I will briefly explain to girls and those who are not yet in the know: "Toyota Prius" is a hybrid Japanese car in which a gasoline engine is complemented by an electric one. The process of their joint work is controlled by an on-board computer, and the main (gasoline) engine works only when necessary. And it turns off as soon as the need for his efforts disappears - when driving at low speed (for example, in traffic jams), while stopping at a traffic light, when braking, when driving with the gas pedal released or on a slope and in other situations when the electric motor is strong handle yourself.
Thanks to this, hybrid cars are more environmentally friendly than conventional cars with internal combustion engines, but the Mongols, of course, do not buy them for this reason. But because "hybrids" allow you to save on gasoline, which, as I already wrote, is expensive in Mongolia. Consumption of "Prius" - from 4 to 6 liters per 100 kilometers, depending on the version, season and driving style. Driving in eco-mode on long steppe tracks allows local residents to significantly save on fuel.
Hybrid cars have one small drawback (but also a merit) - the starting battery. It is used to turn on the car - yes, just turn it on - and maintain its functions when it is turned off (power for the clock and alarm, for example), so it gradually discharges. So the "hybrid" does not like to stand idle for a long time, it needs to be "walked" at least once every few days in order for the starting battery to recharge. Especially do not like to mess around with these cars in the cold season. But in constant operation mode, the battery feels cheerful, and the car does not need to be put on regular warming up in cold weather, like ordinary cars. Even at -30 ° and below, it will turn on without problems - after all, it does not need to turn the frozen starter. But the capabilities of the starting battery are very limited, and, for example, you cannot "light up" an ordinary car from a "hybrid", only a fellow with the same cute little battery. So if you suddenly need this kind of help, do not rely on the Prius, look for a simpler and larger car.
The government of Mongolia welcomes the purchase of "hybrids" in every possible way. In principle, in this country, there are already very humane duties on imported cars - they do not have their own “kind of car industry, which must be pulled with all its might, which means that there is no need for protective import duties. The duty on hybrid cars is even lower than on conventional cars. Moreover, since June 2016, Mongolia has canceled the customs rate on the import of new cars from Japan and taxes on Japanese cars with less than 3 years of use. An excellent example of competent import regulation, when the import of better quality goods is encouraged. So in the near future this country will plug us in the belt in terms of the number of cool cars per capita. On automotive environmental friendliness, I think, already shut up. Oh, you're lucky!
Travel to Mongolia
We have been going to the Mongolian Altai for a long time. Many members of our company teams of 8 people had their own interest there. Expedition planned for the endseptember - early October. It was decided to go by two minibusessah-off-road vehicles. We made a route using the map and calculated an estimate ..
As agreed, meet everyone fox early in the morning of September 24le monument to the leader on the centralnoy area of \u200b\u200bthe village. Kosh-Agach - regional centerra Gorny Altai. Loaded the luggage andmoved to the border checkpoint "Tashanta ". Each car has 4 peoplecentury, personal belongings, camp equipmentnie, products. 45 km from Kosh-Agach to"Tashanta" passed almost withoutturns and climbs. Around onlyautumn steppe yes clear silhouettes ridgethat Saylyugem on the horizon.
Everything at the new Russian customs"Like an adult": all luggage, like in aegrumble, passed through x-raysinstallation, check passports andthe cars themselves. But everything goes bybusiness, fast and clear. To touristsspecial treatment at customs, the boundariesoften with surprise: what is there, in Mongolei, do something? Taking into account fillingall customs papers proceduretook no more than 2.5 hours. (Needcan have a foreign passport with mongolskaya visa and international carsmobile rights.)
At "Tashanta" kilometer tablebov is gone. But the road is pretty decentnaya. About 20 km more with constantclimb - and we are on the borderdurbet-Daba pass (2481 m),who greeted us with a cold prodownward wind. Dilapidatedtied house of the border postnym thin Mukhtar. On the border, on nota large dirty concreted areaspade, two pillars stand aloneka - red-green and blue-brownny, symbolizing statenew borders of Russia and Mongolia. Not youwalking out of the car, showed the documents,and the barrier was raised.
FROM once abroad asthe falt is over. Not a centimeteron the Mongolian side! Entrancewe press to the new customs termlu. The gate is locked. We are like zakoposthe best foreigners are waiting patiently.After a while, mon came upa goal in a gauze bandage on his face andkami explained to take a detourthis new complex is steep fromscythe mountain. If not for this person, sowould have waited until dark.The old customs house is called UlanBayshint "(" red yurt ").
Terminal more like a grain receiving pointcompletely ruined collective farm. At customsnot without special problems to issue usare there any papers in Mongolianke, and we moved on.On the first bridge at the lake. DanshigNuur we were charged a fare (up toheavy duty 1500 tugriks plustransport tax 6,000 tugriks seach minibus). Explainedthat this money will go to maintenanceroads. But it is clear that no one canand never contained.
The roads are here - this is exactly what is called directionlazy: several dozen parallelsnice rolled ruts going toone direction and invariablyon passes and bridges. Edacue 20-lane Mongolian highway.You need to be extremely attentive on itnym: any subtle branchcan easily lead to thatrush to some lonely stayshu. The road is broken by heavy loadskami and "UAZ" (soil - hard clayon with a stone), our speed even fromrelatively flat areas are rarelywent out 35-40 km / h.
The front axle is notincluded, since the road went to the basicsnom downhill. Plots with rubble, doglump and even with large stones wavewe overcame without much effort.But 1.5 hours before the sun beginshiding behind low ridges, wedrove only 30 km. Meeting machineswere rare. It was mostly hardlight trucks and fuel trucks from Russiasky numbers. From local cars tomostly old "UAZs".
Already at dusk we passed the townTsagan-Nuur - a small one-storyvillage with ruins of farms and koshars.Having decided to break the bivouac, they facedproblem: there were many flat places, butall the soil is strewn with rather largestones, and pitch the tent so thatit would be comfortable to sleep, not easy. Yes andwith water "strained". It's almost darkthey drove into the valley of a dry riverHara-Magnai-Gol and began to put onpatches.
Tea was quickly boiled on gasand judging that “the morning of the evening is wiseher ", went to sleep under the low black,strewn with the brightest ashth stars in the sky of Mongolia.In the morning we felt on ourselves thatsuch an autumn Mongolian dawn. Gasfrozen in cylinders and did not want to goroar in full force. Finally from behind the mountainthe sun came out and everyone stirredfaster. Together we turned camp, andour little caravan moved farshe. Immediately began to meet the floordestroyed mounds. (We were stilldid not know how many of them would be on ourpaths.)
We are driving along the bottom of a dry valley, whichthe ruy is surrounded by low mountains.Here is the Obotyn-Daba pass (2643 m).It's blowing cold, almost scorching veter. At the very pass, there isyes stones - the famous about. Nearim a lot of broken homemadecrutches. Further the road is practicaltends to constantly go down, to the sidewell the center of the westernmost aimag -bayan-Ulegey. The birds are almost invisiblebut the local marmots have not yet gone to bedand fearlessly stand along the road. Pochmet near the cityshoy herd of horses.
P at the entrance to the city at the firstask the fallen taxi driverwhether the road to the travel agency "CanatTour ". In a nice one-story officewith a cafe almost in the city center, we are metthey were very welcome. While we're walkingwhether around the city, the Canat Tour staff promptly issued a registration and a pass to the national park for us. Bayan-Ulegey - by our standards,rather a large village. But in the centerthere is a bazaar, mail with the Internet, notlarge hotels, cafes, a museum, etc.whose attributes of the city.
There is also a cell connection. First of all, we visited the bazaar. Onthere is a whole line near himmotorcycles - red "Izha" and old"Uralov". Guys in yellow sit on themconstruction helmets. First thought:biker hangout. But it turned out to beordinary taxis. They go wherever you goher heart desires, even in Ulan Bator. Nottaxis are already more serious in the distance:mainly "UAZs" of different designstions and degrees of preservation.
Apparently they did not have to pass inspectionnever die. Many have such rubberthat not only the cord sticks out. Nonethelesson the windshields of the sign "Barnastreet "," Ust-Kamenogorsk "," Pavlodar ","Astana". Near a taxi - movingnye "exchange offices": the same hundredsmall cars with glued on the frontnew glasses with banknotes: grewrussian rubles, Kazakhstani tenge, Chinese yuan, Americandollars.
Most marketable productslaid out directly on the ground or on a carton boxes; mostly Chineseth production. For a small computerin the lobby hall right on the streetbilliard tables (about 20), andgenus, including 8-10 year olds,chases balls with passion. A bit further,on the next street, right on the dustyheaps of sheep skins are laid out on the ground,yaks and other livestock. Right there next to -cut animal carcasses.We returned to the office of the travel agency. Prikizeros that diesel fuel for the entire route to usis not enough, and by buying in the local marketseveral Chinese canisters, filledthem under the neck.
Towards evening, whenyes the documents were ready, we left forside of Sagsai-Gol.Even during the preparation for the expeditionwe have read a lot of reports. Alltheir authors recommended taking fromfight of a local guide. We did not becomeneglect advice and do not regret it.Togo Tsedenbal went with us. Edinstthe military difficulty was that hedid not speak Russian or English at allliski. But he spoke well untilzahski. Due to overloading of machines,we could not take the driver, but from the Turkof the "interpreters" among us wasonly Andrey Yurchenkov.
ABOUT five famous Mongolian"Comb" (road with deepruts and bumps). For someit shakes so much that even a guidepower amplifier does not help and steering wheel beechknocks out of the hands, at the same timeturn on the right turn andki ". If we were driving "UAZs", then onsurely something would fall off onthe very first kilometers. We only havesteep ascent to the Modon-Ho passshoyotiin-Davaa (2384 m) by the car, onflying on the boulder, the protection came offcrankcase (crankcase is a container for avcar oil).
How could, under drove with a sledgehammer, tied with a rope(no wire can be found there) and alreadywe moved further into the river valleySagsai-Gol. Behind the village of Sagsay,riding over the bridge of the river, we camped onshore near a lonely larch. Undergeneral "Hurray!" raised the flags of Russia,Kazakhstan, Mongolia and drank tostart of the expedition. Today we passedwhether only 114 km.
The whole next day you can call mountain: continuous ascents onpasses and plateaus.
Modon-HoshoiyoiyinDaba (2384 m), Achagardag-Daba (2698 m),lake Har-Nuur (2493 m) ... Naked everywherelifeless rocks, solid stonesplacers. Classic maddeneddeposits left by ancient icenickname. There is practically no water. Nezadrove to the post nationallygo of the Altai Tavan Bogd park (Altai Tavan Bogd "). Large Mongolian yurt,outbuildings. While aboutbelieved our permission, invitedinside the yurt. It seemed that we were waiting therewhether.
Hot tea with milk, kurt (saltdried sheep cheese), yerimshik(dried cottage cheese), kaymak (thick mixturetana) and many other localniy. The yurt is clean, neat,a large chest of drawers stands chinese bodyvisor, carpets on the walls, animal skins,stuffed birds. Eat, drank, pay offfox, said goodbye to hospitable hostsevami - and "on horses."On the mountain roads the suspectbut often began to come across base capspains.
They are usually lost by passengerstrucks loaded with yurts and prochim belongings. And the load is muchbigger than the car itself. And on verhu this mountain the nomads themselves sitki with the kids. Often meetsemi-disassembled trucks thatlocal drivers are trying to repairtart right on the side of dustyroads. And next to them there are no less7-10 passengers. They follow the carsnumerous herds of rams, goats,sarlykov (as the locals callyaks), horses, surprisingly hairycows, camels.
These are the localsroam down - to winter pastures. And wewe go up! It's getting a littlehe is uncomfortable with the thought of a possible dreamge and ice on the passes. But in the mountain uplinakh many yurts are still turning white, and so far wenot alone. The Hodon Gol Valleycrowded: every now and then there are nolarge camps of 2–5 yurts per racestanding a few hundred meters friendfrom friend. Near the bridge over the river there iseven a gas station: a tank buried in the groundon and one mechanical column.
In its free sale of gasoline A-80 at a pricejust above the city. The owner is happyposes. Demonstrates workspeakers, without removing from the mouth of the litcigarettes. But there is no diesel fuel. Good thatwe stocked up in advance.By the evening we drive up to the pogrethe outpost with China, standing onthe shore of the beautiful Lake Dayan-Nuur.Further along the southeast coasthectares of the lake won't let us in. It's time to putcamp. Not far away on the slope of the Viden a small forest.
There is no water, but but there is firewood, and you can at least a littletake shelter from the cold wind. Untilthe guys set up a camp, we threewent to the lake. It was getting dark. Fast timesshook fishing tackle to tiewhat is the famous Mongoliansky fishing. The fish did not force itselfwait a long time: almost by the fifthbros pecked pretty decent onthe size of the grayling. Until dark, minutesover 25, managed to catch a couple moreke fish. On the speedometer 125 km - ourday crossing.
Have it started with a strong wind. Neitherwhat kind of fishing is not necessary anddream: there is a storm on the lakeemits foam from steep wave crests. Cloudsdust is lifted into the air. Occasionallygusts of wind throw a handful at usno coarse coastal sand. Honeylenno drove up to the southern shore of the lakera Khurgan-Nuur (2072 m). Solid kachangeable terraces, large anglesboulders, wetlands,
fords through small mountain rivers.
Very painter came acrossa group of local residents on the willowpeople laden with yurts, beds,barrels and other household belongings.Finally, here are the first ancient zagorothe opinions about which we read in the reports.All, as if on command, got the camerary. Two small Turkic moundsrectangular shape. Ancient Tyrki for the funeral rite afterkhoron built a kind of temple:a fence was laid out on the ground in the formsquare.
Possibly square handicapma symbolized the homeland, whichthe Turks represented in the form of a square,at the corners of which are locatedhi. There is a statue near each grave -a stone woman, and then two rowsupright small kachange columns going somewhereinto the distance, into the steppe. UAZ drove up withlocal numbers. Passenger of the eyea middle-aged Frenchwoman got intotoraya has been living here for 25 yearsthe Golsky name Tunga.
Writes books about Mongolia. We get up in the sky at nightshom larch forest, protectingblowing us from the strong wind. Our securrent mileage is 68 km.Thermometer in the car in the morning showingminus 11 ° С, but the wind almost died down,and the bright mountain sun is shining. Target onof today's transition - a lakeHoton-Nuur. Soon on the way again the priesta frontier post is given. Released onwelcome officers, friendly, goodthey come with us, check documents.
After another 500 m we approach the bridgeacross the Syrgal channel between lakesKhoton-Nuur and Khurgan-Nuur in the zi areamovers Shargalga. This is where we really arehave learned what Mongolianfishing! Almost every castthe tackle was lucky: the big one was caught,weighing up to 1 kg, grayling. The fish was chasingany spinner and often caught onsideways, then gills, then belly. Placesnye guys, without much trickery, justthrew a piece of thick fishing line with barea tee at the end and also does notthey went without prey.
In half an hour, reshiv that we have enough fish for dinner, andto catch it for the future and, most importantly,will not be able to save, let's move on.Goodbye gave the boys 100 mfishing line and a couple of small spinners.The bridge across the channel is made ofnoah larch, and as nastyala used poles from the same sheetwedges up to 10 cm in diameter.But ourthe cars passed without any problems. Razgowe scamper as soon as we can, loudlymoo the poles of the bridge and with the acceleration of the highnod to the steep sandy oppositefalse northern bank of the channel.
Dahl our path lies in the northweston the shore of Lake Khoton-Nuur to the veryits northern end. There, according to theboor, there are numerous rockdrawings. And while one went tosearch for petroglyphs, others again racescovered spinning rods.Mongolian peaksof the Altai were reflected in the mirrorthe waters of the lake. Fishing this time
was not so successful: far into the water it's impossible to enter, and the tackle is oftenclung to the rocky bottom.
Catching a dozen grayling and tearing off a couple of bleusep, decided for today fishing lawchit, especially since the daily catch providedbaked us a good supper. Returnedour friends. Their excursion was wheremore successful: on steep slopesmountains they found hundreds of petroglyphs: inmostly images of animals. Ochea rare camp was set up near the pusthat wintering in the lower reaches of the Ut-Hai Rivertone-Goal. Hastily built a hearth, forcovering fire from the wind, and on coalsbaked the fish.
We spent the night in woodenwintering buildings. On this day odowe were only 28 km away. Morning again "pleased" its"Freshness". Until the sun roseall, everyone wore warm jackets orwrapped themselves in blankets. Conducted an auditdiesel fuel. It seems that it will not be enough forpath to the valley of the Tsagan-Gol river, to the mountainsnominal node Tavan-Bogd-Uul (4374 m).It's a pity ... Well, the roads are not at stakeare expected. We will also meet with the sacredmi peaks!
It was decided to returnxia through the passes east of the lakes inthe valley of the Kobdo-Gol river and through the villagelok Tsengal to return to Ulegey. Byon the map, this road seemed more prowalkable. During preparation for expedition, sitting at home and on the maptea route, we did not planat least 150 km per day. In the realityit turned out to be much less ...On the way back a little bit againgo fishing in the channel betweendo lakes.
D oroga through the passes becamealmost familiar. All the samestones, stones, stones ... Placesmi, where roads converge, is knocked out deepside track. For the hundredth time happythey thought they had taken a local guide.Even having a lot of experience in mountain riding,sometimes wondered how infallible he wasbut indicated exactly the track along whichthe swarm must go. The day was unusually "harvestnym "on historical landmarksness. On this day we saw notone dozen stone women.
But the pain most of all were struck by huge moundsin the Mogoit tract. The diameter of someof them was more than 50 m, and the height was up towas 4 m. We started to go downalong the valley of the Mogoityn-Gol river and,driving the bridge over the river. Kobdo Gol, got upcamp at a small wintering place. And vecherum celebrated birthdaydenia Alexandra Lebedev. Todayalmost "record" - 61 km.This night was perhaps the mostcold for the whole trip. In the morningthe thermometer was -15 ° С.
Do not warm shaft even hot coffee with Altaibalm. We assembled the camp anddrove along the Kobdo-Gol river. Doroha bearable, but still acceleratedoes not work. After driving kilometers5, on the banks of the river saw an airborne"ZIL-131" with a dozen funny peoplein the back and dented "UAZ" - "orderlyku ". It turned out that the "UAZ" with Americakan tourists tried to wadecross a deep river and, as we canbut was expected to stalled in the middlechannel. Fortunately, in this place of the eyezIL-131 was installed.
Tourists in largelucky: they themselves would not have got out, butwe could hardly help, sincefrom the coast was about 20 m at a depthnot up to a meter. And we are not even fordknew. From the cracks of the "UAZ" you are stillwater poured down. There were scatters aroundsleds wet clothes and otherchristov. Cheerful passengers of "ZIL"loaded into the back with a noise and briskly,driving the waves of Kobdo, rolled backto the left bank. After 43 km and two hours drivewe press in the village. Tsengel. On the centralthe squares are the same dust and the same sarsbast. But the store has realmongolian beer!
The road from Tsengel towards Ulegay walks through the Mushgiragiyin passDaba (2251 m). We see no owls aheadthis is a clear car footprint.Obviously not from "UAZ". After somesome time we meet the old "Mitsubishi Galant "sticking out from under itfeet. Stopped, asked notdo I need help. From under the car fromthey said that everything was in order. I will envyeat the fearlessness of local drivers.Ule is already visible from the Haar-Daba passgay. Finally we drove in a dayas much as 164 km! How we returned home! Tsivilization. Though broken, but asphaltshops, gas stations, hotel. True, thno hot water.
I on a sleepy morning the next day fromwe go to the village. Sagsay-Gol,in the vicinity of which tomorrowbeautiful holiday begins berkutchi. Dozens of Kazakh hunters withbirds of prey (golden eagles, saplami) gather in the foothills and mouthraces competitions. We are met andare accommodated in the Blue Wolf camp... In the evening to us guys from Israel, Jordan fitnii, England, with whom we knowsettled in Ulegay, as well as friends fromGorno-Altaysk. Festive againdinner.
This time it's birthdayAndrey Yurchenkov. And how many yearsin a row, again on the road, again from the newmy friends ... Among the spectators at the festival, Ith tourists and children. Schoolchildren in aksmart jackets, adults in thekih national clothes. Along vecar renitsa local craftsmenmoe spread their souvenirs on the matry. A couple stands out among the sellersyoung people are clearly not Asian atrationality with a small child.
It turned out to be a family from the United States, whichparadise has been living in Mongolia for three years andmakes a living makingeating and selling souvenirs.Towards evening we decided to returnin Ulegay. In order not to waste time, bydrove south to Lake Tolbo-Nuur, towhich is described by everyone who is hereshaft. It is famous for its large number ofpom fish and rare birds. Already incomplete darkness, afraid to get stuck in bahtpake (muddy mud), set up camp. Utrum turned out to be more or lessi can't reach a convenient place for a campor some 600-700 m....
The first rays of the sun shyly illuminatedcalm waters of Tolbo-Nuur lie.Despite the cold, photographers are alreadywork. The rest of the small comandoy went to fish. 2 km fromattractive rolling pins are visible.Although grayling took, but not so actively,as on the Syrgal channel.We turn off the camp and, almost no waspswhile driving in Ulegey, we go to the sidewell, the Russian border. Ours already"Old friend" - Obo passtyn-daba.
We leave a fewcoins in the hope of returning. Perspent the night on the shores of small lakestsa Danshig-Nuur. Woke up from the roar of heavy loadsviks and fuel trucks, stretching a hundreddrop the border. Local resident posohe said to hurry up, because todayya monday and after the weekend ona long queue of customs.Losing half a day in line, crossabout the long-awaited border. We are dreamingwha in Russia ...
H a few tips. If you driveon your car, then to BayanUlgia is much more reliable onnyat "UAZ". Your car can beput in the parking lot.The Mongolian currency is tugriks.1 p. is equal to 45.6 tugriks. In Bayan-Ulegii diesel worth an examplebut 920 tugriks per 1 liter, A-80 - 780 tugrikov for 1 liter. There is no gasoline in the mountainseverywhere, and only A-80. Not preventtake your engine cleaner with youand spare air and fuelfilters.
In the cold season, we canbut add antigel, because in localdiesel fuel has paraffin. Not preventand a second spare wheel. Tire service isonly in Bayan Ulegia. From constantdust is rescued by wet wipes andeye drops. It is necessary to take into account the features of mongolsky roads. In this country onand more used transport -"UAZs" of Russian and Chineseproduction and our "ZIL-130",so the track is rolled under these matires.
If you want to travelwalk around Mongolia in your tranceport, you need to know that for parquetnew "jeeps is pretty seriousnew test. Don't leave yours unattendedthings. At customs, be attentiveus, neat, polite, calm,patient, don't fall for the provocation, blackmail, extortion,do not take other people's luggage and passingpassengers. Some Mongols know Russian
Adygea, Crimea. Mountains, waterfalls, herbs of alpine meadows, healing mountain air, absolute silence, snowfields in the middle of summer, murmur of mountain streams and rivers, stunning landscapes, songs by fires, the spirit of romance and adventure, the wind of freedom are waiting for you! And at the end of the route there are gentle waves of the Black Sea.
We arrived from our almost three week trip by car.
Preparing for travel
The preparation of our trip began almost six months ago, during which time we prepared a little for our trip, namely:
- Installed snorkel.
- We bought an autonomous charger - a power bank (tested on the Mongols, it works).
- Bought a bunch of spare parts:
- brake hose - 1 pc. - not needed,
- ball - 1 pc. - not needed,
- repair kit for brake caliper with piston - not needed,
- valve cover gasket - not needed,
- engine sealant - not needed
- metal clamps 3 pcs. - one was needed to attach the stabilizer bushing bracket, due to the loss of the mounting bolt,
- drive belt - not needed,
- a belt on a viscous coupling - not needed,
- filters (cabin, air, oil) - changed the air filter after changing the engine oil;
- oil in the engine - they changed the oil in Ulan-Ude (excellent service station on the road, I don't remember the name),
- antifreeze - not needed,
- brake fluid (helped the Mongols in a minibus who had a broken brake pipe). Later I needed it myself ... I had to buy it in with. Aktash.
- Candles 4 pcs. - were not needed,
- a repair kit for repairing tires - not needed, we arrived without punctures, although we drove more than 30 km on sharp stones in places where we got lost!
- Fuel activator Motor resource 200 ml. - 3 pcs. for 600 liters of fuel (only 1.5 packages were used).
- Received international rights - they were not needed, no one needs them there. The Mongol turned them around, turned them around and decided to let us go, but still did not achieve anything.
- We changed the oil and filter in the automatic transmission.
To begin with, our route along the route changed mainly upward, with arrivals to interesting places.
Part 1. Road across Russia
The first day
Our adventure journey has begun June 17 at 15.00, start from Novosibirsk (Akademgorodok).
We filled a full tank of AI92, one 10 liter canister, and drove off ...
On the first day, there was almost nothing interesting, except for annoying cracks on the windshield from a mad "thief", which, before reaching Zhuravlevo, drove to the side of the road while paving asphalt. Two stones the size of a hen's egg flew from it ... I thought it would break more, but got off with a cobweb 2.5 x 2.5 cm. It will be necessary to drill until there are no cracks all over the glass.
Our first overnight stay was on a lake near the town of Mariinsk.
Second day
In the morning my husband tried to catch a fish, the result was zero, the neighbor had a couple of crucians with his palm. We had breakfast and moved on.
Most of the major cities were bypassed. So it was with Krasnoyarsk.
Our next overnight stay was on the Biryusa River (I finally found out where the river flows, after which the refrigerator is called at my house).
By the way, it is not for nothing that the refrigerator was named after this river. We stopped immediately, crossing the bridge. The water is clean, the shore, however, is all in garbage, I had to clean up a little ... Some were taken to the nearest trash can, some were burned on the spot.
One of the places that we wanted to see is Lake Baikal.
Our plans were to drive along the shore of the lake. Baikal and stay in the town of Baikalsk, but we decided to change our route and visit about. Olkhon.
As a result, we left Irkutsk for the village of Sakhyurta, from where the ferry goes to about. Olkhon. We got to the village at about 22.45, in the village, not far from the ferry, the traffic police crew stopped us, checked that the driver was sober, and let us go. There is no queue, we got on the ferry at about 22.50 and immediately headed to the other side.
The ferry was free. Having reached the coast, we followed the Maps Me navigation to the village of Khuzhir. The road, to say the least, is bad ... Sometimes it was possible to drive no more than 20 km / h, they did not think of immediately reducing the tire pressure.
We arrived in Khuzhir, circled the streets, tried to go ashore ... But, since it's night outside, the road was not found. We went to the outskirts of the village ... A pine forest appeared, we decided to spend the night right in the forest.
Day three. Baikal
The next morning we went, bought food and souvenirs in the largest supermarket on the island. We stopped at the street. Baikalskaya, 58, tasted the most delicious poses that were prepared especially for us.
And, of course, we bought hot-smoked omul, cold-smoked and dried (from 100 rubles per piece).
In order to ride and take a photo of Lake Baikal, we rented 3 bicycles, the cost is 100 rubles per hour per unit.
We visited the local beach ... We tried to swim, but it didn't work - the water temperature is + 9 ° С. Husband and son went knee-deep, did not dare further. I plunged completely. For 10 seconds, my unprepared body did not allow more. Although I love a contrast shower, he protested here.
We spent another night on the island, but closer to the ferry, on the sandy shore in a deserted place.
The next day, we successfully reached the village of Sakhyurta by ferry, met an expedition from China in 5 cars, they travel from Manchuria to Lake Baikal and back.
While we are waiting for the ferry, we decided to blow up the wheels for the asphalt. Locals are insolently rushing out of line. By the way, buses, minibuses and special vehicles skip the line on the ferry.
We left in the direction of Ulan-Ude. We took a photo of Baikal from the observation deck.
We reached Ulan-Ude in the late afternoon. It turns out that the time had to be shifted one hour ahead.
Through some site for booking hotels, we booked a room in a small hotel called "Camping" (located almost immediately at the entrance to the city, in the Sovetsky district). We arrived at the place - the administrator was surprised that they can book something on the Internet. In general, we settled in a junior suite for 1100 rubles +200 rubles. child (up to 7 years old for free), for this we got: a toilet, a shower in the room and a clean bed, that's all we need for the night. True, we were not lucky with hot water. Well, I was trained by Baikal, and so I was able to wash myself.
Day four. Border
At the exit from Ulan-Ude we stopped at the service station to change the oil. We changed it in 20 minutes, the oil and the filter were ours. We have been pouring ZIC X7 LS 5w30 for 50 thousand km already, we buy a 6-liter canister - it is very convenient, the remainder after the replacement is just enough to refill 9-10 thousand km before the next replacement. Consumption up to 1 liter. by 10 thousand km. I think it's normal, especially since the operation is sometimes difficult.
On the way to the border, this beauty stands in Buryatia, almost near the road.
Now our path lies in the border town of Kyakhta.
Hooray! We are in Kyakhta.
We refueled, bought groceries at a local Metro-type store, and went through customs. We stood for about 20 minutes in front of the first gate. Mongols insolently drive ahead in trucks.
They let us in, we went to a search ... A woman with an action camera came up to us and checked the contents of our things, and also asked us if we were carrying anything forbidden. Things from the trunk had to be laid out. There was a suspicious suitcase with our belongings and sports. bag with tools. And, by the way, there really were my son's fireworks in the suitcase, which I took away from the RCR the other day. At this, the search was over. All employees, I want to note, are very friendly towards Russians. We had 3 cans with us: 1-20 liters. with water, 2 - 20 liters for empty gasoline, 3 - 10 liters. with gasoline, we read earlier that you can only bring 10 liters of gasoline. However, we did not check anything in the canisters, nor whether they were full or not. We went through the inspection of the car, went to draw up documents and go through passport control.
A stationary radio 27 MHz (SI-BI) and 2 portable radios are installed in the car - I asked several times if they needed to be declared somehow, they answered no.
When drawing up the documents, if you are going to leave through another crossing point, be sure to indicate this. You will be given a small sticker with a bar code, you will need it when you pass the border back to Russia, otherwise it seems like your car will be at customs control.
Further, immediately behind our customs, the Mongolian customs is located, after the barrier and crossing the muddy ford (sort of like disinfection), take a piece of paper, there will be a booth at the entrance immediately. Then again go through the inspection, but this time by the Mongolian side, turn the car out again, go through passport control, fill out a mini-questionnaire, then pay 60 rubles. for a dirty puddle through which we drove.
Put all the necessary stamps and leave the border.
Immediately after the barrier, a woman runs to you who needs to pay a transport tax of 10,000 tugriks or 300 rubles. (it is better to first change rubles into tugriks, it will be cheaper, you can change literally 20 meters away at an exchange office). Insurance is 10 meters away. I paid 1150 rubles. (indicated the real volume). Changed rubles into tugriks ... Became millionaires - the rate of 1 ruble. \u003d 39 tugriks. (on the border with Tashanta the rate was 1 ruble \u003d 41 tugrik, in the city of Mandal Gobi the rate was 1 ruble \u003d 37.75 tugrik).
Hooray! Finally we passed the border ... Due to the fact that we stumbled with a ford and did not take a piece of paper at once, we spent 2 hours.
What is needed from the documents for passing the border to Mongolia:
- Foreign passport for all passengers and driver.
- Documents for the car - registration certificate (technical passport) - plastic card.
- ! It is imperative that you are the owner of the car, or, in extreme cases, a notarized power of attorney has been issued.
Expenses: 10,000 petrol, Mileage: 2,500 km.
We entered Mongolia ....
Part 2. Mongolia
Our main task was to visit the monument of Genghis Khan on the outskirts of Ulan Bator, visit the Gobi desert and fish on the cleanest lakes and rivers. We drove towards the monument of Genghis Khan on horseback. Drove ...
The first city was Sukhbaatar, we passed it without stopping.
What catches the eye when visiting Mongolia is the insane number of Toyota Prius cars and the number of tire changers at every corner - in Mongolian “Dugi zavar”.
Day five
We woke up a bit early, at 4 am, but it was already quite light, and the horned ones grazed with might and main. There were yurts nearby.
100 km before Ulan Bator, we once again stopped for the night.
Sixth day. Ulaanbaatar
The city of Ulan Bator met us with a little rain. The traffic in the city is disgusting, and even spent two hours in traffic jams. About traffic in Ulaanbaatar: everyone stops at a traffic light ... this is where all the rules end. A pedestrian crossing is like in Thailand, if you managed to slip through, you were lucky ... But although you may be lucky, one car out of a hundred will let you through. When rebuilding, the signal is not included. The rules for driving the ring, on the contrary, are not the same as ours. A training car was driving in front of us through the city, packed to the brim with novice drivers ... How hard it was for them. There is a separate lane for public transport, and even passenger cars manage to take it, but buses travel without traffic jams.
In general, you can get used to this movement in half an hour. If you have experience driving in the city center. I tried not to drive around the cities, I gave the steering wheel to my husband.
In Ulaanbaatar, we saw the signs of KFC and Burger King - they left their cars in the alley of houses and went shopping. We went to KFC because the son loves hamburgers, and you can't buy them anywhere else here. Made an order: a hamburger and a drink 7500 tugriks (192 rubles). The child then sent a check to his classmates on WhatsApp so that the classmates would wave. My wife and I decided to try buuza, went to the first cafe we \u200b\u200bcame across, where we tasted the local cuisine - buuz and tsai (green tea with butter and salt), surprisingly liked the tea, paid for everything about 5,000 tugriks - 130 rubles.
I liked the montun buuz (600 tugriks for 1 piece) (the dough is somewhat similar to the pyansa). Tsai 300 tugriks.
Two pieces were enough for me to overeat.
We refreshed ourselves and decided to look for sights.
At first we tried to find on the map in which direction the famous monument to Genghis Khan on horseback is located, but the Mongolian map did not help us very much. There is no Internet, mobile communication costs around 100-150 rubles. in a minute, so it was turned off immediately after entering this wonderful country. We decided to look for passers-by who speak Russian, because driving around the city is suicide (with such traffic and traffic jams). An hour later, such a person was found. He told how to get to the monument, and even showed a photo on his phone, we immediately understood that this is what we are looking for.
After leaving Ulan Bator, in the direction of Bayandelger after 40 km we reached the first stop.
The monument is really striking in its scale.
The entrance for the three of us left a little more than 20,000 tugriks (530 rubles), cheaper for children.
At the entrance you will be greeted by guides who speak English and Russian - they will tell you everything for free.
On the ground floor there are souvenir shops; prices, by the way, are quite adequate - low. Nearby there is a rental of national clothes for only 3,000 tugriks (75 rubles). The largest Mongolian boot and whip is also located here.
The second floor has a restaurant and a toilet. Above, there is an elevator and a ladder for climbing to the observation deck, which is located in the head of the horse.
On the basement floor there is a museum with two rooms, in one of which you can sit at a table like a real khan and take wonderful photos, and in the other there are rare artifacts, and you cannot take pictures ...
Gobi Desert
In the town of Mandalgovi we realized that the money that we changed at the border was 10,000 rubles. \u003d 390,000 tugriks will not be enough for us to the end. We decided to go to the bank and change.
We found a bank in the navigator and went to him. There was a small crowd near the entrance to the bank.
Inside, of course, there is no display with the exchange rate ... Come up, show your papers and change, taking an electronic queue.
We seem to have found ourselves on a day when the entire population of the city came to receive pensions, benefits, salaries and other payments. Elderly people are dressed in national clothes - they wear it all the time, and not only on holidays. One of the Mongolians gave us the spine of the electronic queue, which reduced our waiting time by about 1-2 hours. We showed our papers of 5000 rubles. operator and expected a positive response from her. As a result, we changed 15,000 rubles for 550,000 tugriks.
Banks have the most unfavorable conditions. But we had nothing to do, money was running out, and we were going to the heart of the desert.
On the way we stopped at a roadside cafe. As usual, my husband and I ordered buuza with tsai. And the son was asked for meat with rice and lipton.
Here's what they brought us.
The child, of course, did not eat all of this, but this dish costs 5500 tugriks.
Buuz here are 500 tugriks each.
At the entrance to Dalanzadgad we were stopped by the police. At that moment I was at the helm. After stopping, the husband opened the window on the passenger side, handed the insurance and his international rights to the policeman, although I was driving ... The policeman looked at the insurance, gave it back, looked at the driver's license without opening it (there is a photo inside and the available categories are indicated), judging by the appearance, did not understand what was given to him - he returned the license and left. And we moved on.
Here is the first and last meeting with the Mongolian police. Not a single policeman with a hairdryer (radar) was found on our way ...
After we passed the city of Dalanzadgad, the asphalt told us "bye".
In the Dalanzadgad or Gurvantes area (I vaguely remember), our navigator led us to a dead end. Well, as a dead end ... Simply in front of us there was a dune with a height of 4-5 storey building. We left the car and went to take beautiful photos.
Gasoline is running out ... There are 29 liters in cans, and you still have to get out.
Let's go back, the navigator was at a loss. We went with a Mongolian map to ask for directions from the nearest yurt. A Mongol and his daughter came up to us, looked at the map ... But they could not show anything on it. He asked for a piece of paper and a pen (he neither speaks nor understands Russian), drew us an approximate path ... We did not understand anything. He waved his hand at us, got on a motorbike and showed us to follow us. We drove 30 kilometers, he stopped and showed to follow the power line. He asked where we were from, we said - from Russia. True, the word "Russia" did not understand, but after the word "Moscow" he smiled and showed "class".
Hooray! We went out onto the road that is in our navigator.
Driving through the Gobi Desert and, in general, riding on the dirt roads of Mongolia, you can see many empty bottles of vodka (in Mongolian - Archi), frankly drunk at the wheel were seen only in the city of Khovda, more precisely, on the outskirts of the city. There was a police car, it looks like there was a "round-up", there were 200 Kruzaks standing nearby, the driver of which could barely stay on his feet ... It smelled like at least 1-2 drunk bottles of "archi".
When we entered Mongolian cities, and even more so, villages, we were always in the spotlight, sometimes even people came out of their houses to look at us, as if a circus with clowns had arrived.
In the town of Baruun Bayan Ulan, we once again asked for help from the locals. But it feels like they see the map of their country for the first time.
Somehow we understood the direction, moved again along the high-voltage poles. But my husband wanted to get to the lake, which he longed for after Dalanzadgad, not far from Bogd Sum, Lake Orog. But we never got to it, there is a very bad road, pits and hills, along which you need to go up to 5 km / h. And while we were trying to get closer to this lake, we again stumbled upon the sands.
Here the sand is fine and white. It was getting dark, and we decided to pitch our tent on the sands.
In the evening the sand is cold, and in the daytime you can't stand up with bare feet, it is very hot.
Day seven
In the morning we went to the city of Bogd, towards the city of Bayankhogor. In the steppe we met a lonely sign.
In Bogta, we stocked drinks at the store.
Had a snack nearby at a local cafe.
The child ate sausages in batter (1000 tugriks), I, as usual, about buuza (500 tugriks) with tsai, and my husband ordered himself a dish for 5500 tugriks.
We moved towards Altai. We did not visit Bayankhogor. Road works are underway there. Asphalt is being laid.
Malebn is not far from the town of Zhinst.
The map showed a good asphalt road there. By 12 o'clock in the morning, we still got to her. 40 km to the city of Delgare. We set up a tent for the night. The weather began to deteriorate. Russia is very close. The wind and the clouds gathering in the sky reminded us of this.
The next stop was planned at the lake near the town of Khovd.
Not far from the town of Khovd there is a wonderful lake Khar-Us Nuur... We found a place near the shore and set up a tent. The next morning I managed to catch only 3 fish with a fishing rod ... Because the fish pecked only on a fly (live), and they ran out of What kind of fish, we still did not understand ... But it looks like Osman.
Due to the fatigue of the crew, it was decided to go towards the border with Russia.
Border again
Arriving at the border in Tsagaannuur at 17.45, we learned that the opening hours were coming to an end, and they would not have time to miss us.
We turned around and went to look for the nearest place to spend the night.
We arrived around 12 o'clock, of course, we got on a lunch break. We had lunch nearby in a cafe. On the menu there are only buuzas and green tea with milk. We took 5, then 5 more and 7 more, in the end ate 17 buuz for three and drank 1.5 liters of tea.
Small buuza, 300 tugriks per piece.
A column of 6 cars with Russian numbers - 42, 174 regions - lined up behind us. It turned out that they also traveled to Mongolia. They said that not far from the lake where we stayed there is Lake Khyargas Nuur, where you can fish with your hands. And quite large. As a fisherman, I wanted to return, but my wife and son wanted to go to Russia. There is a reason to go to Mongolia again, now I already know where to go.
Customs passed the Mongolian side pretty quickly, at this point a lot of people speak Russian, always prompted what to do. The inspection is quick and superficial.
The Mongolian side is over.
We drove over the fence, again a broken dirt road.
Having reached the Russian side, they checked the passports and transferred the number of people in the car to the Russian customs office so that no one ran away on the way. As soon as we entered the Russian border zone, excellent asphalt started.
At the Russian customs, a representative of Rospotrebnadzor was the first to meet us. In uniform, she looked like Mary Poppins from the movie. Having passed the control of Rospotrebnadzor, we went to passport control and inspection.
All passed. The car was removed from control.
Hooray! We returned to Russia ... That feeling when I'm ready to kiss my native asphalt.
Now Gorny Altai is waiting for us.
Regarding clean drinking water, we always bought it in supermarkets. 5-liter cans cost around 50 rubles. And, of course, soft drinks - Fanta with pineapple, peach, apple, grape flavor. Sprite with a mint flavor ... This is not a Sprite with a taste of cucumber, as in Russia.
What we liked from the food bought in supermarkets: Korean noodles (we know it well, since a couple of years ago I was engaged in the wholesale of similar products in the Russian Federation), pate from someone's liver (Mongolian production), camel milk, delicious bread. Very cheap and good green tea. In Ulgeya, chicken eggs produced by the science city of Koltsovo (a neighbor of Akademgorodok in Novosibirsk) were even on sale. There are a lot of Korean and Chinese products, everything is delicious. I liked the local ice cream (maybe because I was in the position, 16 weeks) 600 tugriks each, the taste is specific, sour.
For gifts they brought a couple of bottles of Genghis Khan vodka, in the region of 14,000 tugriks (360 rubles) per piece, the cheapest vodka is almost like ours, from 190 rubles. for 0.5.
Numbers:
Spent in rubles:
Fuel - 8,000 rubles. or 312,000 tugriks
Mongolian insurance - 1,150 rubles. (if you enter from the city of Kyakhta through Altan Bulag, they may not be released without it ... And I was calm with it, by the way, the engine volume did not underestimate, although it could have done less, it would have been cheaper).
Transport tax - 300 rubles. (in fact, you can agree on 150).
Travel on the roads between cities (there is a booth with a barrier - 150 rubles - one passage is 1000 tugriks (25 rubles) - you can go around, this is what some Mongols do.
Total mileage - 7480 km. (approximately about 1000-1500 km on dirt roads, of which 300 km. on terrible roads - stones, holes where the speed could not exceed 20 km.)
Fuel burned out - approximately 950 liters (approximately 12-13 liters).
Filling an almost full tank cost MNT 100,000.
Gasoline prices in Mongolia are from 1,500 to 1,800 tugriks (i.e. from 36.5 to 44 rubles per 1 liter of AI92). The fuel quality is not worse than ours ... there were no problems. Above 92 can only be found in major cities. Diesel fuel is cheaper than 92 gasoline. And gas with its Mongolian name "AHUY" costs like AI92 gasoline.
Here it is, the final part of our route.
The first settlement in Russia is Tashanta, there is nothing to do here. We arrived at Kosh-Agach, where we bought food and refueled.
The first thing they thought was to go to the Ukok plateau, but, as always, at the wrong time. We will not have time to order the pass, because the working day on Friday is shortened, but at the checkpoint it seems as if they do not immediately register. It's okay, we love Altai very much and are ready to come again.
Further, since We safely left the map with the main attractions at home, we are looking for them using the Maps ME program in the phone. The first thing they found ... Mars-2. The road was less than 50 km, but what an interesting road ... taking into account the increasing rain. On the way there were very steep climbs and large stones, not to mention the fact that we were pulled into a ditch several times. We still got to this point ... But, unfortunately, our dreams did not come true.
Except for the road, there is nothing interesting to this place. Back we drove according to my husband's method ... He saw where you can cut and go in a straight line. In one of the places where there was muddy earth, we began to be pulled into the nearby Chaganuzun river flowing, we decided to go back and go through the passes. We didn't take a photo, it was raining.
Then we went to our overnight place, near the village of Kosh-Agach on the Chuya river. We set up a tent, an additional awning was pulled on top. So the awning was not pulled quite correctly, in the morning they poured 20-30 liters of rainwater.
Gossip fishing is on the way again. We tried to dig up worms with a fishing rod ... They are not here either.
Then we drive towards Aktash, but remember that a year ago we wanted to see the Aktru glacier. We return to the Kyzyl-Tash village and drive towards the alpine camp transshipment. The road is not entirely bad, sometimes puzoterki even get to the alpine camp, however, they cannot do without losses. On the way to the transshipment of the car, there are only loaves, 469 UAZs, Urals ... which means we are on the right track. On the way we met: 1 bridge, 3 fords (depth not more than 50 cm, without a snorkel), then the road began with large stones and steep climbs.
There are very large stones in the ford ... A collision with an uncovered distributor on such a stone is an opportunity to stay here for a long time. As according to the law of meanness, not a single car to see which of the fords is better to go.
We decided to go on foot, about 17 km there and back. We put the car at the transshipment and go. We took water in the car, the wanderers. The river is very cold and the stones are slippery, I checked. My son and I were carried by my husband across the ford to the other side. The road to the alpine camp is difficult, ascents, descents, slippery stones. It starts raining halfway, part of the route goes through the forest, we got a little wet.
The son did not expect such a setup. If I knew, I would have stayed in the car.
Less than 1 km remains, the glacier is already clearly visible.
After 2.5 hours we got there. The wife and son went to look for a cafe to warm up and have a snack. I headed to the spring to replenish the water supply for the return trip. The rain intensified, I took a couple of photos of the monument to the crashed snowboarders in May 2002 and the monument to all the fallen climbers.
We did not go all the way to the glacier in such weather, and the time is already closer to evening, and in the dark it is risky to walk along the path in the forest.
After drinking delicious hot herbal tea with pancakes in a cafe, we went back to the transshipment.
The way back was much easier, as there were mostly descents, very few ascents. We left the zabrodniki at the beginning of the journey so as not to carry excess weight. We find them in the saved labels of the navigation program, pick them up and go to the ford.
In general, the road, although difficult, but with good protection and snorkel, you can drive.
Then we go to the geyser lake. We reach the "Rest" base, the passage to it goes through the swamp, we pay 30 rubles. for adults, children are free, and we go 300 meters to the lake.
We take a photo of a wonderful geyser lake and go further towards Aktash.
Having reached the village. Aktash, we turn towards Ulagan, drive towards the most beautiful of the passes of the Altai Mountains - Katu-Yaryk. Distance from Aktash to Katu-Yaryk is approximately 100 km one way. The path passes through another attraction - the Red Gate, but here we already took pictures a year ago, we are going further. There are many recreation centers along the way. All nearby lakes are on lease, so fishing is in the air again. Closer to the pass the road deteriorates, puzoterki weave for 15-20 km, carefully overtake them and drive on ... Our speed on such a road is 70-80 km, the suspension allows us to drive comfortably. Most of the route runs on asphalt, only 30% dirt roads. Having reached the pass, we take a photo, fasten the stabilizer bolt lost on the way.
We do not go down the pass, it makes no sense. The road through the pass goes to the south of Lake Teletskoye, which we will not go to, have already been. Another reason why we are not going towards the lake is the remaining gasoline, which will not allow us to go back.
Further, our path passes through the waterfall Maiden's tears (Shirlak), we were here, but decided to visit again.
We stop at the monument to the driver, which we usually passed.
"A monument outside the village of Bely Bom. Erected to the hero of the famous song about Kolka Snegirev. Dedicated to all the drivers who died on the Chuisky tract."
We stop at the confluence of the Katun and Chuya.
The Chike-Taman pass is easy to pass, it is easier for a car with a snorkel to breathe. We buy souvenirs at the pass, teas as a gift.
The Seminsky pass is also a breeze, we don't stop here, there are a lot of people. Mongolian goods are sold 5 times more expensive.
Closer to the village. Ongudai we go down to the Ursul river, the descent is very steep, if it rains, it will be difficult to drive back. Finding a great place to spend the night.
On the way home, we buy additional meads to celebrate the trip at home.
Then we go home, there are no more stops.
At the entrance to Cherepanovo heavy rain began. This is how Novosibirsk greeted us, washed us from the dirt. On July 4 at 22.00 we arrived home.
Many thanks to our car, which brought us home and did not cause any problems on the road!
After arriving, the first thought is where we are going next time.
Price tag: 10 000. Mileage: 1050 km
31.08.17,
Anechka,
Novosibirsk
Great story! But I have a question about gas mileage,
Fuel spent - 8,000 rubles. , Fuel burned out - approximately 950 liters (approximate consumption 12-13 liters). Gasoline prices 36.5 to 44 rubles. for 1 liter.
It turns out that gasoline consumption is about 35 tons. Rubles, and you have written 8,000 rubles.
Every country has its own characteristics. They can manifest themselves in literally everything. And the stronger the difference between nature, landscape, climate, lifestyle of local residents with those that exist in Russia, the more impressions. Many unusual things can be seen and felt on oneself and in Mongolia. It is very close, if you take into account the regions of southern Siberia. For those living in the European part, of course, this is far away. But today the distance of several thousand kilometers is not difficult to overcome.
Stage 1. From Novosibirsk to Biysk
It won't be wrong to say that the most interesting trip to Mongolia will be if you choose the car route. In this sense, it is better to hit the road along the Chuisky tract.
Altai, Chuysky tract (federal highway P256, until January 1, 2018, the highway number M52 was also used)
Officially, it begins in the large Siberian city of Novosibirsk, but earlier this was the name only for the path from the city of Biysk (Altai Territory) to Tashanta. This is a settlement near the border of two countries - Russia and Mongolia. The journey can take from several days to weeks. The only question is how many days you have. It is quite easy to visit Mongolia with preliminary information.
Important!Since we are talking about travel from different Russian corners, it is better to start the countdown from Novosibirsk. True, some of the travelers, preparing for the trip and leaving the western part of the country, plotting the route, will use the map and try to shorten the path. In this case, he will be guided by a shorter route.
Before reaching Novosibirsk, about halfway between Omsk and this large city, many people shorten the path to go directly through the Altai Territory to the city of Barnaul. Don't do that. After a few tens of kilometers you can be convinced that, in fact, the most interesting adventures begin after the words “I know a short way”. It is better to calmly drive to Novosibirsk, cross the bridge or the dam of the Ob HPP and turn right.
Spillway of the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station In about twenty - thirty minutes (it all depends on the traffic intensity) the city of Berdsk will be. Less than an hour will pass, and the city of Iskitim will be left behind, and the long journey to the South will begin.
Seek from a bird's eye view It takes less than two hours to get to Barnaul, more precisely, to Novo-Altaysk (the city of Barnaul on the left bank of the Ob). If you want to dine, then there will be no problem with this. There is no difficulty in refueling the car. The situation is the same after the turn in Novo-Altaysk towards Biysk. This city can also be reached in less than two hours. However, if you find yourself here on a Friday afternoon or Sunday afternoon, the trip will be delayed.
M-52 highway near Biysk The fact is that on Friday the lane towards Biysk will turn into a continuous traffic jam. This is due to the fact that those who want to relax just at this time head to the mountains or to the resort town of Belokurikha. On Sunday, all these thousands of cars drive back.
Stage 2. Along Gorny Altai to the border
But finally, the city of Biysk. There is a bypass road for trucks. There is no need to turn to it. The trip through the city will take only twenty minutes. This is taking into account the entry and exit after the bridge over the Biya River at the very outskirts. And then the very Chuisky tract will begin, about which a little is told in the movie "Such a guy lives."
Communal bridge in Biysk Although the distance from Biysk to the Mongolian border cannot be called great (especially by Siberian standards), the journey will take a long time. In the beginning, however, everything will be as usual, but then ups, downs, turns will begin. However, the trip will not seem particularly long. Why? Because the road goes through special places. Sometimes it stretches just a few meters from the Katun River, bubbling like a huge stream. Then the mountains will stretch. The Seminsky Pass is especially interesting. And also the road along the Chuya river.
The Katun river
Finally, here is the border area. The large village of Kosh-Agach, and then only Tashanta, a border zone twenty kilometers wide, and Mongolia. However, a difficulty may arise here. The checkpoint is open only until eighteen hours. On weekends, it does not work at all. An important condition is that you can cross the border only by car. Hitchhikers wait for passing cars.
Important! In order to cross the border, you must have an invitation from Mongolia. It can be either from a travel agency or from a person. True, this document is required only at the Mongolian checkpoint. They also demand to show cash. Usually, when a person shows five hundred dollars, Mongolian border guards take a picture of him with bills in his hand and let him into the country.
If you managed to get to the border only in the evening, or on a weekend, you need to take care of an overnight stay. It's cold to spend the night in a tent in the mountains. But locals provide accommodation. For a room for two they ask for only five hundred rubles.
Near the border with Mongolia There are no difficulties when crossing the Russian border. Border guards check passports, cars with Russian license plates are examined quickly. But if foreigners are traveling, especially Germans, they will check everything they can.
Mongolian border guards repeat the procedure. Russian citizens do not need a visa. The conditions for entering the country were mentioned above. After everything is over, they are allowed to go.
Mongolia.
Stage 3. On site - first impressions
And now Russia is behind, ahead is only Mongolia and an almost complete absence of asphalt. They say that in Russia there are not roads, but directions. Roughly the same thing here, only it is more convenient to travel in these directions. The main thing is that the car does not let you down. The best way is to take a jeep trip. However, quite a few tourists embark on such a trip on motorcycles.
The pictures that open can be called monotonous. These are mostly treeless mountains. But it's still beautiful. Travelers usually make their first stop on the shores of Lake Tolbo-Nuur. It seems to be one of the largest in Mongolia.
Lake Dergen-Muul Then there will be a high-mountain plateau with multi-colored ridges, Lake Haar-Us, the city of Khovd. The road stretches along the rocky steppe. In some places, some thorny plants are visible, as well as small flowers. What is surprising is the large herds of sheep, goats, camels, yaks. You can also see saigas here. Sometimes they graze with their pets, sometimes they just run somewhere. They don't run away from cars. They know that no one will harm them.
On the way, you can make a stop at Lake Dergen Nuur. The water is salty. It feels like the concentration of salt is higher than in sea water. The area is quite interesting. Dunes adjoin the shores of the lake. The largest sandy massif of Mongolia Mongol Els begins here. It stretches for more than two hundred kilometers from the South-East to the North-West.
The attitude of the Mongols towards travelers from Russia
The road in Mongolia is often just a direction. Only the tracks of the wheels indicate that vehicles are moving here. Although sometimes the traffic flow is intense (by Mongolian standards), the "roadway" is not broken, as is the case on Russian country roads. The soil is often rocky and it never rains much.
The local population treats travelers well. Many Mongols know Russian. True, there are fewer of these among young people. The easiest way is to communicate with people over forty. Among them are often met by those who studied in Russia. But even those who sometimes do not really know anything in Russian, also, if necessary, seek to help the Russian-tourist who are in a difficult situation.
For example, some travelers are driving a car and they have a breakdown. Mongols passing by stop, wondering what happened. If necessary, the necessary spare part will be given free of charge. They can also tow the car, even if not on the way, to where it will be repaired.
Roadside service is also developing. Somewhere in the steppe, there are yurts next to the rolling road. Here and simply awnings are arranged. In yurts, under awnings, in the open air there are metal beds with mattresses. The traveler was tired, stopped and lay down to rest. No one will say a word to him. Maybe sleep for a few days. If he wants to eat, he will explain. They will understand him. Cooked food will be brought immediately on a large platter. They always bring meat. The food here is only fresh. Because there are no problems with meat, as for the cost, everything is two or three times cheaper than at home.
