These are some of the photos I shot while in Northwest China along the Mongolian/Kazakstan borders. I traveled here to shoot the skiers of the Altai Mountains. It was recently determined that the Altai Mountains of Central Asia was the birthplace of skiing, dating back roughly 3000 years. I traveled to the remote villages around Kanas Lake (60 miles in each way) by horse drawn sleigh. Joining me on the trip was skiers Chris Anthony & Austin Ross as well as camera assistant Colin Witheral and photographer Ilja Herb. It took 2 long days to reach our first sighting of the homemade skis of the local Altai skiers. We spent most our time with a Mongol family "The Bayan Family". They welcomed us into their home and after rushing through their daily chores, they grabbed their skis and lead us into the mountains around their home. The three brothers Batee, Monke and Batur are amazing skiers and live in the most beautiful meadow below some big mountains with fantastic skiing. To visit this area was like traveling back in time to where skiing began, their equipment and lifestyle (minus the solar panel and satellite dish) is as it was 3000 years ago. They live a simple life on a simple ranch where they raise livestock and hunt elk to survive. We all agreed that it was one of the toughest and most rewarding experiences of our lives. We endured some cold days and nights, -25 to -40 and endless horse travel. We were lead into the mountains by a team of local Kazak horsemen who redefine the word TOUGH. The Kazak horses have for centuries been tireless and as rugged as the mountains that surround them, they are a remarkable display of strength and endurance. If not for our translator Akbar and an amazing cook named Obdishgar we would never have made it. The introduced us to the most wonderful, warm hearted welcoming people I have ever met, the Kazak and Mongol people embraced us as family every step of the way. For our crew (each of whom was reduced to jello by they bitter conditions) it was certainly worth every painful, frozen moment and is honestly one of the most memorable assignments of my career.
Chris
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