from $6,250* per person	18 Days	June, August
Boutique accommodations		Exertion level: 4
Operator: Geographic Expeditions		18 people max

This overland journey displays Mongolia’s unexpectedly wide variety of landscapes, from vast sand dunes to snowy peaks, from forested enclaves to the oceanic steppe. We begin with some sightseeing in Ulaanbaatar, then head a little way west to Khustain Nuruu National Park to see the world’s only truly wild horses, the stocky and handsome takhi, or Przewalski horses. Then to the old capital of the Mongol Empire, Karakorum, once the most important place on the planet, and the nearby Buddhist monastery of Erdene Zuu, evidence of a country enjoying a cultural and religious renaissance.

Now farther west to the heart of the Khangai Mountains for a moderate, yak-supported, four-day trek through beautiful valleys that see very few visitors. This region is gorgeous, even by Mongolia’s consistently gorgeous standards: forests draped on wavy hills, snowy peaks, exuberant streams, and turquoise highland lakes. And wildlife: argali sheep, ibex, red deer, marmots, wild boars, brown bears, and wolves are common. We turn south to Mount Ikh Bayan, whose rock paintings date from 3000 BCE, and on to the wonders of the Gobi and the Gurvan Saikhan National Park, including the ancient rock engravings at Bayangiin Nuruu, the massive sand dunes at Khongoriin Els, and the flaming red cliffs at Bayanzag, then, at trip’s end, a sojourn into the Yol Valley for some hiking and contemplating condor-like lammergeyers elegantly wafting on towering thermals.