The gravel is always smoother on the other track

We left Ulaanbaator to its pollution, apparently it is the second most polluted city in the world. UB sprawls across twenty or thirty kilometres and all traffic is funnelled through it.

Once clear of the city breathing became easier and the contents of our hankies stopped looking black.

For our first night camping in the wild we chose a nice spot in the hills between two plains. We happily sat watching sand storms blow across them. Until one hit us from behind, nearly flattening the tent.

All became calm, so we got our heads down.

Then at around midnight another sand storm hit, and rattled on for two hours while we lay there and hoped the tent withstood it. The next day we awoke with sand every where inside the tent.

After three days we overtook the road builders. This was the last road sign we saw for 200 kilometres, it was pick your path and be careful of taking the wrong fork.

There would be no more asphalt surfaces just sand and gravel (mainly sand really) for the next three or four days.

The going was slow, and we stopped short of our target town by over 50 kilometres as the daily downpour threatened and we set up camp quickly.

The skies cleared, the sun came out and then disaster struck. Our petrol stove broke.

For us this is a major issue when wild camping, we would not be able to boil water for meals, especially if it was taken from a stream. We were now dependant on finding a decent meal in the day time and snacks for the evening and mornings. The lack of a hot drink in the morning or evening was a hardship too far.

We do carry a backup gas stove, but I had neglected to pack (due to lack of space) a gas cannister. A new search at the next "big" town (Ulaangom) would be required.

On the plus side, the scenery and views are fantastic.

 

On our third day of tracks with a days target of 160 kilometres, navigation was made easier by being able to follow the new road construction (that was well blocked off from sneaky use of the gravel). However after only 90 kilometres fresh asphalt was down, and traffic was allowed on.

To celebrate we found a lakeside ex-Soviet holiday camp, got a room with a lake view balcony, rock solid beds that we could just fit on (Mongolians are short in stature I have banged my head on many a door beam), no water, and an outside squat toilet. Then we went for a swim. Our first wash in 6 days.