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Explore Mongolia by JeepTravel with Happy CamelTours and Expeditions |
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Explore Mongolia
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1st dayAfter breakfast in our hotel restaurant, we will leave for the Mongolian countryside. Our first stop will be 250 km (6 hours driving) southward in the beautiful region of Bag Gazrin Chuluu. It is a huge granite formation in the middle of the Mongolian sandy plane. At the foot of the formation we will visit the remains of a small monastery named Delgeriin Chior. End of the afternoon we will drive and hike around in the area. We will visit the picturesque ruins of a small monastery that are hidden in a nice little protected valley. As the place is far away from the usual tourist routes, there are no accommodation facilities. Therefore we will set up our tents in a beautiful natural scene of one of the valleys of the formation. Tents, pneumatic mattresses, etc. will be provided. You will have to bring your own sleeping bag. A barbecue accompanied with some fresh vegetables will wait for us at the camping spot.
2nd dayAfter a breakfast at the camp side, we will start driving towards the Gobi desert. Today we will see the landscape changing dramatically from the fertile grassland to the inhospitably rocky land. The number of families and cattle we will see along the road will gradually reduce. Camels will slowly replace cows. During this nearly 300 km trip (8 hours driving) we will stop at some interesting spots. The first place we will visit is Sangiin Dalai Nuur. This tiny lake shelters on its island the mighty ruins of a castle that was build here some 300 years ago. Here we will also observe some remarkable bird life. Among others, the Mongolian lark, various species of prey birds, geese and swans come to this spring-fed lake. A little further on the road we will pass the ruins of Khukh Burd Monastery that was flattened during the Mongolian purge period. (1928 – 1939) From here we will head for Saigan Ovoo Sum. This little town is located along a small desert river (Ongiin Gol) at the entrance of a beautiful mountainous region. A little further southward along the river, next to Hoshuu Monastery we will spend the night in a ger camp. 3rd dayAfter the long and intensive trip of the day before, we will enjoy the peace and beauty of the Delger Khangai Mountains. We will explore the ruins of Hoshuu Monastery on one side of the river and the ruins of Ongiin Monastery on the other side of the river. We will hike around in this massive series of rocky hills cut by the river. Breakfast, dinner and supper will be taken in the ger camp, and we will spend a second night here before facing a second driving intensive day through the Gobi desert. 4th dayOn the way to Karakorum 5th dayAfter breakfast, we will start driving further northwards in the direction of Kharkhorin (also called Karakorin, 3 hours driving), site of the 13th century capital of the Mongolian Empire created by Chinggis Khan. Very little is left from this legendary city. In the 16th century, Mongolia's biggest Monastery was build from the ruins of Kharkhorin. Now Erdene Zuu Monastery is all that remains of what once was a huge monastery of 100 temples and about 1.000 lamas residencing there. We will explore the grounds of Erdene Zuu Monastery surrounded by its massive 400 m X 400 m walls. We will be guided around the 3 remaining temples: Dalai Lama, Zuu of Buddha and Lavrin Temple. We will also see the Turtle Rock and the Phallic Rock. We will also visit Sanhiid Monastery and stop in a Mongolian family. We will spend the night close to Ogiin Nuur Lake or even further Eastwards. 6th dayAfter our breakfast we will set off Eastwards for Khulitegenii Dorsal. The principal monument is a flat stone of more than 3 meters high. It is now in a small museum close the place it originally stood. The stone has 68 lines of Turkic runes, two dragons and the mountain goat, device of the Ashina clan. The stone honors Kul-Tegin (684-731), a military leader of the Turkic empire. The stone is part of a larger memorial complex, created the year of the death of Kul-Tegin. It includes statues and a temple of worship. On the way back to Ulaanbaatar we will also see Tsogtiin Tsagaan Baishinh, A large stone monument situated near those ruins bears on inscription in Mongolian and Tibetan characters, stating that at this place the construction of 6 temples began in 1601 and was completed in 1617. The great number of building foundations suggest that a large number of people lived here. After having visited this ruin, we will drive further to Khar Bushiin Balgas, other ruins of a city dated of the 14th - 15th century.
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