Mountains in the Gobi Desert: Not Just Sand

The Gobi (Mongolia/China) isn't flat sand—it hosts significant mountain ranges:

1. Altai Mountains (W Gobi): Khüiten Peak 4,374 m (Mongolia/China/Russia tripoint). Glaciers, snow leopards, petroglyphs.
2. Gobi Altai (S Gobi): Ikh Bogd 3,957 m, Altan Bogd 3,802 m – fault-block ranges, dramatic escarpments.
3. Gurvan Saikhan (E Gobi): "Three Beauties" – Saikhan Ovoo 2,846 m; Yolyn Am (Vulture Gorge) with perennial ice; dinosaur fossils.
4. Hangay Mountains (Central Mongolia, fringe): Otgontenger 4,031 m – volcanic, alpine meadows, forests.

These ranges create rain shadows, harbor unique ecosystems, and are sacred in Mongolian shamanism/Buddhism. The Gobi is a mountain desert, not a sandbox.