Altai Tavan Bogd mountain is located in the westernmost part of Mongolia and is 1821 kilometers away from the capital city, Ulaanbaatar.
The mountain is located on the border of Tsengel and Ulaankhus villages of Bayan-Ulgii province which is 185 kilometers away from the capital city of Bayan-Ulgii province, Ulgii city.
There are more than 280 mountains in Mongolia with the word” Bogd” included in the name, the highest being Altai Tavan Bogd /4374m/. There are many summits with snow all year round including Khuiten, Nairamdal, Burged, Malchin and Ulgii.
It is home to the country’s three largest glaciers, the Potanin Glacier, the Alexander Glacier, and the Grane Glacier. The largest of these is the Potanin Glacier which is 20 kilometers long, formed predominantly from a combination of dark brown mountain, meadow, and swamp soils and rocks.
It is also a home to wild animals listed in the Red Book of Mongolia (a list of endangered species) including snow leopard, otter, Altai argali, ibex and red deer.
Swamp and aquatic birds congregate in lakes, ponds and rivers of the mountain. In addition to endangered birds such as Altai snowcock, white-throated bush chat, dalmatian pelican, whooper swan, black stork, Pallas’s gull and steppe goose, carnivorous birds such as lammergeier, vulture, eagle, buzzard and falcon are also habitants of the mountain’s forests and rocky hills.
There are three species of fish such as Mongolian grayling, Altai osman, and bigmouth buffalo commonly found in the rivers of the mountain.
Rock carvings, stamps, and inscriptions abound on the rocks of the mountain illustrate an historical and cultural heritage of more than 2500-3000 years. Unlike Deer stones located in the Khangai Mountain range that depict a deer, Deer stones located in the Altai Mountain range depict a horse.
In addition to a sword widely found on Deer stones, a large sun, small moon, and sometimes an arrow shooting the sun are carved on the upper corner of the face of the stone. There are many tombs and burial complexes found in the mountain that date to ancient tribes from the Hunnu, Turkic, Uighur, and Great Mongolian empires. There is an ancient tomb with more than 30 Human stone monuments found in the Mogoit and Onkhot valleys of the mountain.
There is also a tomb with an interesting shape and formation including 2 Human stone monuments found near Khoton nuur.
Most of the tourists who come to Bayan-Ulgii province visit Altai Tavan Bogd Mountain. For example, in 2018, about 3,000 tourists requested permission to visit the Altai Mountain range from the administration of the Strictly Protected Area of the Altai Mountain Range.
The mountain can be climbed at any time of the year, but experts believe that the weather is best in the months of July through September. However, the weather in the Altai Tavan Bogd mountain is very unstable where you can see all four seasons in one day.
There are no tourist camps or hotels around the mountain.
You can spend the night in a tent or in a ger of local residents (for about 20,000-30,000 MNT per person per night).
The former President of Mongolia issued decree No. 181 in 2012 to include the mountain in the list of state-worshipped mountains and provided for a celestial worship ceremony to be held once every five years. The first state ceremony was held on July 3, 2014, with the participation of government officials led by then-President Ts. Elbegdorj. The second ceremony will be held on August 3, 2022.
Related Tours: “Altai Tavan Bogd Park and Kazakh Nomads”