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| From Left to right: Me, Jerome (Site Mate), Saraa, Oyuna, Jargal and Saraa's Husband/Driver Enkeh |
Mother Mountain was by far one of the most breathtaking places I've visited during my time here in Mongolia. Situated 11 hours south of my site (Altai City) in the Gobi-Dessert, Mother Mountain is one of the most famous mountain peaks in the Altai range. Eej Khairkhan, the Dearest or Sacred Mother derrives its name from an old legend. Eej Khairkhan was married to Aj Bogd Mountain far off to the southwest. But Aj Bogd was old, his head was topped with white year round, and his wife was not happy. Far off to the northeast she could see Burkhan Buudai Mountain. Burkhan Buudai was so handsome, standing tall and proud against the torquoise sky. Aj Bogd’s wife could not take her eyes off of him. With each passing day she liked Aj Bogd less and felt more and more desire for Burkhan Buudai. Finally she decided she must flee to Burkhan Buudai. But Aj Bogd became suspicious of his wife. Every night after she went to sleep he would hide her deel so she would have nothing to wear if she decided to run away. One night his wife woke and decided the time had come to run off to her heart’s desire. But she could not find her deel. In her haste she put on Aj Bogd Uul’s deel and ran off to Burkhan Buudai. Her husband woke up and saw her fleeing across the desert. In his anger he grabbed a big handful of sand and threw it at her. His deel was much too large for his wife and the hem was dragging on the ground behind her. The sand landed on the tail of the deel and held her down. She could not move. She has remained to this day in her present location halfway between Aj Bogd Uul and Burkhan Buudai Uul. The sand which fell on the tail of her deel can still be seen as the big dunes to the southwest of the mountain. But fate was not entirely unkind. Her past was forgotten and she is no longer remembered as an unfaithful wife. Her beautiful form standing alone in the desert brought succor to countless lonely caravan men who could see her from far off and eventually she became known as Eej Khairkhan (“Mother Dearest”) Mountain.
Eej means mother and Khairkhan is an honorific which translates as dearest. This peak is also noted for its beautiful waterfall which flows into nine pools, called the Nine Pots, each situated like stepping stones down the slope. There was a Buddhist monk who lived in a cave here about one hundred years ago which led to this mountain becoming a popular pilgrimage destination.
Our caravan of seven hopped in our land cruiser around 9 am Friday morning. After a few pit stops for lunch, bathroom breaks and camel sitings we arrived at our destination 11 hours later. This wasn't your typical weekend trip, there were no paved roads or rest stops/stores to refresh and buy food. We were the only people for hundreds of kilometers and to be honest I actually didn't mind it. The serenity of being that far from civilization was tranquil and unique. At one point I could have sworn we were on Mars, the shape of the rock formations and rugged terrain was like nothing I had ever seen before.
We settled into our cabin around 9pm the evening, loading it with our luggage, sleeping bags, equipment and food. The following morning my site mates and I decided to take a sun rise hike. After our hike we ventured back to the cabin for breakfast were we indulged in milk tea, bread, various cuts of meat, spreads and fruit. Immediately after breakfast we were back on the trail to explore the mountain. We spent the entire morning and afternoon visiting the former monks cave, napping by the waterfalls and having lunch on a boulder overseeing our camp. That evening we played Monopoly deal , and were invited to dinner by a group of Mongolians from another soum (village). We were blessed with amazing weather and clear skies, so kilometers away from any light pollution we gazed into the sky to watch the constellations. The following morning we ate breakfast piled everything back into our truck and headed back to Altai. I should also mention that Mother Mountain is a national park and is sits on a protected area of approximately 22,475 hectares. I hope I have the opportunity to visit this magnificent ancient wonder again. As always I've posted some pictures from our journey below. Enjoy :)
