Previous trip .... Ulaanbataar - Mongolia

I don’t have a particularly sensible answer, but back in 2018 I decided, for no logical reason whatsoever, that I quite fancied visiting Ulaanbaatar. 

Truth be told, I just liked saying it… ULAANBAATAR! 

No grand plan. No deep cultural pull. It just sounded so cool and different and sometimes, that’s all it takes. 

A few years later, I stumbled across an advert for the MotoNomad Rally a largely unsupported motorcycle adventure across Mongolia. Now we’re talking.

The rally was created by an energetic young Aussie (they all seem younger than me these days), Will Schofield, who’d ridden across Mongolia and fallen properly for it.

Wide open spaces, proper wilderness, navigation that keeps you honest, and a nomadic culture that hasn’t been overly polished by modern life. It got under his skin. So he launched the rally in 2023.

I’m very glad he did.

The route? Originally anti-clockwise, south from Ulaanbaatar into the Gobi Desert, then north to the wilds near Lake Khövsgöl by the Russian border. In 2024, he flipped it. Same country, same madness ; just the other way round.

It felt like one of those moments you either grab… or spend weeks talking about down the pub.

So I signed up.

The appeal? A proper adventure. Minimal support, maximum unknowns, with just enough local knowledge to stop things going completely sideways and that slightly addictive feeling of doing something that might be a terrible idea… but you want to try anyway.

My usual riding mates had already made other plans, so this became a solo mission. Not entirely by choice but, as it turned out, not a bad thing at all. Shared discomfort and questionable navigation decisions tend to fast-track friendships. I met some cracking, big hearted people along the way.

Getting there was part of the story. The route took me via Istanbul, which felt far too good an opportunity to waste. So I played tourist, took in the Hagia Sophia and a boat trip along the Bosphorus, that stretch of water dividing Europe and Asia.

Not a bad warm up before heading into Mongolia… where the traffic thins out somewhat

Below are some photos from my trip.

Drop me an email at andy@mototoff-ridingon.com if you're thinking about this adventure and would like some top tips ....but for the best and latest MotoNomad Rally info, and some amazing photos,... watch out for the poster boy ...click the button