The southern part of Mongolia is covered in the famous Gobi Desert, and it's one of my favourite parts of the country.
Finding places in this wilderness can be tricky. There are no permanent roads, no addresses, and no real landmarks due to the shifting sands. Thankfully, the new Lonely Planet Mongolia guide comes with 3 word addresses for nearly all the points of interest.
what3words have divided the world into a grid of 3m x 3m squares, and assigned each one a unique 3 word address.
I've included some of these 3 word addresses to help you plan your next adventure. To search with 3 word addresses, download the what3words app or visit map.what3words.com.
The Route In
Started in the city of Dalandzadgad (where I stocked up on food and water), we headed towards the sand dunes of Khongoryn Els in the Gobi Desert.
The landscape started out with mountains, then rolling hills, then a huge sand dune field.
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The Ger Camp
I stayed in a ger (circular tent) in a remote desert location, surrounded by barren landscapes, towering sand dunes, and a few other gers.
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The Camp Owner
The camp was run by a man called Baasanhuu. This lovely man also uses camels to travel around this harsh landscape, ranging from steep dunes to waterlogged marshland from the underground aquifer.
The Marshland
The underwater river source has caused a beautiful eruption of greenery and life at the base of the dunes.
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Khongoryn Els
The dune field is known as Khongoryn Els, or the Singing Sands, due to the sounds they make as the wind whistles through them. The dunes are up to 300m high, with the field being 12km wide and about 100km long.
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Gobi Nights
Due to being so isolated and having no light pollution, the view of the stars from the Gobi Desert is fantastic.
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A big thank you to Lonely Planet and what3words, for not only this trip, but getting together and making the latest guidebook even more awesome.