A WINTER EXPEDITION FROM THE FOOTHILLS OF THE ALTAI ACROSS THE MONGOLIAN STEPPES
Mongolia in deep winter is the country with nothing in the way: the steppe runs white to every horizon, the rivers have stopped moving, and the sky the Mongolians call eternal blue does not cloud for days. This expedition flies you to the far west to begin, to the foothills of the Altai, where the Kazakh eagle hunters have read this ground for centuries, and drives you home from there: a frozen lake, snow-covered dirt across the open steppe, a night in heated gers beside a lake of ice and an old volcano, the seat of the empire, and the capital. Eight days, the same ground as our longest winter crossing, in the window your calendar allows.
What This Journey Holds
Max −5°C l Min −30°C
Toyota Land Cruiser 200 AT
Snow tracks, dirt roads, frozen lake and tarmac
EXPEDITION DIFFICULTY
Two kinds of expedition. The terrain, the weather and the altitude decide which.
Tough & Challenging: The country sets the pace and the plan bends to it.
– Long driving days, with journey times the road decides
– Trails that ask something of you
– Weather that can turn, and altitude that slows everything down
– Breakdowns, fixed on the road
– Basic stays, with little around them, and shared facilities at camp
Moderate & Comfortable: The same country, an easier line through it.
– Steadier days, journey times that hold
– More road under the wheels
– Beds with walls and doors
– Amenities within reach
Neither is the soft version. The difference is how much the country is allowed to decide.
MAX GROUP SIZE
Small groups, always. Twelve at most on a Signature expedition, fourteen on a Classic.
– Small enough to move as one convoy
– A camp that fits around one fire
– No one becomes a passenger in their own expedition
– Many join solo. No one finishes that way.
Choose Your Edition
William
Head of Mongolia Operations
Seventeen years in the air with Emirates, then the open road. British-born and Sweden-based, William brought a career in global logistics to Nomadic Road and now leads every Mongolia expedition, winter and summer, from the frozen lakes to the Gobi. Precision on the ground, and a long appetite for the far end of the map.
William
Head of Mongolia Operations
Seventeen years in the air with Emirates, then the open road. British-born and Sweden-based, William brought a career in global logistics to Nomadic Road and now leads every Mongolia expedition, winter and summer, from the frozen lakes to the Gobi. Precision on the ground, and a long appetite for the far end of the map.
Prices are per person, in US dollars, and exclude your international flights. Dates and prices are
set in good faith, and two things beyond our control can move them: a domestic flight schedule
that changes can shift the dates by a day, and a sharp move in fuel prices can change the price. If
either happens after you book, we tell you first, and why.
This ground, your dates, your circle? That’s Privé →
Nothing Discovered Later
Where You’re Headed
Your Journey, Day by Day
Ulaanbaatar
Ulgii and the Eagle Hunters
Khyargas Lake
Tosontsengel
Khorgo
Kharkhorin
Ulaanbaatar
Departure
The Drive
A Toyota Land Cruiser 200 with automatic transmission, on iced tarmac, dirt under snow, a frozen lake and the open steppe, in convoy, from the Altai back to the capital. Your seat, your line, every day.
The Landscape
The foothills of the Altai at the start, white to the summits. A salt lake frozen to the horizon. Snow-covered steppe to the curve of the earth, and a white lake beneath an old volcano before the capital.
The Nights
Hotels in the towns, log cabins where there are none, and a night in traditional heated gers beside a frozen lake. Warm, with walls and doors, and a few short on creature comforts, which is part of the winter.
The Table
Hot breakfasts, packed lunches on the road, and dinners wherever the night lands: mutton, dumplings, milk tea with salt, and the dishes you know alongside them.
The Culture
The Kazakh eagle hunters of the far west, golden eagles on their arms, the way their ancestors hunted. Nomads who winter the steppe as they always have. The old capital of the empire on the way home.
WHO THE ROAD BELONGS TO
Every expedition here runs on hands you’ll mostly never see. The field chefs cooking before you wake. The mechanics working behind the convoy to keep the machines running. The hospitality and camping crew who raise your night’s shelter, and the cultural specialists, local guides, and staff who open the ground itself. All of them live here. That’s why the road opens for us, and it’s where what you spend on this expedition stays.
