Valley of the Ancestors, Khangai Mountains

Mountain Pilgrimage
Western Mongolia | Khangai Mountains
Dates: 7-18 Aug 2026 | By application only

Photo credit: Josh Exell

The mountain is more than land. It is ancestor, guardian, and spirit – a sacred geometry of land, memory and meaning.

In Mongolian and Central Asian nomadic cultures, mountains are revered as sacred beings. More than just landforms, they are alive, powerful, and deeply intertwined with spiritual and ancestral life.

Pilgrimages to mountains are acts of reverence, rooted in animist, shamanic, and Buddhist traditions. Many nomadic cultures journey to sacred mountains to listen, to offer, and to remember who they are.

For generations, Mongolia’s nomadic peoples have made pilgrimages to sacred mountains. Mountains are places where earth meets sky, and offerings are made to ancestral spirits at stone cairns called ovoo. We follow in their footsteps, walking the line between reverence and remembering.

For many Mongolians, certain mountains are sacred. It’s name, the location and access is either forbidden or not widely shared except for the few who have been granted access.

With permission, we will journey to Mandal Mountain and the Valley of the Ancestors.

This transformative and once in a lifetime immersive experience will be guided by our founder, Nancy Johnston. Our access is by invitation from the local community and nomadic families, built over a decade of trust. Our first-hand knowledge of this stunning landscape means we uniquely offer authentic journeys unlike any other experience.

This is more than a journey.

Guided by the ever-watching mountains, you will be invited to experience the rhythms of nomadic life. For creative souls, global citizens, storytellers, and seekers called to witness, respond and experience a deep relationship with land, people, and tradition.

Come to listen.

Come to remember.

Join us in the sacred Khangai Mountains.

The journey is delivered in association with House of Tengri

Identity is not fixed, but a constellation.

Valley of the Ancestors, Watercolour. © Christine Chang Hanway

Created as part of the Tengri × Source Mountain Artist in Residence program