6-Day Gobi Loop: White Stupa to Baga Gazar Rocks
Day-by-Day Itinerary
Ulaanbaatar β Tsagaan Suvarga
We pick you up from your accommodation at 08:00 and drive south to Tsagaan Suvarga, about 470 km and 6 hours on a paved road. Along the way, the green steppe gradually gives way to the open plains of the Middle Gobi. Tsagaan Suvarga, the 'White Stupa,' is a sheer escarpment that was once the floor of an ancient sea. Its layered sediments, laid down over millions of years, show as bands of white, pink, orange, and red, each color marking a different age. The cliffs rise more than 50 m at their highest point and run for some 400 m, looking like the ruins of an ancient ghost city from a distance. The site has never been precisely dated by geologists, but it makes a perfect overnight stop on the way from the Middle to the South Gobi. Take a hike around the cliffs in the evening light, then spend the night nearby.
Tsagaan Suvarga β Bayanzag (Flaming Cliffs)
After breakfast, drive about 245 km (4 hours, mostly on dirt roads) to Bayanzag. American explorer and zoologist Roy Chapman Andrews named this place the 'Flaming Cliffs' during his expeditions of the 1920s, and many important dinosaur finds were made here, including Protoceratops skeletons and the first dinosaur eggs ever discovered. The eroded red sandstone cliffs are imposing from a distance, and they glow especially fiery in the light of the setting sun, while the plain around them is dotted with hardy saxaul shrubs. Walk around the site and along the cliff edge, then spend the night nearby.
Bayanzag β Khongor Sand Dunes: Camel Ride
After breakfast, drive about 150 km (4 hours on dirt roads) to Khongor, the largest sand dune field in the Gobi Desert. The dunes stretch nearly 100 km long and 5 to 10 km wide, with crests rising 80 to 300 m above the surrounding land. On windy days, the moving sand produces a deep booming sound that carries a long way, which is why locals call them the 'Singing Sands.' A green oasis fed by the Khongor River lines their northern edge. Today you ride Bactrian camels for an hour to explore these massive dunes, and the energetic can climb one of the crests for an unforgettable view across a sea of golden sand. Spend the night near the dunes.
Khongor β Yol Gorge
After breakfast, drive about 190 km (6 hours on dirt roads) to Yol Gorge in the Gurvan Saikhan mountain range. 'Yol' means bearded vulture in Mongolian, and the gorge stretches for more than 10 km. At its narrowest point only three or four people can walk side by side, and the high rock walls shade the valley floor from direct sun, so ice formed by its small stream in winter often survives until mid-July. Enjoy an hour's hike through the gorge, keep watch for ibex and vultures on the cliffs, and visit the small natural history museum at the park entrance. An optional horse ride is possible here. Spend the night nearby.
Yol Gorge β Baga Gazriin Chuluu Rocks
After breakfast, drive about 420 km (6 hours on a paved road) north to Baga Gazriin Chuluu, a distinctive granite massif rising out of the flat plateau of the Middle Gobi. Its highest point stands 1,765 m above sea level, and wind and weather have sculpted its rocks into domes, towers, and strange shapes. Hike and explore its most interesting corners: Sudut Mouth, a narrow valley shaded by aspen trees with the ruins of a Buddhist temple, Jargalant Cave, and the 'eye water,' a small mineral spring that locals believe is good for the eyes. The temple ruins are a quiet reminder that monks once sought solitude among these hills. Spend the night among the rocks.
Baga Gazriin Chuluu β Ulaanbaatar
After breakfast, drive back to Ulaanbaatar, about 260 km and 4 hours on a paved road, as the desert turns back into the rolling grasslands of Central Mongolia. On arrival in the city at around 13:00, we transfer you to your accommodation.