Our journey takes us to the far corner of an already far-off land. Bayan-Olgii aimag (province) lies on Mongolia’s western frontier, where the Altai Mountains are at their most impressive. The high peaks form the centerpiece for a relatively new national park known as Tavan Bogd (“five saints”, a reference to five snowbound peaks along the western border. The most famous among these are Nairamdal Uul (“Friendship Peak”), which straddles the triple border of Mongolia, China and Russia, and Khuiten Uul (“Cold Mountain”), the highest peak in Mongolia.

A Tavan Bogd National Park is a vast land of glaciers, remote mountain peaks, exquisite lakes, forested valleys, expansive meadows filled with myriad wildflowers, and skies so wide they put Montana’s to shame: in short, it’s a land of untouched natural beauty. It is also the home to the Kazakh people who for centuries have lived a nomadic existence in the shadow of these mountains. Some of them still practice an art passed down from their Turkish ancestors: hunting with golden eagles. We’ll have a chance to meet the Kazakh eagle hunters and learn about their traditions.

We visit this untouched gem in time to witness a total solar eclipse. We’ll set up a comfortable camp on the shores of Khoton Nuur (lake) to use as our base to explore the region. At about 7 PM on Friday August 1, twilight will take on an eerie tone as the moon briefly upstages the sun. The umbra will trace a path from the Canadian Arctic across to Siberia and western Mongolia, and conclude over Beijing. Being in the far west of Mongolia affords unprecedented views of the event (weather permitting). While the totality of a solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes (in this instance, 2 minutes and 9 seconds, to be exact), it is considered one of the most awe-inspiring spectacles in the natural world.

Days 1 & 2: USA to Seoul • Day 3: fly to Ulaanbaatar • Day 4: Ulaanbaatar • Day 5: fly from Ulaanbaatar to Olgii, ger or tented camp • Day 6: drive to Khoton Nuur via Tsengel, ger or tented camp • Days 7 - 9: excursions in Tavan Bogd National Park and August 1 total solar eclipse at Khoton Nuur, ger or tented camps • Day 10: excursions in Tavan Bogd National Park • Day 11: return to Olgii, visiting eagle hunters en route • Day 12: fly to Ulaanbaatar and onward to Seoul • Day 13: return to USA.

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