Ikh Gazryn Chuluu Nature Reserve

Visit Guide to Ikh Gazryn Chuluu Nature Reserve

The Ikh Nartiin Chuluu Nature Reserve, commonly shortened to Ikh Nart Nature Reserve is a protected area in the East Gobi Province of Mongolia. It occupies part of two counties, Dalanjargalan and Airag. The nature reserve has an area of about 66,000 hectares (160,000 acres) and was established in 1996. It consists of rocky outcrops surrounded by dry grassland and semi-desert steppe and is one of the places in which the rare argali wild sheep can be found.

Getting There

It’s possible to hire a jeep from Mandalgov, though most book transport from Ulaanbaatar.

What to Expect

Travelers descend on this remote Gobi nature reserve to wander the boulder-strewn moonscape scenery, clamber around and over abstract rock formations and crawl through small caves. You’ll need wheels to explore the region effectively.

There are more than two hundred species of plant in the reserve. Grasslands, shrubby areas, valleys and rocky outcrops are among the habitat types found in the locality, and the balance of the plant species depends much on whether it is a wet year or a dry one. In a wet season Allium species tend to predominate, along with fringed sagewort (Artemisia frigida) and other sagebrush species (Artemisia).

In dry years the dominant vegetation is grasses including feather grasses (Stipa spp.) and wheatgrasses, and shrubs such as Caragana and the Gobi apricot.

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