We had a rainstorm last night, which lowered the temperatures and cleared away the dust. It was a beautiful morning!
We spent the morning with a family that raises camels near some shifting sand dunes (about an hour away from camp). While talking with the family, the host passed a snuff bottle around. This is the traditional way to greet guests. The guest is supposed to pull out his own and share it with the host. We didn't know how to respond, so his wife showed us.
We spent some time in the ger with the family, talking about El Niño, meeting a newborn sheep and learning how to make felt and felt products. It was a lot of work!!! We made a few purchases as well.😁
Next came the camel ride. Bactrian camels are a lot more comfy than dromedaries - because you can hold on to the front hump and lean against the back hump. There had been a long winter, so the camels were still shedding their winter coats and looked a little scraggly, but still had lovely eyelashes!
The camel ride around the dunes was fun, and then some of us climbed up the dunes on foot. There were beautiful views of the area from the top.
On the ride back to the camp, we saw a black tailed Gazelle.
After lunch and a rest, and late in the afternoon, we headed to the famous Flaming Cliffs of the Gobi Desert. On the way, we visited a garden area where a lot of the vegetables in the area are grown in plots by individual families. The town sponsors the program to improve nutrition and provide income for the families that work the garden.
At the Flaming Cliffs Visitors Center, we watched a movie about the discovery of dinosaur eggs by Roy Chapman Andrew’s and his team in 1922. The film used footage taken at the time of the expedition to tell the story of the first major fossil excavation. There was also a small museum.
These two statues are two of the more famous fossils, in addition to the eggs, from this site - two dinosaurs locked in a fight, and a whole nest of young.
We walked out to the cliffs and enjoyed the panoramic views of the area and learning about the theories of why the fossil deposits were located where they were.
After a stop for dinner at a nearby ger camp, and a visit to the Tea Road Monument, we settled in to watch the sunset in the cliffs. MG had chairs and wine and snacks. It was lovely! And a really nice way to spend our last evening in the Gobi. There was also a spectacular sunset which we enjoyed the whole ride back to camp.
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