Bayanzag
Mongolia · Ömnögovi · 1200 m
Description
Bayanzag is an escarpment of red sandstone standing above the Gobi plain, known abroad as the Flaming Cliffs for the colour the rock takes in low sun. Roy Chapman Andrews named it that on his American Museum expedition of 1922, and the following year his team lifted the first fossilised dinosaur eggs ever recognised as such out of these beds. Protoceratops and velociraptor were both described from here. The cliffs are low and easily walked along the rim. A saxaul forest of bare grey scrub grows on the flat ground below them.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 1 to 2 days (optimal 1 day)
Travel season
Best time to visit: June or September
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Flaming Cliffs of Bayanzag
- Dinosaur fossil beds and the 1923 egg find
- Red sandstone escarpment at sunset
- Saxaul forest below the cliffs
- Fossil talks with local guides
- Camel riding at the cliff foot
- Ger camps on the open plain
- Night sky over the Gobi