Altai Mountain Ride
Introduction
This horseback journey offers close encounters with Mongolian horsemen, nomadic people who have thus far been able to withstand modern pressures and lifestyles. There is no other nation in the world that depends on horses to such an extent. Mongolian horsemanship is famous and in many ways different than anywhere else. The herders keep their horses in a semi-wild condition, allowing them to live freely in harem groups. During the harsh winter with extreme subzero temperatures, the horses fend for themselves and protect their foals against predators such as wolves. Fences or stables are virtually unknown.
On this trip we will explore Western Mongolia’s environments on horseback: First, we ride through the Mountain Valleys. Gradually we will come through the vast steppe. You will experience snow-capped mountains, endless steppe, mountain rivers and enjoy camping along great Altai Mountain ranges. We will undertake this horse ride as a “Nomadic Journey”, e.g. with vehicle support, in wild terrain. All our luggage will be loaded onto the support vehicles.
| Trip Details |
|---|
| Altai Mountain Ride |
| 12 Days / 11 Nights |
Trip Details
Day 1: Ulaanbaatar
Upon your arrival in Ulaanbaatar you will be transferred to your hotel. There will be a tour briefing and dinner.
Day 2: To Tsambagarav Mountain via Ölgii
After breakfast, we’ll transfer you to the Chinggis Khaan airport for domestic flight to Ölgii. After arrival in Ölgii, we’ll transfer you to Tsambagarav Mountain’s Namarjin. Our camp consists of guest tentipi tents plus more tents for kitchen, restaurant and staff use. The camp location is at the foot of the eternally snow-capped mountains of Tsast and Tsambagarav. You can visit the local Ööld ethnic people.
Day 3: To Tavan Belchir
On this day, we’ll start our horseback journey. We’ll ride for 20 to 25km to the Tavan Belchir area to the north of the Tsambagarav Mountain National Park through a mountain valley. Picnic lunch en route. Tsambagarav Mountain has eternal-ly snowcapped peaks, 4025 meters above sea level. We will circle the Mountain and ride back to the Tentipi camp.
Day 4: To Ulaan Suhait Valley
We’ll continue our horseback journey by riding through the Salhit Valley and reaching the Sair Mountain’s Ulaan Suhait Valley. On the there’s a chance to see wildlives such as Siberian ibex, wild mountain goats etc. Also you can visit local Kazakh ethnic nomad family.
Day 5-6: To Döröö Lake
Continue our ride through the Sair Mountain and on to the Döröö Lake located near the Deluun soum of Bayan-Ölgii province. We will ride on a big mountain and may encounter few nomadic family along the way. At the lake there’s chance for you to see some of the rare species of birds. First day will be a full day riding to the Döröö Lake. On the second day ride, we’ll ride the horses and circle the Döröö Lake and explore the area.
Day 7: To Hökh Serkh Mountain
After breakfast, we’ll continue our ride near the Teregt Valley in the Hökh Serkh Mountain National Park area. Picnic lunch en route. We’ll ride out of the Mountain valley and into the great steppe of the Western Mongolia. There’s a chance to see wild-life such as the Argali Sheep and Corsac Foxes.
Day 8: To Ikh Yamaat Valley
Today, we’ll ride through the Teregt Valley and on to the Hökh Serkh National Park’s Ikh Yamaat Valley to the South. This area is rich of Siberian Ibex and other wildlife en route.
Day 9: Ikh Yamaat Valley
After breakfast, we’ll explore the Ikh Yamaat Valley on the horse. This area is rich with wildlife such as Siberian Ibex and Golden eagles. There are also rare snow leopards in this area. After lunch at the mobile camp we’ll ride to the Deluun soum and visit local Eagle Hunter family.
Day 10: To Hovd
After breakfast, we’ll depart to the province center of Hovd. After lunch at Hovd, we’ll explore the center of province and visit the local Museum of Multi-Ethnic Culture.
Day 11: To Ulaanbaatar
After early breakfast, we’ll transfer you to the local domestic airport for flight back to Ulaanbaatar. After arrival in Ulaanbaatar, transfer to your hotel for a check-in. Free in the city.
Day 12: Departure
Transfer out back home or on to your next destination.
DATES 2024 ex Ulaanbaatar
June, July, August.
PRICE 2024 ex Ulaanbaatar:
2 – 8 members: USD 4750 per person
Single supplement (11n): USD 640
Group discount available from 4 pax
Practicalities:
We emphasize the quality of human contacts and encounters with local people and respect for the horse and local equestrian traditions, from which many lessons can be learnt. Traveling with Nomadic Journeys means a shared adventure with horses in the great outdoors, choosing the life of the nomad.
Transport:
On this tour, we will have support vehicle for luggage transfers. There will be around one to two spare horse for the riders on this journey.
Accommodation:
During the horse riding trip we will stay in spacious tentipi tents, with foldable bed-cots. Bring your own sleeping bag. We take along a mobile restaurant, as well as showers and compost toilets housed in traditional Mongolian marquee style tents. One night will be at local hotel in the province center with attached toilet facilities. Two nights in Ulaanbaatar at a centrally located hotel. All accommodation in double occupancy.
Staff:
A Mongolian English speaking guide will accompany the group at all times. A cook will follow with the car van. In addition, the services of local herdsmen will be employed along with their animals. The horsemen follow a traditional lifestyle in the areas where we will be riding. If the group consists of five riders or more, we will also have a Mongolian doctor come along as part of the crew.
Meals:
Our cook will prepare the meals. We pride ourselves in having excellent cooks adept at both western and Mongolian cooking on our trips. There is no problem accommodating vegetarians on our trips. We can usually buy fresh milk and yogurt from local herdsmen.
Minimum riding ability:
You should be a competent rider, fit and capable of riding horse at all paces confidently. We will cover varying terrain, and will be in the saddle for several hours on most days.
Naadam Games:
There is a Naadam Festival extension possible in July. There will be horseraces with almost 1000 race horses on the plains outside the city. As well as wrestling and archery. The cost is additional USD 720 per person.
Reversal of trip:
Riding tours may be done in the reverse for operational reasons.
There are other language guides such as Russian, French, German, Italian, Korean etc. available at additional cost, booked and confirmed ahead of time.
Includes:
English speaking guide, breakfast every day in Ulaanbaatar, welcome and farewell dinner. All meals outside Ulaanbaatar. All overnights in hotels (3n.) and tents (8n.) in shared double, camping equipment and all local transport.
Excludes:
Drinks, laundry, lunch in Ulaanbaatar. Air or train tickets in and out of Mongolia. Bring your own sleeping bag, riding helmet and short chaps.
What our guests say
We appreciate your feedback about our tours and services.
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Great place to stay and experience mongolian way of living, no tv, wifi, phone. Just nature and great company of the staff and livestocks of mongolia. The toilet is a hole in the ground covered by a shed. It is clean, but can be smelly to those used to city life. Not hot water supply, inform the staff that you like to hot water half an hour earlier so that they can boil it over camel dung 🙂
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Spend some days in a Ger!This trip was much more than I expected
This trip was much more than I expected. Our horses and guides were absolutely fantastic. They made us feel welcome, well taken care of, safe and secure. The scenery, the horses and our guides were all delightful. The quality of the tents and meals were above what I expected. All of the elements were there -- people, horses, scenery.
