KHONGOR SAND DUNES

Khongor Sand Dunes is one of the major tourist destinations in southern Mongolia. Khongor's sand shines like gold in the sunlight on a clear day and it looks gorgeous. The dunes extend from northwest to southeast and cover a total area of 965 sq. km. The widest part of the sand is 27 km in the northwestern part, and the narrowest is 800 meters in the central part. When getting reach the top of one of the dunes, it can be seen hundreds of sand hills continuously. The natural scenery is beautiful around Khongor sand dunes as on the front side located the rocky mountains of Sevrei and Zuulun, and the green oasis with the river flows throughout its north side. The rainwater from those mountains in front of the sands makes a path through the sands of Khongor, soaks into the soil, and emerges at the northern edge of the sand dunes and flows into the river. It is fed by the Khongor river and flows 10 km along the edge of the sand to the west.

The highest part of Khongor sand is Duut Mankhan /Singing dunes - makes noise/. When climbing to the top of this dune, which is about 200 meters high, a strange sound can be heard. It sounds like an airplane flying over a steep slope, and the sound is made when a large amount of sun-heated sand slides slowly and gently in the wind. Looking down from the top at night, the tourist cars on the road look like tiny bugs.

At 10-17 km north of Khongor sand, there are 5-6 tourist camps and several camel herder families near the foothills, from where it is convenient to ride a camel to the dunes. It is best to climb the sand dunes in the morning at sunrise or evening around sunset. This is because the surface of the sand gets very hot in midday by bright sunshine, making it difficult to walk on. It can be reached out to the top of the sand dune without tiring by climbing the nearest peak and walking from there to the next peak. Because of the loose sand, it is impossible to climb by steep route, and the legs get stuck often to the sand and tired easily. Before reaching the sand foothill, it takes a walk or rides 2 km through a hilly area covered with thickets. That shrub is the main food for camels. Reaching out the sand by riding a camel is more comfortable than walking.