Siberian Taiga Forest, Rolling Steppes & Rocky Mountains
This fascinating birding trip in the land of the Genghis Khan offers the best way to experience Mongolia with great birding and wildlife viewing. We will visit genuinely fantastic wildlife habitats throughout this trip, from Siberian taiga forest to the freshwater/salty lakes and rolling steppes in Mongolia. Lodging is in traditional ger camps where you will meet nomadic herders and learn from the age-old nomadic lifestyle. Mongolia is about the same size as Alaska and with only 3.2 million people, most of the country is uninhabited pristine wilderness. Our local Mongolian team leaders provide excellent guide service, transport and lodging for this adventure.
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Travel Dates: August 2 - 11, 2023
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Group Size: 5 travelers plus guides, 2 spots left
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Trip Length: 10 days
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Rate per person = $4,750 (double occupancy), and $6,450 (solo traveler)
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Rates include: Domestic transfers, lodging, breakfast, lunch, dinner, scheduled group tours, park entrance fees and basic travel insurance.
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Not included: International airfare, customs & immigration fees and visas, alcohol, trip cancellation insurance.
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Adventure level: Adventurous, please check "Welcome" page for definition.
Special offer: Included with your trip (one per room) is a copy of the field guide “Birds of Mongolia (Princeton Field Guides) by Gombobaatar Sundev and Christopher W. Leahy. You will receive this when you reserve your trip so you will have time to study and know the beautiful birds of Mongolia.
Basic Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival Ulaanbaatar
Depending on your departure city, it will be 2- 3 flights to get to the Ulaanbaatar (Ulan Bator) Chinggis Khaan International Airport (ULN) and with arrival the next day. Your flight should be scheduled to arrive on “Day One” of the tour. You will be greeted at the airport and shuttled to the hotel. Activities for the day will depend on your arrival time.
Day 2: Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar is the capitol of Mongolia and has a very long history dating back more than 3 million years ago to the Stone Age and early Hominids. Today the city has a population of 1.5 million (nearly half of the entire Mongolian population) and the city is located at about 4,300 feet. We will also do some urban birding.
Day 3: Khustai National Park
From Ulaanbaatar it is a 2-hour drive to Khustai National Park; land of the Takhi and Przewalski’s Wild Horse. Thanks to the good conservation management, the species which was on the brink of extinction has now exceeded well over 300 individuals. Along with other interesting mammals such as Red Deer, Mongolian Marmot, and Long-tailed Ground Squirrel, watch the fascinating bird life including Daurian Partridge, Cinereous & Himalayan Vultures, Golden & Steppe Eagles, Upland Buzzard, Saker & Amur Falcons, Mongolian and Asian Short-toed Larks, Northern, Isabelline & Pied Wheatears, Brown Shrike and Meadow Bunting. Overnight in a tourist ger camp.
Day 4: Ugii Lake
We will visit Tsagaan Lake which is a shallow salty lake with big amount of reedbed. The lake provides the preferable habitat for many interesting bird species such as Red-crested Pochard, Eastern Marsh Harrier, White-naped, Common and Demoiselle Cranes, Asian Dowitcher, Marsh Sandpiper, Richard Pipit, Eastern Yellow and Citrine Wagtails, Oriental Reed, Paddyfield and Pallas’s Grasshopper Warblers, Bearded Reedling, and Pallas’s and Common Reed Buntings. The shoreline of the Ugii Lake and surrounding pools are a paradise of wetland birds during both migration and breeding periods. Considering its importance for wetland birds, the lake has been designated as Ramsar Site of International Importance. The lake is a home to many waterfowls including Pintail, Garganey, Common and Red-crested Pochards, Ruddy and Common Shelducks etc. Highest opportunity for White-tailed and Pallas’s Fish Eagles and Pallas’s Gulls. The passerines include Citrine, White and Yellow Wagtails, Rock Sparrow, Small Snowfinch and Pallas’s Bunting. Overnight in a tourist ger camp.
Day 5: Khugnu-Tarna National Park
This place hosts wonderful contrasting scenery of sand dune, wetland, and rocky mountain. If you are interested, you have a chance to ride a well-trained Bactrian camel on the sand dune. A pair of White-naped Cranes breeds at the wetland every year, symbolizing the ever-lasting life of the place, which yields a long list of lifers for many birders from around the world. The top birds include Lammergeier, Bar-headed Swan Geese, Eastern Marsh Harrier, Chinese Spot-billed Duck, Black-throated Loon, Asian Dowitcher, Pallas’s Grasshopper and Oriental Reed Warblers, Citrine and Eastern Yellow Wagtails. Overnight in a tourist ger camp.
Day 6: Gorkhi - Terelj National Park (Siberian boreal forest)
Gorkhi-Terelj NP is a southern end of the Siberian boreal forest (or taiga) where you find picturesque mountain with mixed forest trenched by beautiful valleys. Following arrival in the national park, we will check in our tourist ger camp near birding site. Afternoon we will do light walking near the campsite and see some interesting birds including Olive-backed Pipit, Siberian Rubythroat, Willow Tit, Taiga Flycatcher, Common Rosefinch, Yellow- browed Warbler, Chinese Bush Warbler, and Pine Bunting, and probably Eurasian Sparrowhawk. Have dinner at the restaurant of the ger camp.
Day 7: Gorkhi - Terelj National Park (Siberian boreal forest)
Next morning will drive down to riparian forest, where we will find old and big popular trees and find Oriental and Common Cuckoos, Eurasian Hoopoe, Great Spotted, Lesser Spotted, Grey-headed and Black Woodpeckers, Great and Willow Tits, Red-throated Thrush, Siberian Rubythroat, Dusky, Greenish and Yellow-browed Warblers, Taiga and Asian Brown Flycatchers, Eastern Buzzard (B. b. japonicus) and Pine Bunting. Afternoon we will do birding near campsite for Blyth’s and Richard’s Pipits, Isabelline and Northern Wheatears, Daurian Jackdaw and Red billed Chough. Overnight in a tourist ger camp near birding site.
Day 8: Gun Galuut Nature Reserve
Upon arrival in the nature reserve, we will check in our tourist ger camp near birding site. On the way to the nature reserve, we will check two steppe lakes for common ducks, White-naped crane and some migrants. After lunch we will drive to ponds for breeding White-naped cranes, and mountain for Argali sheep. Have a dinner at the restaurant of the ger camp.
Day 9: Ulaanbaatar
After breakfast we will drive back to the mountain to view Argali sheep and so some birding around the area. After we get to Ulaanbaatar, we will have a lunch and birding near Ulaanbaatar, and some shopping. Farewell dinner all together.
Day 10: Fly Home
There will be a shuttle to the airport for flights back to the States
