YOLIIN AM

It is a high rocky gorge about 2800 meters above sea level, named after the Yol bird (Bearded vulture & Lammergeier). Despite its name, the bird Bearded vulture is not common here. It is a rare bird that lives only in Central Asia. However, bearded vulture nests in small numbers in this rocky canyon. Tourists and bird watchers come here to see the birds. Among large birds of prey, the bearded vulture is considered beautiful.

Yoliin Am stretches from southwest to northeast for about 8 km. Across the corridor of its rock walls has small streams. In winter, it freezes and is covered with ice more than 1 meter thick. In areas of the canyon where the sun shines less, the ice cover can last until mid of July. Hikers and bird watchers may hike across the gorge. But the tourists with tight programs walk to see one-third of the Yoliin Am gorge. As it goes deeper into the canyon, it becomes more difficult to walk because the rocks become more and more narrow. When walking through the gorge, it is preferable to walk along the lower side or south bank of the small stream. On the other hand, the north bank sometimes meets the bottom of the canyon, so it often requires jumping over it to get to the other side. Some places are not narrow enough to cross in one jump, so there is a risk of getting walkers’ shoes wet and slipping on the mud.

If you want, you can ride a horse or camel to the “pile” of the canyon. It is almost 2 km from the parking lot to the pile. Locals rent horses and camels for a fee, and you can also ride them on the back route. As long as Yoliin am is one of the main tourist destinations of Umnugovi province, so domestic and foreign tourists visit it a lot from June to August. It is common for local people to make handicrafts and sell them to tourists who come to the canyon.

Reaching out to Yoliin Am takes a 45 km drive to the western side of Dalanzadgad city. It is located in the eastern part of the 180-kilometer-long "Gobi Gurvan Saikhan" mountain. According to the legend, once upon a time, a beautiful girl lived with her parents near the Gobi Gurvan Saikhan Mountain (Three beautiful mountains of Gobi). An old aristocrat from the region wanted her to be his wife, despite there being a poor young man who was in love with her. The old aristocrat conspired with the girl's parents and they planned a trick. The old aristocrat thought that if he orders the young man to find out Bearded vulture’s excrement, the young man would fall to his death from a high canyon. Because the bearded vulture builds its nest on the top of the rocky canyon. The bird hardly comes down to the ground and does not feed on carrion. The main feature of this bird is as it has a strong intestine that smashes livestock’s bones against the rocks and eats that. Since ancient times, Mongolians used bird excrement to cure gastrointestinal diseases. In the story, eventually, the poor young man climbed a cliff forhis beloved girl and took down the bird's excrement with him. So, the rich aristocrat left the girl and the young lady got married to his loved man and lived happily ever after. This legend tells that the power of love overcomes any obstacle.