The Gobi Desert

Before I went to Mongolia, I had a clear image of what I thought the Gobi Desert would be like. I expected dry and dusty. We went in the rainy season.

I expected sand dunes. We had to go out of our way to find some. I expected the kind of terrain that munches Jeeps for breakfast, including steep hills and boulder filled roads. We only had one impressive tire change, and no other mechanical issues. When asked, our tour guide said we would be seeing a whole lot of nothing. He wasn’t wrong.

The part of the Gobi Desert in Outer Mongolia (as opposed to Inner Mongolia, which is part of China) is primarily a large, flat area with low rainfall. There are three mountains that bisect the area. They are known as the three beauties. We forayed into they twice – once to see the slot canyons, and once to see an area known for dinosaur bones.

I had expected to see some primitive living, and wasn’t disappointed, though the gers we stayed in were all remarkably comfortable. The ones in the Gobi didn’t even smell funny, though the moths could get a little scary.

The rest of the time we zoomed around at speeds I would never drive on unpaved areas back home. Over and again I marveled at the way the drivers could and did create their own roads as they went with no fear of sand pits, mud, or ravines.

Likewise, I marveled at the way every step brought up rich fragrances from the native plants, and how green it looked to me. West Texas is so much rougher and unfriendly in terrain and plant life. The Badlands of South Dakota are so much more vivid and extensive. The hills of Montana are so much… well, actually, I guess hills are hills. It was a lot like home.

Now that I’m back, it hits me. In actuality, the similarities between the western states I’ve lived in and all the parts of Mongolia I visited are actually pretty striking. Similar terrain, similar rainfall, and similar attitudes in the people around me. No wonder I felt so much at home there.