Exploring the Land of Genghis Khan

Mongolia’s Altai Mountains & Gobi Desert

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"It really was a once in a lifetime experience. I felt like one of the very first outsiders to see the country." Keith Swayne, Laguna Beach CA

Mongolia is a land of legend, where mounted soldiers once galloped across the golden steppes with the warrior Genghis Khan as he forged his vast empire in the 13th century. Even today, Mongolia is a horse-based culture with an abiding pastoral tradition and many nomadic people. In far western Mongolia, our trek brings us into the spectacular world of the traditional Kazakh nomads who live below the snow-capped peaks of the High Altai. In the great Gobi Desert, we ride camels and follow in the footsteps of explorer Roy Chapman Andrews, who found the very first dinosaur eggs here in 1923 in a desert canyon. At journey’s end, we offer an extension to Mongolia’s “blue pearl”—the sublime setting of mountain-ringed Lake Hovsgol.

Below is an Itinerary-in-Brief. To view a complete Detailed Itinerary, Download Full Itinerary or Email our Area Specialist

Itinerary-in-Brief

Days 1-3
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia / Ulgii

We visit marvelous Gandan Monastery, the seat of Buddhism in Mongolia, and the National History Museum, with its artifacts from the days of Genghis Khan. On Day 3, we fly to Ulgii in Mongolia’s far west.

Days 4-10
Hiking in the High Altai / Kazakh Nomads

After we explore the vast petroglyph site at Tsagaan Salaa, we begin our jeep-supported trek with a hike up along the edge of the Potanin Glacier to a spectacular camp at 8,000 feet. A bird’s-eye view of the golden steppes spreads out below us, with the backdrop of the snowy flanks of Mt. Khuiten (14,350'), Mongolia’s highest peak. We may have a chance to visit a Tuvan family along the way. Our trek route brings us along the glacier-fed Tsaggan Gul (“White River”), white with glacial silt as it tumbles down through green meadows. Our hike over Mogoit Pass (9,000') brings us into a green valley where Kazakh families spend summers with their horses, camels, goats, and yaks. In a tradition passed down from their Turkic ancestors, many Kazakh men hunt from horseback with trained golden eagles, pursuing foxes and rabbits across the mountains. We meet these traditional hunters and learn about this ancient skill. We return to Ulaanbaatar on Day 10.

Days 11-14
Gobi Desert / Flaming Cliffs

Flying south to the mountain-spiked Gobi Desert, we explore on foot among the Flaming Cliffs, one of the world’s richest troves of dinosaur remains, named by explorer Roy Chapman Andrews, the real-life Indiana Jones, for their surreal orange color. In the mountains of Gurvan Saikhan National Park, we hike to a glacier at the valley’s edge. Return to Ulaanbaatar on Day 13, depart on Day 14, or join our Lake Hovsgol Extension.

Lake Hovsgol Extension Days 14-18

From a lakeside ger camp at Lake Hovsgol in Mongolia’s most spectacular national park, hike in pristine taiga forests, and (in July), witness the horseback spectacles of the Naadam Festival.

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Tour Costs $4295 (13-15 members) $4495 (10-12 members) $4895 (6-9 members) Single supplement: $495 Single supplement: $495 Internal airfare: $565 (subject to change) Naadam & Lake Hovsgol extension from: $1395 *Prices are for 2008 dates only **Airfare is not included in Tour Cost unless indicated

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