Motorcycle Travel Blog Mongolia: Mad in Mongolia

Mongolia is madness! It’s a vast emptiness filled with some of the most lonesome, mind numbing and incredible riding we’ve ever seen…

Adventure Motorcycle Travel in Mongolia has epic roads
Left or right? Who cares when there are horses in front of you!

Motorcycle Travel Blog Mongolia

We crest the hill, switch the bike off and soak it all in. A thousand miles of green grassland lay in front of us. Hundreds of dusty trails slice their way across the plains, wiggling their way in every direction until they disappear over the horizon. We pick one, click the bike back into life, and follow the trail into the unknown.

As the sun starts to dip, we pull over, put up the tent, fire up the stove and cook dinner under a billion shimmering stars.

And that’s how we spent our time exploring Mongolia. There’s nothing to do there but ride… and ride in an attempt to make it to the capital, Ulaanbaatar. The hard part is dealing with whatever Mongolia decides to throw at you – and it thinks up something new every day.

Going mad off-roading in Mongolia
Sure, we love off-roading… but we were also kind of glad to finally see tarmac again

An adventure rider’s paradise

The country is a forever rolling back-drop of sometimes mind-numbing, and sometimes pure expansive, wonderment. The vastness is mesmerising. Mountains and red cliffs poke out of the ground one day, and sink into flat grasslands as far as the eye can see the next. Two days later we’ll be digging the rear wheel out of a sand dune. The day after we’re wading through a river to check how deep it is before slipping and sliding through thick muddy swamps the next. And through it all we’ll go from wringing our t-shirts out with sweat to sitting huddled round an oven fire in a frosty yurt, soaking wet and trying to dry our pants.

Adventure bike travel water crossings in Mongolia
Those aren’t bags on the motorbike, they’re actually inflatable dingys in case we crash
Terrible road conditions in Mongolia
This is a very common sight on many of the main roads. We normally just ride over these bumps
Epic sand riding and motorcycling through Mongolia
Sandy roads on an overloaded XT? No problem!
Girl Adventure Motorcycle Travel in Mongolia
Sometimes it’s all about girls and pretty flowers… sometimes

Going Mad

There’s no planning in Mongolia. It’s just too unpredictable. It can take anywhere from ten minutes to two hours to cover 10 measly miles, dependent on how the roads and weather feel that day. The irregular terrain, broken roads, tricky navigating and temperamental skies can turn an easy day into a long, hard slog. And we had plenty of those. Sometimes the rain would fall so hard it hurt. Sometimes we had to lay by the motorbike for shade. Sometimes the days would never end and we longed for the dark – just to give us a break from the monotony. And sometimes it felt like we were going mad – we’d ride all day and feel like we hadn’t moved an inch because everything looked exactly the same.

Adventure Motorcycle Travel in Mongolia
Contemplating madness… even after hours of riding it feels like you’ve gone in a circle as everything looks the same
Broken roads in Mongolia on a motorbike
They've taken a 'hard shoulder' quite literally

Friendly locals

Luckily, the locals we met along the way made our days easier. People were more distant and warier of travellers than in Central Asia. But they’d still stop for us if we were pulled over and insist on giving us whatever they had – from a bag of tomatoes to a bottle of horse milk. Even in the middle of nowhere we came across nomadic herders and yurts filled with families welcoming us in for buttery tea and cake.

A Mongolian cattle herder near the Gobi
This happy chap is the proud owner of a thousand animals. He also likes chocolate bars
A Mongolian family on their motorbike
Both the shy wife and daughter had sunglasses - seemed only fair that we gave the dad our sunglasses. He had the biggest smile after and rode off pretty sharpish, presumably just in case we took them back
Local Mongolian adventure bike rider
This guy was stranded with no fuel. We topped him up and gave him a bottle of water and he looked at us like it was Christmas morning
Eagle hunter in Mongolia taking a stroll
Andy walking with an eagle hunter and his grandson… once you’ve got the gear on you’re technically part of the family, right?

A not so friendly local

There was only one night, in our whole time in Mongolia, where we had a tricky situation. We were woken late at night by a man who insisted we were not allowed to camp there because it was a national park. Fair enough – it was a national park, but we didn’t realise, it was late, dark and to get to where we were took some seriously tough off-roading. We explained that we didn’t want to leave, it would be dangerous and we’ll go at first light. He wasn’t happy and a dozen of his mates turned up. The man became more agitated and aggressive pulling at our tent. In a deserted part of a national park, in the pitch black we made the decision to leave, or risk it turning sour. We packed up in the dark and rode a treacherous off-road route back to the main road through knee deep mud pools and slippery slopes which had the Yamaha going sideways.

But we didn’t let that bother us. We were probably in the wrong, and just unlucky that night – picking the one place in an endless moonscape of nothingness that we weren’t allowed to camp.

Adv bike camping in Mongolia
There are plenty of other places for us to do our dirty laundry, like by this gorgeous lake
Camping in Mongolia
“Excuse me, you’re in our way, kindly mooooooove”

Asia’s Wild West

It wasn’t only the people who kept us company. It’s like an undiscovered frontier, and we’re not the only ones making our way through it. Wild camels slowly roam, smiling as we roll past. Herds of horses wonder the pastures searching for water. Eagles soar overhead and vultures circle carcasses and dried up bones – reminding us to stock up on fuel and food in towns. So, we’d slip back into civilization every so often for supplies and showers, and then immediately itch to get back out there.

Camel caravan through Mongolia
There are camels everywhere in Mongolia and we love them!
Yurts and buffallos in Mongolia
“Come this way please, I’ll show you to your yurt”
Just a camel crossing the road
“What are you looking at, never seen a camel cross the road before?”

Magic

It was the first time on our trip where we really felt like we were discovering new places. The magic of Mongolia is hard to describe, because it can be whatever you want it to be. Simply, it’s an immense emptiness. You can take the primarily asphalt southern route from the Russian border in the west to Ulaanbaatar in the east in about five days. Or you can venture into the country’s heart, get lost for weeks and take the roads less travelled by opting for old trails, which run through the country like sandy veins. The trails flit between gooey mud, gravel and rivers, which swallow the road whole, making it as hard or as easy as you want it to be. And that was perfect for us.

Water crossings in Mongolia
Hmmm, don’t see anyway round it
Mad or Nomad in Mongolia
We finally found a little village to resupply! Yay for us!
Two up motorcycle travel through Mongolia
Literally no idea where we’re going
Adventure Motorcycle Travel in Mongolia
Some river crossings are probably a little too deep to cross
Broken bridges and bad roads in Mongolia
Classic Mongolian bridge
Adventure Motorcycle Travel in Mongolia
There’s got to be a McDonald’s around the next bush, surely

The Gobi Desert

We could explore the heart of Mongolia and take our time to ride the road less travelled, which we both loved and hated at the same time. But we didn’t feel like we really got what we wanted until we finally reached the glistening Gobi Desert – something we’d dreamed about seeing for years.

After hours of crashing through dried up river beds, sliding in deep sandy trails and bogging in mucky swamps, we made it to the foot. Transfixed on the towering dunes we climbed to the top and sat staring into the emptiness. As we gazed at the sand sea, we wondered what was next. Again, thousands of trails wiggled their way across the land. We picked one, which we hoped headed north towards Russia, and followed it until it disappeared over the horizon…

Adventure Motorcycle Travel in Mongolia Gobi Desert
The bike looked at the dunes and just said “no”
Guide to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia walking on sand dunes
It’s going to be warm in Russia too, right?

With thanks to

We weren’t always alone in Mongolia, and as always, it’s the people you meet that have the biggest impact when travelling.

Thomas and Veronica

a motorcycle and a lada travelling through Mongolia
Thomas and Veronica are two in two million. This picture was taken the morning after we all camped by a beach

On our second day in Mongolia, in the town of Ulgii. We met Thomas and Veronica, two overlanders who had driven their Lada Niva from Germany to Mongolia (we first saw them as we rode past them on a motorway in Kazakhstan, beeping and waving). Together we went in search of an eagle hunter, who we heard lived in a remote village not far from the town. It was an amazing experience, asking old ladies in yurts if they heard of an eagle hunter who might live close by. Eventually we found the family yurt, were invited in for tea and food and they showed us their magnificent bird.

Eagle hunter in Mongolia with his eagle
This bird weighs 9kg and was caught when it was young. It’ll be the family bird for years until one day they release it back into the wild
Eagle hunter family in Mongolia with his grandson
Grandad and Grandson. The grandad taught his son, Arnam to hunt with eagles and he’s now a National Champion. He will one day teach his son too

It’s not often you meet people when travelling who you can continue to travel with, but Veronica and Thomas are two of the good ones. Funny, kind and brilliant to be around, we got on so well that we arranged our routes together, we’d ride and drive together and plan our days so we met up in the evenings at the same place to camp and cook together. Thomas and Andy even swapped vehicles for a day.

We got stuck in muddy swamps together, found hidden caves, explored volcanoes, drove through the plains, camped by magical lakes, discovered new places and forgotten routes, shared yurts and sipped beers in boiling hot springs after a hard day’s ride. They made Mongolia even more special for us.

Overland adventure travel and camping in Mongolia
Camping with the Lada by a lake makes for awesome sunset photos - courtesy of Thomas

You can check out their amazing photography and story here http://twokrautsinalada.com/

Emmanuel Tissot

Emmanuel Tissot is a Frenchman who we first met at the Mongolian embassy in Kazakhstan, then again at the Russian embassy in Kazakhstan and again at the Russian embassy in Mongolia, as well as about four times in the middle of nowhere in Mongolia including in the desert! We couldn’t believe it when we saw his bike coming towards us in the distance. Emmanuel even tried to keep the Russian embassy open for us as we battled through the worst city traffic we’ve ever seen in Ulaanbaatar. We were riding back from the Gobi and the rain was torrential in the city centre. UB’s roads don’t seem to have gullies and the water collects in huge, deep puddles, as Andy put his foot down at traffic lights water would come up to his shins.

Emmanuel teamed up with Bart in Mongolia, a cool Belgian dude who we later took the ferry with to Japan. We crossed paths several times with them in Mongolia, and somehow, we were always going in the opposite direction.

Motorcycle travellers in Mongolia
Emmanuel on the left and Bart on the right

Pol Ribes Pleguezuelo

Pol is a crazy cyclist from Spain, who we first met in Uzbekistan, cycling with his friend Ped from the UK. Pol rode to Mongolia but through China while we went north through the Stans. It’s one thing riding on two wheels across these countries, but it’s another thing doing it on two wheels without an engine. This guy is hardcore with calves of steel! And we’re in complete admiration of him. Imagine how tough it must have been!

We decided to make it a race from Uzbekistan to Mongolia because we kept bumping into him and somehow he was always in front. First one to Ulaanbaatar gets a bottle of vodka. Cheers for the drink Pol!

Cycling through Mongolia
We met loads of cyclists on our trip, but only one of them said they were riding to Mongolia…Impressively, Pol only arrived in UB four days after us! And in case you were wondering what bicycle he’s on, it’s a Mind Movie

Mongol Rally

We met plenty of people on the Mongol Rally too. A British event where hundreds of participants buy unsuitable cars and drive from the UK to Mongolia and then up to the finish line in Ulan Ude, Russia with no designated route or timeframe. It’s an event we always wanted to do but never got round to. But now, meeting participants and seeing them dash through Mongolia on the primarily asphalt road southern route in five days, we’re glad we didn’t do it as we would have missed everything we loved about Mongolia. But the guys we met were nuts and having the best time, and that’s what counts.

Mongol Rally in Mongolia

Ghengis Khan

So, Genghis isn’t exactly our mate, but it’d be so wrong to not talk about this guy. Throughout our time in Mongolia, we couldn’t help but ponder what it once was.

The Mongol Empire was the largest empire in history, thanks to Mr Genghis Khan. He unified the nomadic tribes of Mongolia and became ruler of Mongols. His empire accounted for a quarter of the world’s population. It’s said that 40 million people were killed under his rule, reducing the world’s population at the time by 11% and today 16 million people can trace their genetics back to him.

He developed the first international postal system, was religiously tolerant (not common at the time) employed enemies into his ranks (also unheard of) ensured women had high positions of power (also unheard of at the time), ushered in the Pax Mongolia (a time of peace, cultural and economic prosperity in Mongol controlled territories) took control of and supported the Silk Road (the start of modern globalisation), boosting trade between east and west and his empire was responsible for 15 million square kilometres and over 100 million people.

Genocidal maniac or brilliant strategist, you decide.

What’s weird to us though, is that this empty land we’re riding through once belonged to the greatest emperor and empire the world has ever seen.

Visiting the epic Ghengis Khan statue in Mongolia
The Mongolians love him though… you can probably tell due the world’s biggest statue of him

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