Is Khuvsgul Lake in Mongolia Worth Visiting?

Should You Visit Khuvsgul Lake in Mongolia?

Lake Khuvsgul, sometimes transliterated as Lake Hovsgol, is the largest fresh water lake in Mongolia and is the source of 70 percent of Mongolia’s fresh drinking water. The lake is very special to the Mongolian people and is often billed by local tourism agencies as a must-see sight.

But is it really? In this article, I’ll share with you my honest opinion about whether you should include the lake on your list of things to do in Mongolia.

Where is Khuvsgul Lake?

In addition to the literal meaning of “ocean”, Dalai can also refer to something big or great.

And when talking about Khuvsgul, it kind of has both meanings. At 136 kilometers (85 miles) long and 262 meters (860 feet) deep, it’s certainly big. It’s also the closest thing this landlocked country has to an ocean.

Is Lake Khuvsgul Protected?

Yes, the entire lake area is protected as Lake Hovsgol National Park, one of a dozen or so national parks in Mongolia. 

Other national parks of note include Hustai National Park, home to some of the last remaining wild horses in the world, and the Gun Galuut Nature Reserve, which protects a wide diversity of ecosystems, including high mountains, steppes and wetlands.

Ecologically, the Lake Khuvsgul National Park is extremely important because it’s a transition zone between the Siberian taiga and the Central Asian steppe. 

Khuvsgul is more than 2 million years old, making it one of the most ancient lakes in the world. It’s also one of the cleanest, and the water is perfectly safe to drink without any treatment.

What Wildlife Can You See at Khuvsgul Lake?

The lake and surrounding area is home to a variety of fish, birds and mammals, including brown bear, Siberian moose and elk. Of course, your chances of seeing these animals on a quick visit are pretty low, especially if you stick to the tourist camps on the southern end of the lake.

When Nick and I visited Khuvsgul, we saw seagulls, marmots, cows, yaks and reindeer, all pretty close up. Only the seagulls and marmots were wild, though. The cows, yaks and reindeer were being raised for their flesh, milk and/or skin.

Also, the reindeer were tied up and being exploited for photographs with tourists. I didn’t realize this until it was too late, and I regret going to see them.

The reindeer’s natural habitat is the taiga, and traditionally this was where the Tsataan reindeer herders lived. More recently, some Tsataan families have moved down to the lakeshore in the hopes of profiting from the tourism industry. 

Their settlement is about a four-hour boat ride from Khatgal, where most of the tourist camps are. This is unsustainable, though, as the land there is not suitable for grazing reindeer. 

And then there’s the lone Tsataan man with three reindeer and a tepee, who I went to visit. He sets up camp just outside of Khatgal and makes a living solely from tourists who pay for selfies with the reindeer. If I had known, I would not have gone.

The only way to see the reindeer responsibly is to trek off-road for 45 kilometers into the taiga. This area is not accessible by vehicles and is normally reached on horseback, which poses a whole other set of animal rights issues.

If you want to do it on foot, you could ask tour companies if they can arrange this, but they may be puzzled by the request. Alternatively, try contacting the Tsaatan Community and Visitors Center (TCVC) in Tsagaan Nuur directly. You will need a Mongolian speaker to help you with this.

We didn’t attempt this, as it seemed quite complicated. And, as much as I wanted to see reindeer, I had mixed feelings about meeting the reindeer herders. 

Experiencing traditional ways of life in Mongolia inevitably means being confronted with animal exploitation. It’s a tricky thing to navigate as a vegan.

There is a large ferry boat called Sukhbaatar that does tourist excursions around the lake, but it takes a long time to fill up. Another option is the small, motorized speedboats, which leave much more frequently.

We were able to organize a speedboat trip at Tsenguun Khovoo ger camp, where we were staying. They also have kayaks for rent.

The standard speedboat trip seems to be a round trip from Khatgal to the Wishful Rocks and back. Wishful Rocks is a sacred place that’s popular with Mongolian tourists. They come to make wishes at a pile of stones on a promontory that juts out into the lake. 

There were a few dozen people there when we visited, but we were the only foreigners. We had seen similar piles of rocks at other shamanic sites, so that was nothing new. But there were good views from the promontory, and the boat ride itself was a lot of fun.

Our van driver, Adya, had an absolute blast!

Hiking around Khuvsgul Lake

You might have gathered by now that I wasn’t a huge fan of Khuvsgul Lake. There is one thing that might convince me to return there, though, and that’s the Khuvsgul Ice Festival.

This is a relatively new festival that has been held for the past five years or so in early March. The aim is to increase tourism during the winter months, when few tourists travel to Mongolia, and also to give the locals a chance to liven up the dull, cold winter with some fun games.

The lake is completely frozen over at this time of year and becomes the venue for a variety of competitions, ranging from ice skating races to ice wrestling! Locals perform traditional music, dance and shamanic rituals in colorful costumes. 

The Tsataan reindeer herders also make an appearance at the festival, so this is a good opportunity to see them if that interests you. 

This is also a good alternative to the much less animal-friendly Golden Eagle festival, which is held in Ulaanbaatar city around the same time of year. At that festival, hunters show off their ability to train eagles to hunt foxes, hares and other small animals on their behalf, while they follow on horseback.

In 2020, the Khuvsgul Ice Festival will be held on March 2nd and 3rd. A handful of companies organize group and private tours for people who want to attend. Temperatures typically don't reach higher than -10 Celsius (14 Fahrenheit), so pack plenty of warm clothes! 

Is Lake Khuvsgul A Worthwhile Place to Visit in Mongolia?

There are just a couple of small ger camps, and these are used only by Mongolian locals. Our camp had no electricity, showers or phone network, so don’t expect the kind of luxury that you can find at Khuvsgul.

But if you want to unplug and get away from it all, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better place for it.

Apparently it can get busy with domestic campers in July, but it was very quiet when we were there in mid-August. Although there was still trash on the lake shore.

The hiking here was excellent, and the hill near our camp made the perfect sunset-viewing spot. Surprisingly, the weather was much warmer than at Khuvsgul, and so was the water temperature. 

We could even swim in the lake! Except that we kept getting nibbled at by little critters in the water that looked like tiny shrimp. The locals believe that these critters take away your illness when they bite you and are therefore good for your health.

While I wasn’t too fond of these critters, I adored all the ducks, geese and swans that we saw swimming in the lake. Oh, and this beautiful grasshopper.

Final Thoughts

I’m so glad that we visited this hidden lake on Ulzii’s recommendation. I had asked her to take us to Khuvsgul because I’d read great things about it on some tour company websites, but it was a disappointment.

In hindsight, I should have left it up to her plan our whole itinerary based on her local knowledge. Mongolia has plenty of pristine spots of natural beauty that are more rewarding than Khuvsgul.

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