Today we are exploring the Orkhon valley. The ride today is about 100km and will take about 6-7 hours. At the end of the day, we will be staying at the Ursa Major ger camp, which is in the middle of nowhere. There is no running water, and no showers. Instead of washing, we will be given scented towels to cleanse ourselves.
After the refreshment stop, the trail wound around the hillside, and followed the route of the Orkhon River.
I really like seeing the Ovoos dotted throughout the valley.
Now we head away from the river, and into more grasslands.
Still feels weird not seeing any fences. The animals just wander and eat.
I really like seeing herds of horses, just eating and resting. 
Dotted throughout the valley are more ancient burial grounds. These date back to up to 10,000 years ago.
In the distance, up to the right, is the Ursa Major ger camp. This is the end of the trail today.
Our toilet facilities for the night. There is another one at the other end of the camp.
Our ger for the night. Extremely decorated in orange.
The staff came in later, and put the chimney up and lit the fire. Erik's bike spent the night inside too.
The doors are short. I would forget, and bump my head regularly.
The staff arrived with these bamboo steamers, and I thought it was our food, but it was the scented towels.
The hot towels were scented with essential oils, and wiping the dust and grime off our bodies with these towels was luxurious. Showers are over rated. This process of cleaning with hot scented cloths was wonderful. Our skin smelt of jasmine and cedar wood. Delicious.
Inside the restaurant ger. This was a large ger, probably 4 times bigger than our sleeping ger. The door was the right height, we didn't need to bend over to go through it.
On one of the tables, was some popular Mongolian board games, and wooden puzzles. I picked up the wooden puzzle, and put it together while we waited for our food.
Beef (yak) for dinner. Look at how many green veggies and carrots we get with the meal.
The Ursa Major ger camp. The large Restaurant ger is on the right, and the outside toilet is at the opposite end.
The composting toilet was clean and didn't smell. I found it tricky to latch the door, as the wind was blowing.
The temperature dropped, and I needed to put on all my warm clothes, beanie, and gloves. The wind was coming straight from Siberia.
No comments:
Post a Comment