This was a great trip to Mongolia, somewhere I have wanted to visit for a long time and it didn’t disappoint. The trip encompassed both the steppes and the Gobi, photos of which don’t seem to do the country justice! The Ger camps were great fun, and visiting the nomad families gave a fascinating insight and understanding into a completely different way of life.
Gobi Desert
Gobi Trips
The ever-changing landscape of the Gobi Desert is home to some of the most spectacular scenery in Mongolia. Highlights include the majestic Ikh Bogd, the highest mountain in the Gobi-Altai mountain range, and the ‘singing sand dunes’, which stretch for some 200km and reverberate with a beautiful, haunting music as the wind courses through them.
In the country’s largest national park, Gobi Gurvansaikhan (meaning ‘three beauties of the Gobi’), the landscape spans rocky and sandy desert plains, precipitous cliffs and ravines, salt pans and oases. There, the Yolyn Am canyon is so deep and narrow that even in the height of summer, winter ice can remain on the valley floor. And the South Gobi Desert is home to 100,000 camels, typically used by herders for transportation of their gers (yurts); on Exodus Gobi tours, there’s the opportunity to visit a camel-breeding family and get a glimpse into the traditional way of life.
Gobi Desert Adventure Holidays
Linsey Miller Mongolia: Steppes, Deserts & Nomads
Lesley Greenhill Mongolia: Steppes, Deserts & Nomads – Naadam FestivalThis is an amazing adventure, from lush green steppe to mountains, sand dunes and Gobi plains. There are temples, excellent museums and the modern city of Ulaanbaatar ,and of course the Naadam festival. One of the best Exodus trips I have done.
Chrys Tremththanmor Mongolia Golden Eagle FestivalFantastic trip. We travelled (admittedly some long drives) through the flat landscapes, dodging large herds of goats and sheep as well as horses and camels. Four visits to various nomad families gave us insights into their ways of life, and we sampled fermented cows’, mares’, and camels’ milk. We watched one family milk the mares, and rode camels near the sand dunes. Visits to Buddhist temples and museums gave us additional insights. The bronze age petroglyphs were a highlight, particularly those of tigers. The best bit was at the end of the trip, when we attended the Golden Eagle Festival. Watching men and women interact with their eagles was amazing, as were the other events, such as the tug-of-war with a goat skin.
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