Hunting with dogs, yes — even hunting with hawks and falcons. But hunting with the largest bird of prey in the world?

How is it possible to train a powerful raptor with a wingspan of up to seven feet and a reputation as the shark of the skies?

Can ruthless hunters with talons that can break a man’s arm possibly be taught to work in harness with a
handler?

They certainly can. The ancient sport of hunting with golden eagles goes back more than 6,000 years in the central Asian country of Mongolia, sandwiched between eastern Russia and northern China.

The tradition is still widely practiced there in the Altai Mountains — home of the Kazakhs (KAH-zaks) of Western Mongolia and the mighty Genghis Khan, the fearsome warrior-emperor who ruled about 800 years ago.

Eagle hunting has been passed down from father to son for generations.

The tribesmen raise the baby eagle chicks from birth, feeding them by hand. Treated almost like a family pet, the eagles become accustomed to humans.

Every October the berkutchi (ber-KOO-chee), colorfully dressed hunters on horseback, gather at the annual Eagle Festival in Bayan Ulgii province to demonstrate their remarkable skill in hunting with the world’s most formidable flying predator.

Hooded and draped in silver, the golden eagles perch on their handlers’ thick leather gauntlets (GAWNT-lets, protective glove and arm coverings) as they are shown off to admiring crowds.

Then, against a backdrop of snowbound mountain passes, the hunters gallop at breakneck speeds over rough terrain with the mighty birds of prey harnessed to their forearms. Abruptly the eagles are released from their clips to soar into the mountain thermals (rising currents of warm air) to seek out prey. With their eyesight—eight times keener than a man’s—they can spot their quarry from a distance of up to a mile.

But this unique festival was nearly lost to history. The country had traditionally aligned itself with the Soviet Union, and when it claimed independence in 1990, it was a nation stripped of much of its identity by its long association with the former Communist power.

With a fierce sense of national pride, the Mongolian people set about restoring their endangered heritage. The Eagle Festival is a memorable example of their success.

It takes a determined traveler to reach this largely undiscovered part of Central Asia, but they will be amply rewarded. As Marco Polo once said of Mongolia: “I did not tell half of what I saw, for no one would have believed me.”