Gorkhi-Terelj National Park

Gorkhi-Terelj National Park
Gorkhi-Terelj National Park
Mongolian: Горхи-Тэрэлж
IUCN category II (national park)
	View from the monastery, Gorkhi-Terelj National Park
	Location of Park
Location	Mongolia
Nearest city	Ulaanbaatar
Coordinates	48°09′01″N 107°34′34″E / 48.150204°N 107.576006°E
Area	292,000 hectares (721,548 acres; 2,920 km2; 1,127 sq mi)
Established	1993
Governing body	Ministry of Environment and Green Development of Mongolia

Gorkhi-Terelj National Park (

düüreg (district) part of Ulaanbaatar municipality, the rest of the protected zone beginning to the north of the Terelj River, is located in Mongolia's Töv Province (Töv aimag).^[1]

A small southern portion of the park is developed for tourists, with restaurants, souvenir shops, horses and camels for rent, and tourist ger camps, many of them run by the Juulchin corporation, the former state tourism company. However, most of the park is undeveloped and difficult to access. Attractions include Khagiin Khar Lake, a 20 m deep glacial lake 80 km upstream from the tourist camps, and Yestii Hot Water Springs, natural hot springs 18 km further upstream. The park also has a Buddhist monastery that is open to visitors. Park wildlife includes brown bears and over 250 species of birds. The Tuul River flows through the park.

The park has many rock formations for rock climbers, and includes two famous formations named for things they resemble: Turtle Rock (Mongolian: Melkhii Khad) and the Old Man Reading a Book (Praying Lama Rock).

Many Westerners were introduced to Gorkhi-Terelj National Park when the

CBS reality television program The Amazing Race

visited the park in the second episode of its tenth season.