancient taimen that rarely see a fly.
The Headwaters Expedition is about quality, not quantity. We fish meticulously, quietly walk/wading accompanied by a professional guide. There are some enormous fish in these waters. When the river is clear, there are opportunities to site fish for extremely large taimen reaching sixty-inches (1.5m). The trout fishing is generally spectacular.
Guests start at our upper-most ger camp. From this base-camp, we hike or ride into the back-country to reach the headwaters. We have three very comfortable tipi camps located in the headwaters. We start with a few days fishing at the top of the stretch. We then gradually make our way back downstream for several days to access some spectacular water. On the downstream journey, we use rafts to reach fishing water and move our gear to the next tipi camp. Our last night on the river is back at the upper ger camp.
As with all of our trips, anglers may anticipate great meals and the support of a hard working, professional camp staff.
Interacting with traditional Mongolian herders is a very unique part of this angling experience. The few families who live at the gates of the headwaters help us to guard and protect the river. These families provide the camels and horses that support our expedition.
Watching a week’s worth of gear and boats being loaded onto a camel caravan is quite a spectacle.
You must be in very good physical condition to participate in this expedition.
Anglers must be able to hike or ride horses several miles into the back country. Anglers must be accustomed to wilderness conditions. The level of exposure up here is high and weather can easily force trip adjustments. Guests must be able to wade-walk along a river with a rocky bottom. Anglers should be proficient with a two-handed rod (spey or switch) or have a solid double haul to adequately cover the water.
The total number of anglers is limited to four per expedition. We will only consider accommodating six if booking as a group.
Guests often combine a Headwaters Expedition with a Classic Canyon drift-boat trip. By linking both journeys, guests are able to fish for nearly two full weeks exploring a new stretch of river almost every day.
