Nomadic Summer

Nomadic Road's August 2025 edition of the Nomadic Summer expedition covered 2,100 kilometres of central and eastern Mongolia at the peak of summer. The route stuck to dirt tracks for most of the distance, with the occasional tarmac stretch on the way out of Ulaanbaatar and a single high pass that pushed the convoy briefly above 2,500 metres. August is the country's busiest month for nomadic families, with herds out on summer pasture and gers spread across the green hills. The 2025 group was diverse: returning Nomadic Road overlanders, families travelling with children, a couple of solo participants, and several photographers drawn to Mongolia's late-afternoon light. The expedition followed the same philosophy as previous editions: long enough days to cover real ground, short enough days to leave time at camp for the quieter side of overland travel. Highlights this year included a longer-than-planned stop at a remote lake where the convoy spent an unscheduled afternoon swimming and refilling water; an evening with a nomadic family who hosted the group for tea in their ger; and several stretches of off-track driving where the convoy fanned out across open valley floor with no fixed line. Mongolia in summer rewards this kind of movement. The steppe is fenceless, and you genuinely can choose your own route. By the end of the 2,100 kilometres, the August 2025 Nomadic Summer expedition had delivered the open, slow, generous version of Mongolia that draws travellers back year after year. It is the route that has become Nomadic Road's most accessible Mongolia entry point for first-time overlanders.