Inner Mongolia: The Badain Jaran Desert

The Badain Jaran Desert can be found in western Inner Mongolia.

The desert covers 49,000 sq. kilometers spanning Inner Mongolia as well as the provinces of Gansu and Ningxia in China.

This desert is home to the tallest stationary dunes on Earth. Some of the dunes reach a height of 500 meters. The dunes are kept in place in the arid, windy region by an underground water source. Analysis of the ground water indicates that it is snow melt that flows through fractured rock from mountains hundreds of kilometers away.

The desert also features over 100 spring-fed lakes that lie between the dunes, some of which are fresh while others are extremely saline. These lakes give the desert its name which is Mongolian for “mysterious lakes”.

Camel: desert master or ship of the desert

Sand view in spring

Sand mountain

When cars in desert seem very small and tottery like fishes in ocean

Lake in sandsea

There are many lakes in desert like green pearls spilled out

Desert is home, also the dream of people and animals and culture

Buddhist temple

Before rain, the weather accumulates verity of mood.

In Badain Jaran Desert, the fierce wind not only bestows people the terror, but many desert rarities, like the Hu poplar, the Mandela rock painting, the Alxa bizarre stone and the Heicheng town, no matter original or mysterious, Mongolian desert culture shows a strong decisive and staunch belief and spirit.