Mongolia 1 - South towards the Gobi Desert

Saturday 11th August: Off to the Ulaanbaatar markets. 60,000 people visit these markets each day and they are as diverse as they are dynamic. You can buy anything from a gur tent and all the appropriate furniture, to chain saws, butter wrapped sheep intestines (as a container), antiques, ropes, and solar panels. We found everything very cheap. A $700 solar panel in Australia was $200, ‘cargo’ type shirts were $15, and my prized purchase was a very old Mongolian Khan Warrior helmet for US100.

After visiting the local and largest Monastery we left Ulaanbaatar and headed south.

This is a land of no roads only directions.

We soon found this out as we headed out of town. 20kms from town we were on multiple dirt tracks, no signposts, and heading by GPS south towards Mandalgov. There were so many tracks in every direction that eventually Bill and I became separated and could not find each other for over an hour. Having lost his UHF ariel very early in the trip, communication was impossible between the valleys. We finally relocated each other by good luck, not planning, and were so relieved that we camped where we were. Besides it was 8pm and we were on the side of a broad 10km wide valley, with the horizon surrounding us.

Following setting up camp we were met by a local and his son in their new 100 series Landcruiser. They had been falcon hunting and returning home and just stopped in to check if we were OK. They soon left but not before leaving us some biscuits, just as other visitor did this morning in camp. Very friendly people.
That evening the sky put on a specular light and storm cloud show as we retired.

Camp 44: Lost and Found - Storm Camp


Sunday 12th August: Fortunately there was no rain in the clouds last night, on these black soil plains that would put a end to all travel. There are still no trees or low plants, only open rolling hills and plains covered with an ever diminishing cover of green grass.

We drove by GPS to try to locate the Mineral Springs in the foot hills of Baga Gazaryn Uul but gave up. Finally following the maize of tracks, but mostly GPS we arrived 410kms later at Mandalgov. A not so impressive town, in this heat of about 30degrees we shouted ourselves a well deserved ice-cream. Now camped on top of a rounded hill 15kms south of town we again have a 360 degree view of the flat horizon. No trees or shrubs only grasses, rocks and sand. This is preparing us for the Gobi Desert beyond.


Monday 13th August: I was up early this morning trying to fix the computer. Every page is split into 4 horizontal pages, and I imagine this was due to the constant vibrations from the roads. I have found a way to use word for this log, but it is a problem for pictorial storage and I am still working on that one.

The view as we drive through the country is so big and expansive it is impossible to capture it on film. Not even a panoramic shot can capture the vastness of the sweeping valleys, the green rolling hills, or the green horizon in every direction. Our morning tea stop was on top of a hill to soak in the view.
Along the way there are plenty of grazing animals. Camels, goats, sheep, and horses all attended by the younger members of the nomadic family. They are either on horse or camel, or walking beside the stock moving them constantly on and generally watching over them.

We veered from our GPS south track to take in the Painted Desert Mountains. It was only 30Kms off our track, and well worth it. The clay/sandstone mountain was slowly eroding leaving unusual shapes in red, orange, pink, white and mauve. It is hot, 37degrees is registered on our thermometer in the camper.


Following the GPS and the occasional track we arrive 15Kms outside the town of Dalanzadgad and set camp. Again we are surrounded by a green horizon with the occasional blue hills dotting the horizon.

Camp: 46 Dalanzadgad Plains Camp

Position: (Gobi Desert) – 500Kms South of Ulaanbaatar
Highlights: Land of no roads only directions; Open country, cross country driving, Painted Desert Mountains.
Total Distance to Date: 11,665Kms.