Join Wildlife Photographer Jeremy Neipp on an Unforgettable expedition in the Ruby Mountains. Home to the hardest bird to photograph in America, the Himalayan Snowcock lives high up in the desert alpines and is nearly a mythical bird. Sightings are incredibly rare, but getting close enough to get a good photograph of one… even rarer.

Most workshops I host are guaranteed photographs. This expedition is the complete opposite. In this journey, we are heading in fully aware that failure is a real possibility and only if we line up everything perfectly and a little luck stays on our side will we walk away with the photograph we are looking for.

No one has more experience navigating the tops of these mountain ridges in the Rubies than Jeremy Neipp in search of this bird. And we’ll also run across some other amazing high mountain dwellers like Mountain Goat and Bighorn Sheep. If you’ve ever wanted to embark on the thrill of a lifetime and push yourself to your limits out in nature, this expedition is for you.

Overview:

April 2027 (Open Schedule)

7 Days Option OR 10 Days Option

Inquire for Pricing

Maximum 2 Participants

*Single Participant Option Available

Itinerary

Typically I give a nice clean itinerary of what exactly we will do on which days. However, This expedition is nothing ordinary. Rather, we’ll learn to adapt to our environment and be flexible to get the shot we need. It’s worth remembering… you’re trying to do something never done before.

Arrival:

The biggest difficulty in this extreme expedition is getting enough food up the mountain To extend our time at the top. We’ll be helidropping in to the top of the mountain with all of our food supplies in order to give us the stuff we need to survive for multiple days.

Beginning Days:

We’ll spend our beginning days scouting out the Snowcock and their movement patterns. Patience here is key as Snowcock are extremely skittish and will flush at the first sight of a human within a quarter mile.
Each morning we’ll wake up before dawn and get back to our tent right at sundown. This gives us roughly 12-14 hours a day we’ll be out and about exploring.
We’ll also likely run across some other wildlife along the way such as Mountain Goat, Bighorn Sheep, American Kestrel, or even Golden Eagle. There’s a nesting pair of Peregrine Falcons that also lives in the area, but while their nest is completely inaccessible to photograph, sometimes they do give some pass by’s in flight.

Capturing the Photograph:

After understanding their behavior from our scouting days, we’ll press in and set up at ideal locations to capture an epic photograph of a Himalayan Snowcock. We’ll get up well before sunrise to make our way over in the cover of darkness and to set up as first light hits for a beautiful photograph.
With each passing day, we’ll analyze and determine how we can best set ourselves up for the shot.

Descent:

Returning back, we’ll make our way back down the mountain on foot into lamoille canyon. From here, we’ll catch a car that takes us back to a hotel in Elko before you return back home on your flight.
In the event that you are successful early in the expedition and are very satisfied with your results, there are some local refuges down off the mountain that we can spend our final days searching.

INQUIRE FOR PRICING

Also happy to answer any questions! The goal is to give a personal touch throughout your whole experience. Don’t hesitate to reach out.

Questions? Reach Out!

More Details

Package Includes:

Photo guide and mentorship
Transportation to and from the Ruby Mountains from Elko, NV
All sleeping gear necessary for the trip, and you’ll receive your own tent
All meals and snacks throughout the duration of the workshop
2 Pre-Trip meetings to prepare you for the trip
3rd person Documentation of your expedition to capture the Snowcock
Your favorite photo of the trip professionally printed

What’s Not Included:

Camera Gear or clothing
Transportation to and from Elko airport

Other Notes:

Due to this bird’s skittishness and the extreme weather environments we will be in, certain clothing is necessary for this trip, you’ll discuss with Jeremy if anything you currently have already works, or what will be required to purchase in order to join
You’ll have a porter that will take care of hauling the basic survival equipment needed for this trip. This porter will be joining us for the whole expedition and is also our behind-the-scenes shooter who will be documenting it all
This expedition is of strenuous difficulty, you must be physically capable of rigorous hiking in order to join this expedition
We will be arriving on the top of the mountain on day 1 via helicopter

Cancellation Policy:

Please cancel up to 60 days prior to the workshop start date, the full cost minus a $1,800 USD deposit will be refunded
If cancelled within 60 days of the workshop, any cost already paid cannot be refunded

Book Your Trip

Himalayan Snowcock Expedition

Overview:

Itinerary

Typically I give a nice clean itinerary of what exactly we will do on which days. However, This expedition is nothing ordinary. Rather, we’ll learn to adapt to our environment and be flexible to get the shot we need. It’s worth remembering… you’re trying to do something never done before.

Arrival:

The biggest difficulty in this extreme expedition is getting enough food up the mountain To extend our time at the top. We’ll be helidropping in to the top of the mountain with all of our food supplies in order to give us the stuff we need to survive for multiple days.

Beginning Days:

We’ll spend our beginning days scouting out the Snowcock and their movement patterns. Patience here is key as Snowcock are extremely skittish and will flush at the first sight of a human within a quarter mile.

Each morning we’ll wake up before dawn and get back to our tent right at sundown. This gives us roughly 12-14 hours a day we’ll be out and about exploring.

Capturing the Photograph:

With each passing day, we’ll analyze and determine how we can best set ourselves up for the shot.

Descent:

Returning back, we’ll make our way back down the mountain on foot into lamoille canyon. From here, we’ll catch a car that takes us back to a hotel in Elko before you return back home on your flight.

In the event that you are successful early in the expedition and are very satisfied with your results, there are some local refuges down off the mountain that we can spend our final days searching.

Also happy to answer any questions! The goal is to give a personal touch throughout your whole experience. Don’t hesitate to reach out.

More Details

Package Includes:

Photo guide and mentorship

Transportation to and from the Ruby Mountains from Elko, NV

All sleeping gear necessary for the trip, and you’ll receive your own tent

All meals and snacks throughout the duration of the workshop

2 Pre-Trip meetings to prepare you for the trip

3rd person Documentation of your expedition to capture the Snowcock

Your favorite photo of the trip professionally printed

What’s Not Included:

Camera Gear or clothing

Transportation to and from Elko airport

Other Notes:

Due to this bird’s skittishness and the extreme weather environments we will be in, certain clothing is necessary for this trip, you’ll discuss with Jeremy if anything you currently have already works, or what will be required to purchase in order to join

You’ll have a porter that will take care of hauling the basic survival equipment needed for this trip. This porter will be joining us for the whole expedition and is also our behind-the-scenes shooter who will be documenting it all

This expedition is of strenuous difficulty, you must be physically capable of rigorous hiking in order to join this expedition

We will be arriving on the top of the mountain on day 1 via helicopter

Cancellation Policy:

Please cancel up to 60 days prior to the workshop start date, the full cost minus a $1,800 USD deposit will be refunded

If cancelled within 60 days of the workshop, any cost already paid cannot be refunded