Introduction

In the summer of 2024, we set off on a once-in-a-lifetime road trip across Mongolia. From the vast sands of the Gobi Desert to the towering peaks of the Altai Mountains, each region offered unforgettable adventures and breathtaking landscapes. Here's a breakdown of the places we explored and the magic we found along the way. Over several weeks, we drove thousands of kilometers through remote regions, camped under starry skies, met local nomads, and experienced Mongolia’s beauty.

Trip Duration: 21 days
Kilometers Driven: 5000
Main Highlights: Wild camping, Gobi Desert, Malchin peak, Altai mountains, Khyargas lake, Khuvsgul lake, Fishing, Reindeers, horse riding,

Day 1. Start of our trip.

Our journey began in Ulaanbaatar, where we packed up our gear, fueled our 4x4, and left the city in at 2 AM into Mongolia’s vast wilderness. We started-off with packing our cars early in the morning.

Shortly after, we left off for the country-side, we had a long ride to white Stupa, through endless landscapes. While driving from Ulaanbaatar south to the Gobi desert, the landscape slowly transformed from green hills to drier, more sandy landscapes. As you drive from the capital Ulaanbaatar in the dark, you slowly see the landscape changing to empty planes and steppes like the image below.

During the summer, the weather in Mongolia is warm during the day, and cold during the night. When traveling, we packed various layers so we would be comfortable while the temperatures increase during the day. As we progressed further, the landscape changed from grassy planes to sandy ones, and the animals changed from horses to camels.

After a bit longer, we arrived at White Stupa, a surreal, otherworldly landscape tucked away in the heart of the Gobi Desert, Mongolia. Also known as Tsagaan Suvarga, this natural limestone formation resembles a ruined city or ancient temple complex, with cliffs that glow in shades of white, pink, and orange, especially stunning during sunrise and sunset. The moment we had arrived hear it was quiet, and we could take some great landscape pictures.

White Stupa

After a while we started to get hungry, and made lunch in front of this majestic formation. Filled with food and energy, we continued our travels towards Yolyn Am, along the way we visited the Gobi Museum, where we saw some great artifacts, such as dinosaur fossils and eggs.

Gobi Museum

After our museum visit, we drove to he area where we could find Yolyn Am, built our camp, made a fire and went to bed. marking the end of our first travel day.

Day 2. Yolyn Am

In the morning, on the second day of our travels we entered Yolyn Am means Lammergeyer's mouth, named after the raptors living inside the gorge. Even during the summer, Yolyn Am is quite cold in the shade, and even sometimes during summer, ice and snow can be found. Below I have added some pictures for you to give an impression to you of Yolyn Am.

The valley is 10 kilometers long, the area with the cliffs, known as the ice felt is a small part of it. Within this valley various animals live, from snow leopards, birds, and more. Despite its location in the arid Gobi Desert, the valley has a unique microclimate with cold, semi-arid conditions that allow ice to persist deep into summer, historically year-round, though now typically melting by September due to climate change. The area is named after the Yol, or Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), and is home to a rich array of wildlife including other birds like the Cinereous vulture, Himalayan griffon, Altai snowcock, wallcreeper, and Mongolian finch, as well as mammals such as the Argali sheep, Siberian ibex, Pallas’s pika, and even the elusive snow leopard. Flora includes alpine and desert-adapted species such as edelweiss, saxifrage, wild onions, artemisia, poplar trees, and juniper bushes, which thrive along meltwater-fed streams in the gorge. Located around 46 km from Dalanzadgad, Yolyn Am is a popular ecotourism site offering hiking, bird watching, and nature photography in a stunning contrast of ice, rock, and desert.

Khongor Sand Dunes

After our visit to Yolyn Am we fueled up our vehicles, and traveled towards the Khongor sand dunes. Along the way we had lunch within the Yolyn valley and then drove towards the Khongor sand dunes. Here is an image of our lunch spot.

It was a beautiful drive to reach the Khongor sand dunes, when you leave the valley, you suddenly arrive in a big, wide field where you can see the sand dunes in the distance. After our drive, arriving at this destination has a surreal effect.

Final Thoughts

This was the first leg of our trip, and we have more adventures along the way. Read our other posts to learn more about the Altai, Khuvsgul and Khentii areas where we regularly travel as well! For ourselves Mongolia remains a beautiful and seemingly endless country, we cherish and enjoy. I hope you enjoyed this collection of photos, text and our feelings during this first leg of our big roadtrip.