other diverse scenery of the Gobi / Southern Mongolia

when you say desert, most people immediately think sand, lots of sand and even more sand.

well, not every desert is sand dunes. the Gobi desert, for example, is only 3% sand dunes; the rest is mainly stony plains, rugged treeless mountains and scrubland; and surprisingly alive with wildlife. there is even a gorge (Yolyn Am) which contains ice most of the year (in a desert!). also, the only desert bear, the Gobi bear, lives there, with roughly 25 such bears being left nowadays.

whereas it can easily get to 40C during daytime in summer in the Gobi, temperatures in winter can just as easily drop down to -40C...

it is still one of the least populated regions on this planet, with less than 0,5 people per square kilometre. and it covers about one third of the entire country.

'Gobi' itself, by the way, means literally 'desert' in mongolian. although - the mongolians themselves distinguish 33 types of desert!


so - sit back, relax and enjoy...