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It was early morning and an orange glow filled the sky as the sun slowly rose above the seemingly endless desert landscape.
Every few hours, shepherds come into view as they make their way to the nearby waterhole, accompanied by hundreds of sheep and goats.
The only sounds heard are the wind, the braying and barking of native animals, and the occasional rumble of 4×4 vehicles bringing in the new arrivals.
It’s all part of the isolated wilderness experience offered at Three Camel Lodge, an eco-resort located in Khan Konghor in Mongolia’s Gobi (meaning desert), one of the most remote places on Earth.
Far from civilization, this lodge aims to offer visitors an up-close look at Mongolia’s traditional nomadic lifestyle (a community of people who survive on domesticated livestock on the Central Asian plateau).
Although there are not many nomadic cultures left in the world, nomadism is still an integral part of Mongolian life. Today, nomads make up about a quarter of the country’s population of more than 3 million people.
There are 24 gers in the lodge. These round, tent-like dwellings were made of wood, felt, and rope; These are materials that are flexible enough to be transported, easy to assemble, and strong enough to withstand the strong winds of the desert.
Inside, installation is simple; There is wooden furniture and other decor pieces. But each has luxuries not usually found in a nomad home, such as a private bathroom with running water and solar-powered electricity.
Three Camel Lodge also has an on-site restaurant, a bar (with a huge whiskey selection) and even a surprisingly extravagant spa, especially for this part of the world.
How was the Three Camel Lodge born?
Three Camel Lodge was the brainchild of 68-year-old Mongolian-American businessman Jalsa Urubshurow.
As a child growing up in the United States in the 1960s, he could only imagine the dramatic landscapes of Mongolia. However, thanks to his father’s colorful stories, the culture of the country was always in his heart.
“The Mongols have a very sensitive genetic tracking system… Within a 100-mile radius you can pretty much determine which geographical area your tribe, your ancestors, came from,” says Jalsa, whose father was born in Kalmykia, now a southern region of Russia.
“(My father) reminded me of that when I was growing up in the middle of New Jersey.”
When Mongolia opened its borders to international tourists in the early 1990s, Jalsa had the opportunity to visit for the first time.
“I’ve been to a lot of Mongolian weddings in New Jersey, you know, but that’s about the extent of it. “(The visit) brought up a lot of different images,” he says.
“I got to go to the countryside, meet a shepherd and stay in some ger camps…it was an incredible experience.”
Soon Jalsa was commissioned by Mongolia’s prime minister to bring in more travelers from the West. In 1992, he founded a travel services company called Nomadic Expeditions, providing tours in Mongolia and other countries.
“It took two years to get someone to come,” he recalls.
In 2002 Jalsa decided to build something more permanent in the Gobi and the Three Camels Lodge was born.
Land of dinosaurs and burning rocks
The Gobi is known as the land of dinosaurs and is an integral part of Mongolian culture.
Just a half-hour’s drive from Three Camel Lodge is one of the most important dinosaur fossil sites in the world.
At Bayanzag, explorers made the first scientifically accepted dinosaur egg discovery a century ago. While finding the nests with his team from the American Museum of Natural History in the 1920s, paleontologist Roy Andrews aptly named the area “Flaming Cliffs” for the red sandstones that appeared to come to life at sunset, turning the entire area into a fiery blaze. Red color.
There are still dinosaur fossils here today.
“This place is really mysterious… kind of secret and secluded. It’s a really special place for me,” Buyandelger Ganbaatar, Nomadic Expeditions’ in-country director and chief tour guide, tells CNN Travel.
“About 70 million years ago they were sand dunes. Flaming Cliffs was known as an ancient settlement. “One of the reasons for Andrews’ expedition was to prove that humanity originated in Central Asia, and he was looking for evidence of this.”
Speaking of dunes, another popular tourist attraction close to the lodge is Moltsog Els, just a 15-minute drive away. Although it is a desert, this is one of the few areas in the Mongolian Gobi covered with sand banks.
Here guests can explore the dunes on foot or rent a camel from one of the local shepherd families.
Beyond the sand dunes and red cliffs, the Gobi is also famous for its greenery. Yol Valley, an hour’s drive from the lodge, was originally established to protect bird life, including the Yol or bearded vulture.
Guests can also journey to the protected Gobi Gurvan Sakihan National Park, rich in biodiversity, from white gazelles to leopards and golden eagles. The valley can be explored on foot or on horseback; In summer, a stream flows through the deep and narrow gorge.
Other experiences offered at the lodge include nomadic archery sessions, stargazing, cycling and cooking lessons.
Sustainability pioneer
With such pristine nature everywhere, conservation was critical from the very beginning. Being in such a remote area, it was important for Jalsa and his team to establish the right infrastructure.
Considered a pioneer of sustainable tourism, Three Camel Lodge today follows three main pillars: sustainable management, conservation and community empowerment.
The lodge started by eliminating single plastic bottles and instead handing out reusable metal cups to its guests. They also built a waste management system from scratch and created a greenhouse for composting, diverting trash from landfills. Solar panels provide almost all the lighting of the hut. Construction, furniture and decorating materials are sourced as locally as possible, within 50 miles of the lodge.
“I think you have to be committed to the culture you’re trying to promote through architecture, your environment, design and operations,” Jalsa says. “Finding a level of originality that endures, that’s the underlying spirit. “Ongoing sustainable tourism relies on local employment.”
For Jalsa, this means investing in local people. Three Camel Lodge has approximately 30 full-time Mongolian staff and it was important that they shared the same sentiment.
“If you can protect our planet and share your culture with people, that’s a great thing,” he says.
Investing in the broader Gobi community is also an important part of the lodge’s sustainability goals, whether it’s supporting educational programs or working with international paleontology organizations to help preserve dinosaur fossils.
“Mongolia is one of the last places you can escape and see untouched wildlife and beautiful landscapes,” says Jalsa.
get there
The commute to Three Camel Lodge is not for the travel weary; Did we mention it’s remote?
“It’s a seven-to-eight-hour drive to the Gobi, and the average tourist wouldn’t want that,” Jalsa tells CNN about the journey, which starts from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital.
There are flights to the Gobi, but they usually depart at midnight and arrive at Dalanzadgad Airport just as the sun begins to rise. After this, it’s another hour of driving through the roadless desert before the hut emerges in the distance, almost like an oasis.
Getting out of the Gobi may be even more complicated; Return flights to the capital are often canceled at short notice (ours were canceled twice). Some flights do not operate at all in winter.
Jalsa says currently the lodge is open for business from early May through November. He hopes there can be more support from the government to improve logistics and also extend the annual tourist season at least “a little bit longer”.
“I think the government needs to support domestic air travel to embrace tourism, especially if it is for tourism,” says Jalsa.
“You are essentially bringing customers into the country and making locations within the country accessible to them. “I think it’s a great opportunity, and we’ve been working for over 30 years to put it on the map.”
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