#centralmongolia

To be completely honest, my original plan was to visit the Gobi desert instead; but as I could not find a tour that fitted my travel needs and the time I had to visit the country, I opted instead to see what Central Mongolia and the areas surrounding Kharkhorin were about.

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Kharkhorin is a small town of about 9,000 people situated in central Mongolia, on the east side of the magnificent Orkhon Valley. Nearby the town are the ruins of the ancient town of Karakorum, which served as the capital of the Mongol empire in the 1200s.

The city of Kharkhorin itself is nothing special, but it still forms an interesting base for anyone wanting to visit the area of central Mongolia, as there are a few (very few) tour operators and hotels in Kharkhorin (I hired Ganaa Family Guest House in Kharkhorin). Buses from Ulaanbaatar leave twice a day, and the journey can take approximately about 8 hours.

Orkhon Valley

Kharkhorin sits at the doorstep of the beautiful Orkhon Valley, itself filled with beautiful natural landscape, deserts, waterfalls and enough wildlife to keep you satisfied for years to come.

I spent two days driving around the Orkhon Valley, making our way between the nomadic family I stayed at and the places we wanted to visit. Through the valley, herds of wild horses, yaks, sheeps and hundreds and hundreds of other animals wandering around free can be seen, a true spectacle of nature.

Much of the driving in this area is done on rocky roads, crossing through rocky paths and the very same Orkhon river. Like anything, it was fun at the beginning, but after a few hours of bumpy roads inside a van…..expect your butt to end up flat.

Orkhon Waterfall (Ulaan Tsutgalan)

After having visited Iguazu Falls in Argentina and Niagara Falls in Canada, I could not think that any other waterfall in the world could surprise me, specially after having heard that Ulaan Tsutgalan, Mongolia’s biggest waterfall, was only about 25 meters high.

After having driven through rivers and rocky roads for 4 hours, I could not wait to finally get out of the car. As we kept driving, the once mountainous road got somewhat flatter and flatter, making me doubt that there was any waterfall nearby (in fact, I thought in silence that my driver was completely lost). Finally, my guide Ganaa stopped the car to continue by foot (at which point I thought he had lost his mind as I still could not see where he was going to take a waterfall out from).

After a walk of about 10 minutes, I saw a big opening on the ground. A canyon gave way to a lake at the bottom of said canyon, fed on the other side by the Orkhon river and the Ulaan Tsutgalan waterfall.

This waterfall surprised me both by its beauty and its simplicity. It came out of nowhere and suddenly it was all that I could see and hear. The flow of the river feeding the waterfall was very gentle that day, which allowed us to cross to the other side of the falls for a better view of the canyon. The best views, however, are from the bottom of the canyon.

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Khogno Khan National Park

Located about 250 kilometers west of Ulaanbaator on the road to Kharkhorin, right between the Uvurkhangai, Tuv and Bulgan provinces, is this immense national park covering approximately 47000 hectares. It is said that wolves, foxes and snow leopards roam around this area (although I didn’t get to see of them).

Besides the usual landscapes, mountains and forests found in Khogno Khan, there are also small sand dunes which some locals refer to as the “mini-Gobi” or the “semi-desert).

Elsen Tasarkhai (Sand Dunes)

Although probably not as impressive as the Gobi desert, and definitely not as big (Elsen Tasarkhai extends for about 80 kilometres), the Elsen Tasarkhai sand dunes still are one of the prettiest sites of central Mongolia.

I came through these sand dunes during my second day of tour in central Mongolia. I was still sour from having missed on the Gobi desert, so visiting these sand dunes provided much needed relief and satisfaction. I even managed to fall face first into the sand, and ended up with the mandatory sand in the crotch desert memorabilia!

There is not much to see around the desert because, after all, it is a desert. Although depending on which area of Elsen Tasarkhai you go to, you might be able to see some vegetation around some areas of the desert.

If you’re on a tour, definitely ask your driver if he has a sliding board!

Kharkhorin, Karakorum & the Erdene Zuu Monastery

Like I said earlier, there is nothing really special about Kharkhorin, despite its proximity to the old capital of the Mongol empire, Karakorum.

However, if you do end up staying a night in Kharkhorin, paying a visit to the Erdene Zuu Monastery is probably a good idea (and possibly about the one interesting thing within walking distance).

Erdene Zuu is the oldest Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. It is fortified with a wall that goes around the entire monastery, surrounding the various temples found inside. Inside the temples, various original paintings on walls (similar to frescoes) can be seen.

The temples inside are in pretty good shape, and it is easy to imagine what life might have been like inside in ancient times.

The Highlight: Staying with a Nomad Family

The highlight of my 4 days in central Mongolia was definitely staying in a Ger with a nomad family. Even though my stay with them was not too long, it still served me to get a glimpse of how nomad life is in Mongolia.

About 25% of Mongolia’s population is made up of nomad families living in Gers. Many of these families move a few times a year at the beginning of each winter, spring, and summer, mainly living off their animals and what nature provides them. It is common for full families to stay inside one Ger, with beds circled around the “walls” and a small furnace in the center to make a fire for heating.

Mongolians are known for their open and welcoming attitude, and “the Johnsons” (the nickname my guide had given to this family) were no exception. They were very welcoming and extremely nice, taking time to “talk” to me despite the language barrier. Having dinners together and going through some old photos of their family with them was definitely the best memory this trip has left me with.

Needless to say that, for any westerner, this way of life may seem difficult and somewhat nonsensical, especially when considering how cold winter must get. However, for these nomadic families, this way of life is not only a sustainable way of life, but it is also the preferred way to live.

Central Mongolia was definitely a surprise, and made my entire trip to Mongolia worth the time and effort it took to get there. What do you think?

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