The Gobi Desert straddling the border between Mongolia and China, is a wild and dramatic place, entirely suitable for motorcycling. The famous Gobi Desert is not all vast flat steppe under a deep blue sky. There are bizarre rock formations, canyons, the "Gurvan-Saikhan" mountain range and sand dunes 180 km long and up to 15 km wide, as well as forests of small "Saksaul" trees and other desert vegetation. Apart from a few villages and small towns that we pass through on the way, most of the population have a nomadic lifestyle, frequently moving with their round white felt yurts ("Gers") and herds of camels, goats and horses.
The trail is 80% off-road on rough jeep tracks with loose gravel, hard pack, sand and rock. The terrain includes rolling hills, rocky mountains and open desert plains. Some days the riding distance is long, so strength and stamina are required.
Accommodation throughout is at traditional ger camps, the locations of which are varied and often dramatic, in beautiful remote places along the trail. A "ger" is the round white yurt like those of the nomadic people; at the ger camps there are bathroom facilities and a restaurant.
АНХААРУУЛГА: Хэрэв та болон таны компани тухайн аялалын маршрутын чиглэл, текст үг өгүүлбэр, фото, газрын зургыг хуулбарлахаар төлөвлөж байгаа болон хуулбарлан санаа авч өөр арга хэлбэрээр дахин нэр өгч өөрчлөн боловсруулж ашиглахыг хориглоно!
Arrive in 'Ulaanbaatar' and go to hotel. Evening meet the tour leader and rest of group for pre tour meeting. The meeting is about the day by day itinerary and safety issues. Overnight in hotel.
Make an early start to get out of Ulaanbaatar city and onto the road leading south to the Gobi. The road is black-topped for a while, then soon becomes a rough jeep track as it crosses the green rolling hills of Tuv (“Central”) Province. Ride on to 'Baga Gazriin Chuluu', a mountain of unusual granite rocks which are home to ibex, marmots, steppe fox and plenty of birds of prey. Overnight ger camp.
Ride through "Mandalgov", the capital town of Dundgov Province and continue across the open steppe of Middle Gobi to 'Tsagaan Suvraga', an amazing series of cliffs, white and pink limestone rock formations taking the appearance of stalagmites up to 30 meters high. It is an excellent site for some out-of-the-ordinary photography. Overnight ger camp.
The track to "Dalanzadgad", capital of Umngov Province (“South Gobi”) has little traffic, even though we are travelling on the main road. This is Mongolia as one imagines it – distant horizons, dry rocky earth and a huge blue sky. The town appears like a mirage and it takes nearly two hours of riding to reach it after seeing it from a far. Overnight ger camp situated within view of the 'Gobi Gurvansaikhan' mountains. Overnight ger camp.
Ride up into the mountains of the "Gurvansaikhan Uul" (“Three Beautiful Mountains”). This national park is so unexpected in the middle of the desert and it is a delight to feel so cool in the deep canyon where sunlight reaches for only a few minutes each day. After walking into 'Yolyn Am' (the “Vulture’s Mouth”) we ride westwards at the foot of the mountains to 'Khongoryn Els' where huge sand dunes meet the end of the "Altai" mountain range. Overnight ger camp.
Leaving the golden dunes behind us we ride through a wonderful mountain pass and on to "Bulgan" village. Not far from here is "Bayanzag", a forest of rare 'Saksaul' trees and the 'Flaming Cliffs' where many dinosaur remains have been found and "Roy Chapman Andrews" discovered the first dinosaur eggs during his expedition of the 1920s. Overnight ger camp.
Today we travel north-east to "Mandal-Ovoo" and then to "Saikhan-Ovoo". Here, on a bend in the "Ongii" river, are the remains of 'Ongii Hiid' monastery on each bank of the river. Overnight ger camp.
Continue northwards through Middle Gobi to reach 'Zorgol Khairkhan', a dramatic granite mountain with bizarre rock formations jutting out against the skyline. Our last night is spent in this wonderful place and if you have enough energy you can climb on the mountain in the evening for great views of the area and different photographic angles. Overnight ger camp.
As we return to Ulaanbaatar, the landscape becomes gradually greener and more mountainous. Even close to the city people still live the traditional lifestyle; there are more horses and less camels than we encountered in the Gobi. Arrive in Ulaanbaatar in the early afternoon. 'Overnight in hotel'
Departure.
This trip is a fascinating cultural experience as well as an off-road bike tour across Mongolia of over 1750 km. This tour is nearly all on rough jeep tracks across the rolling hills of Middle Gobi and the sparse desert of South Gobi.
All nights are spent at GER camps where the accommodation is in traditional Mongolian round white felt tents, and there are restaurant and bathroom facilities. Some days are long and require stamina.
Gobi Desert motorbike trail description:
The following items are included in the price of the tour:
The following items will be in addition to the price of the tour:
The places you will see along the way:
Khongoryn Els is the largest accumulation of sand in the Gobi Gurvan Saikhan National Park. The wind blows continually, so the dunes can reach an imposing 200 meters height. The highest dunes are called 'Singing Sands' by the local inhabitants.
The famous Gobi Desert is not all vast flat steppe under a deep blue sky. There are bizarre rock formations, canyons, the Gurvansaikhan mountain range and sand dunes 185 km long, as well as forests of small Saksaul trees and other desert vegetation.
Tsagaan Suvaraga in Middle Gobi is a limestone rock about 30 meters high and shaped strangely as a result of wind and water erosion. In the year 2000 an earthquake shook the eastern part of the White Stupa and it partly collapsed.
"The overall experience exceeded my expectations. This was an event that I will remember fondly for years to come. I'm glad I choose Mongolia as a destination and yourselves as a company so I could experience the country in a safe and coordinated way"