Malaga

Malaga

Malaga, meaning "hat" in Mongolian, gets its name from its hat-like shape. The mountain features towering, rugged terrain scattered with bizarre rocks. In November 2004, geologists discovered extensive Quaternary glacial relics here — pothole-like ice mortars. Their discovery has provided new data for the study of Earth’s ancient climate, environment, and human origins. At the same time, this unique natural landscape holds great potential for tourism development. The ice mortars are “scattered” across the sprawling mountainside, stretching beyond the eye’s reach. Most are circular in shape, with others elliptical, petal-shaped, or linear. Their sizes vary greatly — some as large as water vats, with diameters up to about 1 meter, while others are as small as fists, with diameters of just over 10 centimeters. All the stone mortars are between 10 and 20 centimeters deep. According to geologists, these ice mortars, as relics of ancient glaciers, were formed approximately two to three million years ago when large amounts of meltwater from ancient glaciers carried stones that eroded and ground the surrounding rocks over a long period. The southern side of the mountain is flat and expansive, dotted with three natural lakes, while the northwestern side is an open plain stretching as far as the eye can see, showcasing the classic grassland scenery of the Mongolian Plateau.