Munkhhairhan Mountain

Munkhhairhan mountain is the second peak in Mongolia elevated to the altitude of 4204 meters in Mongol Altai mountainous region.

The central ridge is located going downhill from the west to the east and there are many separate steep peaks on the south. It is snow capped mountain with stone man, deer shaped stone monuments, ancient inscriptions, a waterfall into Deep Blue lake, and Seven lakes. Herders live with wild wolves and snow leopards among these mountains, lakes and rivers.

Munkhhairhan mountains are located in the central part of Mongol Altai mountains, stretching about 80 kilometers from the north-west to the south-east, at the junction of Munkhhairhan sum of Khovd province and Bulgan sum of Bayan-Ulgii province.

The highest points is Tavan khumst peak at the altitude of 4204 meters on the north-west and it is located at 46⁰10^II of north latitude, 91⁰41^II of east longitude, 195 km from Khovd, 320 km from Ulgii and 1565 km from Ulaanbaatar.

The central ridge is located going downhill from the west to the east and there are many separate steep peaks on the south.

In addition to central ridges, there is a combination of some branch mountains, hollows among mountains, lakes that demarcate them and river hollows.

The central ridges are formed from granite-crystal-like rocks and there are several levels of ancient straightening surface on mountain summits, which were elevated by recent tectonics. In addition, researches and tourists are much interested in the beauty of nature, that views as deep tray-like hollows formed because of the erosion of the consequent glaciations and almost all types of surface formed by glaciations.

All type high mountains, where the tracks of ancient glaciations with rocky steep sides and pointed peaks with snow and ice cut strongly by relief have been kept, are dominated here.

The tracks of the fourth glaciations have been kept here very well and modern glaciations occupy quite a large area here on the tops and ridges of the main summits. But they are usually spread at the back of the mountains.

Munkhhairhan mountain range has an eternal snow and glaciers on the top parts. As well as, one special characteristic of this region is that narrow canyons full of mill stones, tray-like hollows, glaciations moraine of the steep sides with screed and rocky pointed peaks are common.

On the Munkhhairhan mountains, included in Mongol Altai mountains region, there are almost all types of surface formed by glaciations or plenty of glaciations concaves, tray like hollows, hanging hollows, mill stones, moraine hills and lakes on them. Researchers pointed out that one of the ancient glaciations centers was here.

Researchers prove that glaciations were occurred here 3 times, the first one was in the lower era of the fourth, the second one in the middle era of Pleistocene and the last one in its upper era.

Modern time glaciations (23-25 thousand years) has an region from the upper era of the fourth and reached to its present size subsiding from the era of Golotsen and it is still going down now.

Eternal snow and glaciers on Munkhhairhan mountains have the following general characteristics

a. Annual air temperature around glaciations is from -5.8°C to -16°C

b. According to the cartography in the National Map, an annual sum of precipitation is in the zone of 380 mm, but according to the average index of 26 years from 1976-2003 by the meteorological station in the center of Bulgan sum it reached to 1361 mm. It is an indication on Munkhhairhan mountains

c. The tips of the glaciations are located at the altitude of 2700-3000 meters and an average height is 2750-3800 meters.

An average elevation of Munkhhairhan mountains is at the altitude of 3755 meters, the number is 13 and an area is 77.2 square kilometers(1994). There are mountain side glaciers.

Munkhhairhan glaciers are fed by ice, accumulated snow and snow from the rocky cliffs located above the accumulation zone.

Although Munkhhairhan glaciations are included in the cold glaciations of temperature zone, they are characteristic for their large amount of melting and has a single stratum with medium-sized crevices (10-30 m) on the surface.

As for climate, it is included in the cold humid zone with continental extreme climate.

Though humidity is enough here, heat supply is lacked. An average temperature in January is -10ºC to -15ºC due to the inversion effects and the temperature in July doesn’t exceed +5ºC +10ºC according to the regularity of decreasing from the height. An annual average air temperature is -6ºC, an average in July is +12ºC and in January -20ºC.

Annual sum ray of the sun is less than 1200 kwt/hour, the number of gloomy days is more than 70, the number of sunny days is fewer than 80 and an average time of sunshine in a year is fewer than 2800 hours.

An average annual pressure of air is more than 848 gPa and less than 852 gPa. It is more than 844 gPa in July and 850-852 gPa in January.

Although it is mapped in the national map that a sum of annual precipitation is 300-500 mm, there is an indication that Munkhhairhan mountains can have more precipitation, because an average precipitation of the years from 1978 to 2003 at the meteorological station in Bulgan sum was 1361 mm. But on the part of Munkhhairhan sum it is less that 300 mm.

Munkhhairhan mountain range is wholly included in the outward flow less basin of Central Asia and as for the hydrogeological region it is subject to the basin with contemporary abundant feeds.

The length of the river per area is 0.1-0.2 km/square km

80-90 percent of river flows are formed at the altitude of 2700 meters or river. Eternal snow and glaciers play a domination role in the feeding of these rivers. Turgen and Khujirt rivers flow the territory of Bulgan sum of Bayan-Ulgii province and Dund Tsenkher river flows from the territory of Munkhhairhan sum of Khovd province. There are 12 lakes with an area of over 0.5 square km and 32 lakes with an area of less than 0.5 square km, of which 22 lakes in the territory of Bulgan sum and about 10 small lakes in Munkhhairhan sum. There are totally 44 big and small lakes.

According the zoning of soil-geography, Munkhhairhan mountain range is included in the west Altai circle, Mongol Altai district of Great Gobi region. Sub arid (dryish) type vertical zoning is characterized here due to the vertical zoning regularity of soil on Mongolian mountains.

- On the southern sides of mountains (downward): mountain-meadow, high mountain-steppe (some times forest-steppe), mountain brown soil

- On the northern sides of mountains: mountain-tundra, mountain-meadow, high mountain-steppe, and mountain brown soils are spread.

According the vegetation-geography zoning, it is included in the region of Mongol Altai high mountains with some forests, rocks, eternal snow and plateau-meadow consisted of diverse, some one-stratum plants and sedges of Mongol Altai mountain-steppe division, Euro-Asian steppe family.

On the map of vegetation zoning, it is included in the zoning of mountain-steppe and high mountain plateau respectively. It has mostly chilly and rocky vegetation cover.

According to the geographical zoning of fauna, Munkhhairhan mountain range is included in the great sub region of Mountainous Asia and in the sub region of Mongolian steppe and forest-steppe of Mongol-Tibetian region. About 50 species of mammals, 90 species of birds, over 10 species of amphibious, reptiles and fish have been registered so far in Munkhhairhan mountains.

The most important factor for organizing mountain sport tours is natural conditions and surroundings of the land. In other words, nature with steep rocks, smooth cliffs, icy and snowy peaks and other difficult conditions with barriers that test courage and strength of mountaineers.

When the morphogenetic typology of Munkhhairhan mountain is defined taking interacting activities of global internal and external origin processes, a factor that creates and changes the shape of surface into consideration, basically tectonic weathering types of relief are dominated. Since Munkhhairhan mountain range has a basic condition of real Alpian types relief, it is a natural beauty site, where favorable conditions for developing mountain sport tours have been formed. It the kinds of mountain tours and types of roads are shown on professional and amateur levels. Specially for rock climbing. (Mountain climb is not technically difficult)

Obstacles surface, steep slopes of the mountain sides, rocky walls, smooth cliffs, eternal snow and glaciers on the Munkhhairhan mountain range snow the good natural conditions for developing mountain sport tours. Also there is a definition for mountain pass hunting of mountain tours.