In 2004, Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman embarked on a motorcycle tour around the world from London to New York City. In total, they rode over 20 000 miles through 12 countries and 19 time zones in 115 days on their BMW GS 1200s. The journey was also used to bring attention to the humanitarian efforts of UNICEF, for whom they raised awareness on the way by filming some of their work! The entire thing was filmed by a camera man, Claudio, following them on a third bike.
(Charley Boorman with Michael on the Vintage Rides stand in Birmingham, remembering Mongolia)
If you remember them, which I’m sure you do, you probably remember the tough time they had when they started riding through Mongolia. We’ve met Charley Boorman on our stand while we were in Birmingham, which gave him the occasion to look back on their ride in Mongolia and all the things they’ve been through: the 1.5 day detour they had to take because they couldn’t cross a 10m wide river, being lost in the middle of nowhere, the accident of their cameraman Claudio, which led to numerous problems with his bike (which they ended up changing), the rain making it always more difficult, the countless falls in the dirt, not to mention the car accident of their film crew which could have ended badly!
But even if it was a real challenge and certainly the hardest part of their trip, it also remains the most beautiful country and one of the best memories. Living the life of a nomad, driving though untouched nature and getting in touch with the incredible culture was definitely worth it.
Mongolia is a breathtaking destination! At Vintage Rides, we give you the opportunity to live your own motorcycle adventure in Mongolia, but with the comfort of a Tour Leader, a back-up vehicle and an expert mechanic. The itineraries we’ve put together at Vintage Rides will amaze you in every way.
UlaanBaatar, the capital, is an experience in itself. Downtown, you'll clearly feel the soviet influence despite the mix of architectures and the urban chaos. The suburbs are essentially nomads that come in hundreds every year to settle down and live the city life, so they settle with their yurts on the outskirts of the city. It's quite a surprising vision!
As soon as you get out of Ulaanbaatar, you'll be in a different world. You'll find yourself in the middle of the Steppes in no time, surrounded by cows, sheep and wild horses, with majestic mountains dominating the background. The roads will vary from sandy tracks to open fields and from dirt-trails to river crossings; you'll never feel like you're taking the same road twice, or like you've seen any of this before.
The Enfields will take you to the beautiful altitude lakes of OgiiNuur. It might be a little cold to take a dip in there, but not to worry, the natural hot springs of Tsenkher easily make up for it; the situation seems unreal as you take a relaxing bath in the evening.
And everything changes again! All of a sudden, you find yourself in the wonderful valley of the Orhon River, in a canyon, where the landscapes become more mountainous as you get near to the volcanic mountains of Khangai. When you feel like taking a break, just relax by one of the many mesmerizing waterfalls for a while before continuing in yet another setting, like the magnificent off-roads that will lead you to the ancient capital of Genghis Khan's empire, QaraQorum, or to the sand-dunes of Khogno Khan, where the winds carry the sand up to the hills of the mountains so impressively that the area is also called the "Small Gobi Desert". An infinity of plains, deserts and green, hilly steppes eventually take you back to UlaanBaatar.
On top of that, you'll get to to dive into the heart of the Mongolian culture by meeting the locals in remote villages, sleeping in nomadic yurt camps and experiencing the soviet hotels of the capital.
Simply put, this trip puts the end of the world at your fingertips.
Discover our tours in Mongolia or explore everything Vintage Rides has to offer.
Follow us on Facebook!
Partagez le !
