Eagle Valley, in the eastern Gurvan Saikhan Range (Eastern Beauty) is located 65 km west of the town, Dalanzadgad, in the South Gobi Province. This is the only place where you can see ice in the Gobi Desert, which is normally one of the hottest regions in Mongolia. It’s cooler here than other parts of the Gobi because its elevation is about 2800 meters (9200 feet) above sea level. It used to have thick ice in all sections of the valley throughout the year until the 1980’s but now, ice remains frozen only in some sections of the valley because of global warming.
Over the winter months, the river water builds up a thick layer of ice, and it thaws slowly. In winter, ice builds up to 10 meters high, this is marked in yellow on the wall of the gorge. The cliffs of the gorge rise so steeply that they block the sunlight from the river below so that parts of it remain frozen throughout the year. After a heavy rain, waterfalls run from the gorge, making the valley more spectacular. In most years, ice melts by the middle of July. This magnificent valley has a 40km long (25 miles) canyon, and streams run through this valley. The valley is wide at the entrance, but gets narrower as you go in further. Eagle Valley is a home to rodents like pikas and many birds of prey including eagles, vultures and buzzards. While walking through Eagle Valley to get to the ice, you will spot picas running, chasing one another and dragging grass into their burrows for winter consumption. It is good exercise to walk through this valley to enjoy the beautiful scenery, hear the whistles of picas and see the running streams. It takes about two hours to walk through Eagle Valley to see the ice and come back to the car, but after seeing the ice and exploring the surroundings, you will be glad you did.