We head south

After a reviving sleep we were full of beans as we met our guide, Byamba and driver, Tugsuu for the rest of the trip. Byamba is a 34 year old Mongolian history buff from UB; a kind, knowledgable man whose perfect translation will be a godsend throughout the trip. Tugsuu must be the most loveable man in Mongolia, with an infectious smile and jokes so funny you don’t need to understand Mongolian to laugh. Right from the off it was clear this was a great team.

We drove towards the Gobi Desert, sometimes on tarmac roads, but mostly across dirt tracks criss-crossing the Steppe. Tugsuu never checks a map, and there are no sign posts — Byamba says he has an inbuilt GPS.

It’s hard to put into words how beautiful it is. Every rolling hill reveals more endless steppe. Massive herds of horses, camels, cattle, sheep and goats are everywhere - the five “snouts” kept by nomadic herders. Most impressive though, is the sky, which stretches above you everywhere you look. It doesn’t seem possible that the sky can be bigger somewhere than somewhere else, but it is!

We stop here and there at points of interest, beautiful views, or just for a “Pit Stop”, where a flask of hot water is brandished to make a steaming pot of coffee.

Words don’t do justice to the many incredible sights we’ve seen, so we’ve put some highlights below to give you an idea.

We wrapped up our first few days in the desert by drinking a beer in front of a spectacular sunset before retiring to our cosy ger.