Ulaangom to Olgii

Here I sit in the Duman hotel typing out my blog with the occasional wrenching gut pain. I suspect that it was the chicken that I ate at the "Turkish" restaurant last night. My other theories include "stretched stomach" from eating too much and "antibiotic resistant resurgence" from my last bought. Nonetheless, I am feeling better as the day progresses, especially after my vomiting. The ride from Ulaangom to Olgii has been described as "pleasant" by one author but I'm not sure I'd use that word! Sure, I'd do it again. The scenery was amazing and it's quite a remote place. But not altogether "pleasant", at least not with the current road conditions. It's quite amazing how roads change year to year. A section could be described as "a nightmare on 2 wheels" by one cyclist and then the next year be seen as "fast and dreamy". This seems to fit Mongolia so far: you never really know what you're going to get. From the roads to your restaurant order, things change along the way. The highlights along this stretch were the two beautiful lakes (Uureg Nuur and Achit Nuur), the amazing pass Bairam Davaa, and the carved deer stones up the valley near Kotgor. The deer stones are so amazing...smooth and wonderfully carved and very old. It is said that they provide one of the archeological links between the people of Asia and North America.


Day 31 Aug 19 Off to Olgii!
Camp: 50.15875 N, 91.51500 E
4:06 riding, 49km

After a morning of doing chores and a late lunch we headed out of Ulaangom. As it turned out there was about 35km of paved road that we quickly gobbled up. Along the way we met 2 motorcyclists going in the opposite direction. We glanced at each other as we passed and the next thing we knew we were stopped and they had turned around. It turns out they're from Vancouver and are taking a couple years off to go everywhere (www.scruffnmuffin.com). So far they've been on the road for about a year. We spent a while swapping travel stories and information, one tidbit of which was 'the roadside vodka shots' which they hadn't heard about. Low and behold, not 5 seconds later, two drunks on a motorbike pull up beside us and pass their fresh bottle around. While having a good chug from the bottle I mentioned to the fellow that this was one of three rounds the bottle must make so he should take it easy. When the shots were done the two dudes couldn't start their bike because of a lack of coordination. As I joked about 'how many drunks does it take to start a bike' the Vancouver fellow said 'three' and jumped on their kick-start lever sending them on their wobbly way.
Once off the pavement, the next road was an endless uphill to Ulaan Dava pass. Not having the time and energy we camped most of the way up at yet another scenic spot. This was after declining one ride offered to the top of the pass and another offer all the way to Olgii on the way up. We have been offered rides many times which is comforting as if we ever break down we know there's a good chance we'll be able to make it to the next town.
I must say that there have been so many splendid spots to camp here in Mongolia. In fact, the whole country is one big campground!


Day 32
Camp: 50.09305 N, 91.11474 E
4:01 riding, 41km

A grinding start to the day up to the top of the pass. Atop there is a large ovoo, a mound of stones covered with offerings and ritual scarves. It's very common to see these atop passes and some are more spectacular than others. Personally, I prefer the ones with the sticks that form a teepee-like structure. At the pass we dried ourselves of sweat and had a couple of conversations with passerbys. One team of 2 on a motorbike inquired about using a bike pump for their flattish tire but took off as soon as I could locate their valve. I guess my intent was enough to fill the tube. Some rolling and hot terrain led to a long and absolutely punishing downhill. Loose sand, gravel, and sharp rocks on a compact surface made it both slow and a little hazardous. I have no idea how some of the cars make it up this road. Near to the bottom it eased off and we coasted to the shore of Uureg Nuur. Beautiful to look at but ringed with animal feces and shrowded in mosquitos. Once inside the tent it made for a nice early finish to the day. The water tasted salty and had floaties in it but there is a nice stream to the south that we found the next day so we didn't need to drink much of it, thankfully.


Day 33
Camp: 49.91506 N, 90.90844 E
4:54 riding, 28km

Basically one long uphill to Bairam Davaa and down the other side for a bit. The up was a lot of pushing up the loose and rocky dirt. Near the bottom we passed a car towing another car going in the opposite direction...how they'll make it to Ulaamgom is one of those mysteries. Part way up we inspected some nice burial mounds and some balbals (stones carved into the shape of people). Very cool stuff. There were also some smaller standing stones in the same area. Once part way down the far side of the pass we made camp in an area with a bunch of mounds, standing stones, and even two DEER STONES! A super nice place to view in sunset and sunrise. We were both very excited as we oogled the deer stones. A pleasant and short chat with a motorcycle trio (3 people on a bike, not 3 bikes) rounded out the social agenda for the evening.


Day 34
Camp: 49.36304 N, 90.57708 E
6:54 riding, 72km

A short and fast downhill to Kotgor, a small coal mining town in the middle of nowhere. We picked up some food and took a glimpse of the coal miner statue in the middle of town before heading out. The rest of the day was gravel and washboard all the way to Achit Nuur lake. A quick water stop and more slogging through deep gravel brought us to the far side of the lake where we stopped at a guanz. So far, not my favourite guanz as it took forever and the food had a very potent (rancid) odour to it. While waiting for our food we hung out with the guanz owner's mom and the 1 year old. We continued for a short time afterwards and made camp in a spot devoid of car tracks.


Day 35 Aug 23
Hotel: 48.96999 N, 89.96476 E
8:01 riding, 73km

A long, slow, and bumpy day. Honestly, I cannot think of one stretch of road of any length that was smooth today. From the first pedal stroke to the last it was nothing but washboard. Washboard with all sizes of gravel and sand and rocks. I suppose I should mention the headwind too...strong and unrelenting. The scenery was fantastic, going from lake to dry, arid rocky areas to valley bottom to river. Around the Khovd Gol (river) there are many trees that would make for great camping or resting. B's front rack came off due to one of the bolts breaking. It had recently loosened and probably fatigued itself quite a bit. Another quick fix with a spare bolt (I'm very glad I brought a healthy assortment of these bolts) and the punishment continued...all the way to the last downhill into Olgii.
Rolling into Olgii reminded me of some places in Morocco more than Mongolia. Perhaps the brick buildings and goats and the slightly different style of clothing. There are also mosques here and you can hear the occasional call to prayer which I enjoy. The Islamic slant around here comes from the Kazakh population who live here.
Tired, dirty, and hungry we found a hotel (the owner of which we met on the road today) and cleaned up. We then went and feasted at the Turkish restaurant. B had a veggie platter and extra potato salad and I had the veggies, fries, and the poisoned chicken which came to haunt me the following morning.

Day 36 Aug 24
Same hotel, no biking.

Rested up, did some errands, and nursed my cramping abdomen while typing. Looking back, this is our third day in the last 36 days where we did not touch a bicycle. We plan to do the same tomorrow while we plan our Altai excursion.

Day 37 Aug 25
Same hotel, no biking!

Border permits, park permits, plane tickets, shopping, etc.. We have also arranged a jeep drop-off in the park and we'll bike back. We'd like to cycle the whole way but our Mongolian time is running out. My tummy is back to 98% and I'm eating like t-rex again.