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**Mercator** · May 16, 2007, 07:07

@PLATO: hahaha... yeah, that would be the post office. Sukhbaatar square is just around the corner on the right.

@Ecthy: I haven't been out of the city yet, so haven't seen too many tents. Well, I have seen some on the way in the train, and in the Ulaanbaatar suburbs.

I'm the only one staying in the guesthouse I'm at, which is nice in a way, but a bit difficult getting a tour going, unless I want to go expensive. I checked around some other guesthouses today, though, and I think I'll be heading off for a short trip to Terelj tomorrow...

Another thing is, most people are only staying for up to a week or so and they're all headed to the Gobi, while I want to go up North...

**Straybow** · May 16, 2007, 14:15

Beijing is North of Ulaanbaator??

**Provost Harrison** · May 16, 2007, 15:51

Nope.

Well I would be glad that I am there in the milder months of the year...I've seen the temperature there in the winter...holy crap

And they live in tents too

**Mercator** · June 3, 2007, 05:07

Originally posted by Straybow
Beijing is North of Ulaanbaator??

No, I want to see the North of Mongolia before I leave it for Beijing.

I've been on a trip to Khovsgol lake now, including a week-long horseback ride along the lake. My ass still hurts.

I'm afraid photos will have to wait till I get back, because uploading them from an Internet cafe is a *****...

It's been cheaper than expected though, so I'm thinking about extending my stay now.

**VetLegion** · June 3, 2007, 05:40

How did you like the train trip? How long did it take? Does Express mean it doesn't make any stops from Moscow to Mongolia?

What's the weather like in Mongolia anyway?

Pics of horses!

**Dinner** · June 3, 2007, 05:46

Horses being butt raped by Mongols.

**Mercator** · June 4, 2007, 04:52

Originally posted by VetLegion
How did you like the train trip? How long did it take? Does Express mean it doesn't make any stops from Moscow to Mongolia?

The train trip was alright, but not brilliant. It's kind of an interesting experience, but not much more than that. It'll depend on the people you're travelling with though. I did the train trip through a Dutch travel agency, so I shared my compartment with Dutch people. I think that was probably less interesting than Russians or so, but possibly also a good thing, in case you end up with crazy drunk Russians, or Mongolians who stuff every nook and cranny full of their merchandise if you're on the direct Trans-Mongolian train...
The scenery gets old fast too. Lots of birch trees. And be quick on the draw with your camera, because anything interesting (e.g. villages or anything else that isn't trees

) will probably be gone before you get it out.

It's about 5 nights (Mosco-Ulaanbaatar). It makes lots of stops. I think about 30 or 40 in total, though plenty of them at night, and only a few per day for a longer period of time. I read you could buy lots of freshly made things, but that wasn't really the case. Maybe it depends on the season or something... Oh, and be prepared for a looong time at the border.

What's the weather like in Mongolia anyway?

It's pretty hot in UB right now, almost 30C. It was colder up North, though. At Khovsgol lake it was "pleasant" some days, drizzly on others and cold and windy the rest of the time. The nights get rather cold, so be prepared for that. I have a sleeping bag that says it insulates up to -5C and that's been warm enough for me.

Pics of horses!

You'll have to wait for that. :P

I've got photos of the Trans-Siberian up to Irkutsk for you though:

Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mercatore_uno/sets/72157600188179225

**PLATO** · June 4, 2007, 08:12

Hey Mercator!

This sounds like such a great trip! Thanks for the pictures...can't wait to see more.

Here is a little info on the lake for everybody else.

Keep us posted!!

Known as the "dark blue pearl" of Mongolia, Lake Khovsgol is one of the country's largest and most spectacular protected areas. Bordered to the north by the Sayan Mountains (rising to the park's highest point of 3491 meters) and to the west by the Khoridal Soridag range, the lake is 136 km long and 36 km wide. Its 380 cubic km of water make it the fourteenth largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, with over 1% of the world's fresh water. At its deepest, the lake dives 262 meters.

Natural Zone: high mountain, forest, steppe
Special Features: second largest fresh water lake in Central Asia by volume; extremely clear water, spectacular alpine scenery.

Size and location: 838,000 hectares in Hovsgol province, northwestern Mongolia.

Established: 1992

Khovsgol shares many similarities in origin, flora, and fauna with its larger and more famous sister, Russia's Lake Baikal, which is just 200 km to the east. The lake is 1645 meters above sea level and is generally frozen from January until April or May.
The towns of Khatgal and Khankh are situated within the park. A jeep trail traverses the lake's eastern shore, and a boat sometimes operates between the two towns. Mongols of the Khalkh, Buryat, and Darkhat ethnic groups inhabit parts of the park during certain seasons, and the Tsaatan reindeer herders live in the mountainous taiga and forest steppe to the north and west.

Ninety-six rivers and streams empty into Lake Hovsgol, but only the Egiin River exits the lake. The Egiin flows southeast until it joins the Selenge River, which flows through one of Mongolia's most densely populated areas on its way to Lake Baikal. Tributaries to Hovsgol include the Hankh and Khoroo rivers, the mouths of which have been designated "core areas" because of their importance for migratory birds.

Nine species of fish inhabit the lake, including Siberian grayling and lenok. Nearby taiga forest, forest steppe, mountains, and the lake itself provide habitat for 68 species of mammals, including argali, ibex, elk, reindeer, musk deer, brown bear, lynx, marten, beaver, wolf, and moose, 244 species of birds, and 750 species of plants, including 60 with medicinal importance.

Fuel spills in the lake, overgrazing, illegal tree felling, and poaching of bear, musk deer, and elk are among the problems facing the park

http://library.thinkquest.org/C0114235/geography_NATIONAL.htm

**VetLegion** · June 4, 2007, 16:05

Thanks for the photos Mercator. Just went through about half of them. What camere are you using?

The train trip was alright, but not brilliant. It's kind of an interesting experience, but not much more than that. It'll depend on the people you're travelling with though. I did the train trip through a Dutch travel agency, so I shared my compartment with Dutch people.

I'm planning to go hopping from station to station instead to taking the express. I was wondering how safe it is.

**LordShiva** · June 4, 2007, 16:09

http://www.weebls-stuff.com/wab/snails/ [/Dauphin]

**Provost Harrison** · June 4, 2007, 18:24

**Dinner** · June 4, 2007, 19:21

Burn down the city then when they asked you why you burned it down tell them pay back is a *****.

**Mercator** · June 7, 2007, 21:37

I might just burn down Europe instead when I get back home. One of the reasons I came here was because of Genghis Khan, so I'm all converted now...

In fact, I think I'll be heading to the library next to read some more books on him.

I've been stuck in UB trying to extend my stay, but yesterday cleared most of that up. I'll be staying 2 more weeks here. I'm planning on leaving on another trip next Wednesday or so.

Until then I can plan my trip, read books about Genghis Khan (I've pretty much seen everything I wanted to see in UB by now) and hopefully meet up again with the two lovely Mongolian students I met yesterday.

@VetLegion: I'm using a Kodak Easyshare C643. Nothing special.

**Mercator** · June 7, 2007, 21:44

Oh, and PLATO...

Khovsgol shares many similarities in origin, flora, and fauna with its larger and more famous sister, Russia's Lake Baikal, which is just 200 km to the east. The lake is 1645 meters above sea level and is generally frozen from January until April or May.

It was in fact partly frozen in May (the side I was on anyway) when I set off on horseback . But when I came back down a week later it had all melted.

Ninety-six rivers and streams empty into Lake Hovsgol, but only the Egiin River exits the lake.

I didn't see too many of those. Or rather, I crossed loads of dry, rocky riverbeds. But the only "wet" rivers I saw were the Egiin river (at the South end at Khatgal where I left), and the Khar Us springs where I turned back.