The Altai
What you'll be looking at
West · Route 01 · 12 days
To the far west where Mongolia meets Russia and China — glacier valleys, the country's highest peaks, the Kazakh families who still hunt from horseback with golden eagles, and the saline great lakes on the way home.
The route
Bayan-Ölgii is the most remote province in the country and the only one that is mostly Kazakh, not Mongol. From our home in Khovd we work up into the Altai Tavan Bogd range — five sacred peaks, a glacier you can walk to, and valleys still grazed by families who winter at the foot of the mountains.
The eagle hunting is real, not staged for a festival. We stay with a hunting family, watch the birds work, and on the way back drop down to the great lakes — the saline blue of Lake Uureg under the mountains.
Day by day
Start from our family ger camp on the Buyant River in Khovd, or meet in Ölgii. Walk the bazaar for last supplies and set the plan for the days ahead.
Drive up into the national park toward the five-peak massif. First night in a Kazakh family ger at the edge of the high pasture.
A walk toward the foot of the Potanin — Mongolia's largest glacier — under Khüiten, the country's highest peak. Back to camp for the night.
We move to the family we know best. Afternoon with the eagles, the dogs, and the long unhurried evening that is the real Altai.
One of the largest petroglyph fields in Central Asia — thousands of years of hunters and animals scratched into the valley rock.
Drive to the glaciated dome of Tsambagarav, grazing ground for both Kazakh and Uriankhai herders. Night in a ger below the snowline.
North into the great-lakes basin — past Achit Nuur to the saline blue of Lake Uureg, ringed by mountains and grazed by herders.
The vast salt lake at the heart of a UNESCO basin, a stop on the migration routes of thousands of birds. Camp out in genuinely empty country.
The long, beautiful drive south back to the Buyant River and our ger camp — a hot meal and a real bed to end on.
The Altai
What's included
Not included (you pay on-site): flights, food and meals, accommodation — Anji arranges ger-hotels along the way — and entrance fees for parks and museums.
Pack for the Altai
Pricing
Price on request
Tell us your group size, dates and preferred starting point. Anji will send a complete quote with every inclusion and local cost explained before you commit.
No deposit to book.
Pay in cash — 50% when we meet, 50% on the last day back in Ulaanbaatar.
June–September departures
Share your flight window and preferred month. We agree exact dates around your group, road conditions and the route you choose.