The Eagle Festival
Hmm, using eagles for hunting? Yeah, you heard it right.
The Kazakh tribe,inhabiting in the west of Mongolia, is known for its unique culture of domesticating eagles and using them for hunting animals like foxes or hares.
The golden eagle festival is organized annually in the first week of october, inUlgii town, Bayan-Ulgii province. The locals dress up in their full geared-traditional costume and ride horses, with their eagles on their shoulder or arms ready to compete.
During the festival, the main competition is among the eagles and their trainers. In order to test their accuracy and agility, several competitions are organized. For instance, challenging eagles to catch a stuffed animal or locate their owners from a distance etc.
A tug of war like competition called "Tulam bulaah" or "Bushkashi" is one of the most entertaining activities of the festival. It is an act of several men on horses fighting over to grab a goatskin. Horseriding and archery are also organized over the course of two days.
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The eagle festival of 2016 was noted as the most historic as the 13 year old girl ,Aisholpan became the first female participant and went onto win the competition. This story was filmed in a documentary called "The Eagle Huntress".
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