It was a slow train leaving Russia but eventually we reached the border town of Naushki which seems to consist of the station, a couple of blocks of apartments, a LITTLE market selling household products and not much else. Certainly not enough to fill the next seven hours we had to spend there. Even the station was empty and quiet. However, we sat and waited while some carriages left the train and others joined it, then at last the immigration and customs people came on to do their thing. First someone came on to check our passports and registrations; then customs forms were completed, then somone else collected our passports, others came on to search the train and check baggage, then eventually our passports were brought back, a couple of borderguards joined the carriages and we were finally off across the border. And so, at about 8pm on the 8th day of the 8th month of the 8th year I entered my 8th different country since leaving Scotland! If the Chinese thing of 8 being a lucky number really is right I should be ok for a while I reckon. At the Mongolian side of the border we had to repeat the procedure but it was much quicker on this side and it wasn't too long before we were off and heading for Ulan-Bator.
Heading towards UB the scenery was quite different to Russia - rolling hills and grassland dotted with gers (the traditional round felt homes of the Mongolians). I had wondered if their use would be limited now, other than as tourist gimmicks, but no, they are definitely still well used. Even approaching the sprawling industrial looking city of UB they were everywhere - amongst business units, alone, in clusters amongst permanent housing - anywhere and everywhere.
Although Ulan-Bator is the big city of Mongolia, it still isn't too big in global standards (especially for a capital city) and acts as a hub to co-ordinate tours to other parts of the country. I got a 7 day tour of the Gobi Desert organised and ended up loving every minute of it. It was effectively to be dinner, bed and breakfast accommodation each night staying in Gers with host families, but we needed to take our own water and stuff for lunches as shopping would be limited, so I headed to the state department store for supplies. This is the "big store": a multistorey department store where you can buy anything and everything from a car tyre to food to clothes to books to a plasma screen tv to Mongolian souvenirs! It'd be a definite possibility for our Christmas shopping expeditions mum. Might take more than a couple of nights away if we are to take the car to fill with all our shopping, but there'd be some fantastic scenery on the way!! The only hassle is the currency - although things are relatively cheap there are about 2000 Togrogs to the pound and the biggest note I saw in circulation is 20000T and it wasn't common. With no coins, you end up with a wad of notes and palpatations when you go to the ATM and have to enter so many thousands - with no commas dividing the zeros I was convinced I'd type in too many and kept doing a double count!
Anyway all stocked up we were ready for our tour. In my group there was: 2 Koreans, 1 each from Hong Kong and Japan, myself and our wonderfully named driver -Aha! We were to discover that night that we had a sister group doing the same tour and at night and throughout the coming days we would meet up and travel almost together. Our vans were the old robust Russian 4 wheel drive machines commonly used for Mongolian travel as they are quite reliable, but not overly complex mechanically so are apparently easier to repair if they do break down. It was basic and functional but did the job.
Almost as soon as we left UB the countryside opened up and on every day of the tour there was something different to see, and our overnight camps were all very different from each other. There was obviously vast expanses of not a lot, and we had lots of driving each day, but it was also very varied. Never will I think of desert in terms of just endless mile after mile of sand again. As soon as you pay attention to your environment you begin to appreciate the diversity of it and notice changes that aren't necessarily instantly obvious.
On day one there was still a lot of short pasture and grass and grazing cows, sheep and goats tended by incredibly skilled looking Mongolian (mostle bareback riding)horsemen. Running a close second to herding by horseback is herding by motorbike. Periodically someone would appear over a hillside on their bike zooming along on all sorts of terrain until they passed in a cloud of dust. The roads themselves are just dirt tracks at best, not even that sometimes, and vehicles zoom along picking the best routes they can. Tracks are often indistinct and appear to go off in all directions - as one gets too rutted a new track is created so the road network is continually in a state of flux - and there are most definitely no sign-posts - anyone attempting to drive there without a local knowledge of the landscape would need an incredibly good GPS or a whole lot of luck I reckon! Our camp for the night was with a lovely family on their homestead set in open rolling steppeland near Erdenedalay. As well as providing our meal that night we were all asked to join the family that evening for Khorhog -a Mongolian speciality. (any vegetarians should move on a couple of paragraphs now!) One of the goats was killed and we watched, fascinated as it was skinned in one piece, innards removed and the blood collected without a drop being lost, and the carcass was cut up into pieces. The goat and potatoes are then cooked in a big pot over hot coals. Once it was ready we ate it all with toasts of vodka and/or the cooking bree from the goat as the sun set and the stars (including shooting stars) came out on a lovely clear night. It was a fantastic evening and a magical start for our trip. The ger was comfy - simply and traditionally laid out with the beds around the side, a little table with a candle on it in the centre, and little stools around it for us to use. The central skylight could be covered over by pulling over another piece of felt but provided a nice additional source of ventilation for us.
The next day the sand roads became more compacted and rutted - almost corrogated - by the winds I suppose, but as the tracks get too bad new ones are created alongside hence maps are imprecise as the road network is really in a continual state of flux. As we travelled we were mesmorised by the mirages we saw in the distance. I can really see how people get lost in the desert and "see" cities. With miles of open space around you you see images in the distance readily. eventually we headed up a high escarpment and the formation of sand cliffs was amazing. Some were real pinnacles, sometimes sheer cliffs, sometimes gradual slopes down into deep ravines. It was a tremendous vantage point and in the distance you could see a little oasis at Bayanzag which was to be our campsite for the night. From our ger we looked onto the lake and could watch as the camels and goats went down to drink. As the sun went down it was relaxing and peaceful and lovely to sit and watch as our meal for the night was cooked. Its amazing how hungry you become just sitting in a van all day but we enjoyed our meal of rice with potatoes, carrot and goat.(A dish that was to become a recurring theme throughout the trip)
By the third day we climbed through high sandy hills stopping briefly to watch at a well where local people had taken the goats and sheep to drink. It was amusing watching as the animals jostled about trying to get in to get their share. As we crested some high hills we looked down onto our first glimpse of the high golden dunes in the distance that were our camp for the night. Arriving early we were able to have a wee siesta in the afternoon to escape the worst of the heat of the day before going camel riding into the dunes. Once there we were able to climb and walk amongst them. It was fantastic - so stereotypically the desert image of high golden shifting sands, hot sun, warm winds and even the sand was warm. Coming back down we remounted our camels and plodded back to camp. The camels weren't overly smelly, didn't spit but weren't overly comfy either. And can I just say for anyone planning a similar trip, its not a good idea to slide down a dune getting sand in your shorts then to sit in an old shapeless saddle atop a camel for half an hour or so: I was slightly saddlesore by the time we dismounted!! But it was worth it. Later some of us were taken along to the highest dunes further along the range so we could climb them to watch the sunset. The climb was really hard work as you sank into the shitfing sands but the sunset made it worthwhile. It was so peaceful yet dramatic as you could see for miles and the colours were wonderful. A real highlight.
Leaving the valley floor the following day we headed across country until we reached the hills that formed the entrance to a gorge known as the Ice Valley. A green and gentle walk at the foot of rocky mountains with vultures and eagles circling overhead gradually narrowed as the cliffs got taller and closer together with a little stream trickling down the centre.It was really imposing and scenic and went on for a great distance - I walked for about an hour and a half before turning but didn't reach the other end. In the heat of the summer sun it was strange to think of the cold experienced in the winter. During November to March the ice can be up to 10 metres thick, hence the name. Our camp for the night was in the town of Dalanzagad where our treat was to be taken to the local baths so we could have a shower! Talk about simple pleasures. Mine may have been stone cold but it was worth it to feel really clean and human again.
We had a shorter day next day leaving the town behind as we headed across hardpacked sand with very limited greenery to our camp with a nomadic family at the wonderfully isolated Tsagaan Suvarga. The site is on a little hillside with miles of open space all around. I walked to the crest of the hill from the ger expecting an open view but instead the little hillocks just continued into the distance. Other than the reared animals there is little wildlife other than the little sand lizards and wee mouse/squirrel like animal that entertained us in the evening. I don't know what it was but it had little front legs, long rear legs, looked a mit mouselike in the face and had a long tail with a feather brush at the end and scurried about at a rate of knots!
In the morning we stopped at the local well and the local boys had to fight to keep the camels at bay while we topped up our water cannisters. It was an amusing battle! from there we stopped at an amazing sanstone clifftop. the faces were sheer and dropped to little rounded domes on the valley floor below just leaving a few stacks and overhanging ledges on the way down. It was really quite breathtaking. We headed across a flat landscape gradually becoming a little greener untill we twisted round a few hillocks and headed off tracks altogether. Aha then gave an clamation which was obviously the Mongolian equivalent of "oh shit", slowed circled a few times then with no vehilcles in sight stopped, got out climbed onto the roof and started waving a towel overhead! My heart skipped a beat as I thought we were lost but soon we saw a dust cloud of a distant vehicle approaching and our travel buddies reappeared.(transpired they'd got left behind as they stopped to fix a puncture) We continued on our way but it soon became evident we had strayed too far off our intended course and were "temporarily misplaced"! Aha spotted a local herder and we went, got directions and were soon back on course and reached our camp for the night. We were beside a huge granite rock formation near Bag Gazrin Uul. There was an amazing array of granite, almost beehive shaped outcrops forming a large mass rising above the grazings below. I walked amongst the rocks enjoying the views and it was almost alpine looking in parts with little plants growing out of the sandy crevices. After tea we'd arranged to buy half a sheep and get the Khorkhog made that we had enjoyed on our first night. Some vodka had been purchased at a shop earlier in the day so we had a bit of a final feast and toasted our trip until the sun went down and it became too chilly to sit out in the breeze.
Now I know most of you will be amazed by this but I have gained a reputation as an early riser so was tasked to get everyone up in time for our 6am departure the next morning!! Its amazing what a life of travel can do for you! Shortly after setting off we stopped at an idyllic and tranquil spot at a little lakeside at the foot of the granite hills. The early morning sun was casting a glow over the hills, birds were sitting on the lake. a few cows ambled past on the shore and apart from the abundantly plentiful horseflies bizzing about it was wonderfully calm and relaxing. We headed off and as we got closer to UB again the sand finally gave way totally to grasslands and soon we reached the hills surrounding the city. It was a fantastic week and a part of my longer trip that I'll always remember.
After a couple more nights in UB where I saw some of the cars arriving after the London - Mongolia rally (now there would be an experience and a half!) I went to Terelj national park for a couple of nights. The park is slightly northeast of UB and is much more hilly and green with a couple of rivers, waterfall and lake. My ger was in a beautiful spot nestled at the bottom of a rock cliff surrounded basin. A total of 10 of us went up so we headed into the hills to do some hiking. The views were stunning and some of th wildflowers in the little valleys were lovely and colourful. Butterfies and crickets hopped form flower to flower and the buzzing made for a lovely vocal backdrop to the scene. To cap it all a couple of eagles soared overhead looking for prey. It was a great walk and such a contrast to my previous week. In the afternoon we split into groups and went horseriding. Our ponies were less than energetic however and we more or less had to be herded along by our the young lad who was our reluctant "leader" (dad had had to "encourage him to take us!) After a while our horses decided they'd had enough and just stopped stock still. The boy gallopped off and we were just left standing there. He soon came back, we changed direction, and the ponies suddenly got a new lease of life and carried on almost willingly for the rest of the trek at one stage even breaking into a gentle trot! The rain then started in the evening and forgot to stop - pouring down all through the night and into the next day. Some left early but 3 of us stayed in the vain hope it'd dry up. By afternoon the owner of the gers decided he'd take the three of us and 4 more who'd arrived that morning in his pickup to see a famous rock called turtle rock - for the obvious reason that it looks supposedly like a turtle! It became a case of how many people can you squeeze into the cab of a pickup. (Dad, It reminded me of how many brownies in an Alpine!!) We got there saw the rock, sat in the rain there for a while then all piled back into the van and home. The boys relegated to huddling under a plastic sheet in the back. It so much reminded me of a fun day out in the Scottish summer! Eventually it dried up a little and we were able to do a bit more walking before heading back the next day. Despite the weather I enjoyed the visit and seeing the contrasting Mongolian lanscapes.
Mongolia has been a fantastic country to visit - I saw a lot but there is so much left I'd like to visit. The lakes in the north and west for instance. Perhaps I'll get back sometime in the future but meantime its on to China. Beijing and the tail end of the olympics call. . .
