The turtle shape
A granite head and shell.
Dan Nevill from Seattle, WA, United States — CC BY 2.0 · SunDawn — CC BY-SA 4.0 · CeeGee — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Arabsalam — CC BY-SA 4.0 · AwOiSoAk KaOsIoWa — CC BY-SA 3.0
Turtle Rock is a large granite formation in Gorkhi-Terelj National Park, shaped like a turtle sitting on the mountainside. Its Mongolian name is Melkhii Khad, and it is one of the park's best-known landmarks. Close to the road, it is a stop that few day trips from Ulaanbaatar leave out. Long erosion removed the weaker rock around it and left this curious shape, with no human hand involved. Sources give its height as between about 20 and 24 m. The surrounding valley holds other granite outcrops of odd shapes, and the area has become a protected park that city people visit for the mountain air. From the front the turtle's head and striped shell are clear, especially from the slanted side. You can walk right up to its base. The scene changes with the seasons: green in summer, gold among larch in autumn and white around it in winter. It is about 38 km in a straight line from central Ulaanbaatar, and guides give about 70 km by road. Tours and private taxis stop here, and you will find vendors, ger camps and horses for hire nearby. Half an hour is enough, so combine it with the rest of the park. Avoid climbing the higher parts.
A granite head and shell.
Golden larch in the valley.
A rock in white snow.
Gorkhi-Terelj National Park, Tov Province, Mongolia
Yes. Erosion shaped it over a long time, and nobody carved it.
Yes. It is about 70 km by road, and day tours to Terelj include it.