Eastern Mongolia - Mongolia - page 314

Dadal Museum MUSEUM
(admission T5000) The entertaining village museum consists of a wooden ger, with a
statue of young Temuujin out front, and paintings of the grown-up Khaan and his des-
cendants inside, along with black stallion tail-hair pennants (the most prestigious kind!),
a map depicting Mongol empire conquest and a model of a massive ger, pulled by scores
of oxen. Standout exhibits inside the second building include a particularly creepy artist-
ic depiction of Chinggis Khaan, Buriat swan-head fiddles and an intricately carved
horse-sweat scraper. The caretaker tends to be around the Government House next door.
Stupa Memorial MONUMENT
(GPS: N 49°01.085', E 111°36.761') This memorial, comprising three stupas, was built to hon-
our the 607 people from Dadal who died in the political repression of the 1930s. The list
of names is printed on the main prayer wheel. The Buriats were treated much more
harshly than Khalkh Mongols during the purge era, largely due to rumours that some
Buriats were in league with the Japanese.
Activities
There are several hiking and horse-riding routes out of Dadal. Locals recommend the
30km hike to the junction of the Onon and Balj Gols, or the 45km trek further along the
Onon Gol to the gorge at the confluence of the Onon and Agats Gols . You'll need to in-
form the border patrol of your itinerary and it would be wise to take a local guide; ask at
the ger camps or track down Dorjsuren, who runs the eponymous homestay.
There is good fishing in the area. Get a permit at the Government House (T10,000,
good for five days), next to the Dadal Museum, or with the help of a licensed tour operat-
or.
WORTH A TRIP
BURKHAN KHALDUUN
Remote Burkhan Khalduun (GPS: N 48°45.728', E 109°00.629') , elevation 2350m, is one of
the sites mooted as the burial place of Chinggis Khaan, and also Mongolia's holiest
mountain. Whether or not Chinggis was buried at God's Hill, The Secret History of
the Mongolsdoes describe how the khaan hid here as a young man and later re-
turned to give praise to the mountain and give thanks for his successes.
Because of its auspicious connections, Mongolians climb the mountain, topped
with many ovoos (GPS: N 48°45.430', E 109°00.300') , to gain strength and good luck. To
get to this remote location you'll need to head to Möngönmorit in Töv, and then