Guided Journeys
Available Destinations
Australia
Mongolia
Tour Options
Bespoke
Journeys
Design a customized journey for you or your group’s interests, difficulty, comfort level, and budget
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Camel-Assisted Trekking
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Hiking
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Horse Riding
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Canoeing
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Sea-kayaking
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Rafting
Scheduled
Tours
Join an upcoming tour
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Camel-Assisted Trekking
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Hiking
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Horse Riding
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Canoeing
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Sea-kayaking
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Rafting
Exploratory
Trips
Join an exploratory trip where we map new routes for future travelers
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Camel-Assisted Trekking
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Hiking
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Horse Riding
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Canoeing
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Sea-kayaking
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Rafting
Guides & Partners
Main Guide
Tim Cope
Tim Cope trained as a wilderness guide in Finland and has been travelling to Mongolia since 2000 – most notably during his three-year horseback journey from Mongolia to Europe. He has been guiding trips and designing itineraries in the country since 2008. Tim has written extensively about the nomads of the steppe, and was given the Nairamdal (Friendship) medal by decree of the President for his working promoting Mongolian culture. He was also made honorary ambassador for tourism by the Mongolian Government in 2017, and the tourism excellence award. Tim hails from Gippsland in Australia where he developed his love for the outdoors, and his interest in indigenous culture and history.
The Kimberley & Sea-kayaking
Toby Story
Toby Story grew up on the rugged south coast of Western Australia where he developed a passion for wild places at an early age. After training as a wilderness guide in Tasmania’s mountains, forests and coasts, he has spent fifteen years guiding expeditions in lands ranging from the equatorial to the arctic, including Greenland, Norway, Spitsbergen, Indonesia, Fiji, the Philippines, Indonesia, Antarctica and South Georgia. Toby has also worked extensively throughout Australia with Universities, Schools and Tourism operators as an expedition leader, educator and guide trainer.
Toby’s great passion in life is in learning about and exploring remote and rugged places and in assisting people to enjoy, understand and experience those places to the full. Toby has a special connection with the Kimberly, having hiked there with his father – a veteran explorer of the area for over 20 years.
Snowy River
Jane Forke
Jane Forke, who grew up in Mount Beauty (north-east Victoria) has been guiding on horse trips since she was 14 years old and whitewater rafting trips since she was 20 years old. She has a Certificate IV in Outdoor Leadership, a Diploma in Horse Breeding Management, a Diploma in Performance Horse Management, a current Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and is a Food Safety Supervisor.
Jane has worked running hiking, rockclimbing, abseiling, canoeing, whitewater paddling and horse riding for schools, universities and RTOs. She has worked with horses in various capacities in England, Scotland, Germany, and Canada in addition to two seasons with packhorse trips in the Sierra Nevada, USA. She is also experienced in working with youth at risk and people with special needs. She has led one trip to Mongolia.
Jane is particularly excited to now call the Snowy region her home, and cannot wait to guide others through this dynamic and diverse environment.
The Kimberley
Elise Arangio
Elise Arangio is a West Australian based outdoor guide who is passionate about the natural environment and learning about it close up.
Simpson Desert
Andrew Harper
Andrew Harper has been walking and exploring the Australian deserts since 1995 has journeyed over 20000 kilometres across all of Australia’s nine major deserts. In 1999 he brought to fruition a 17 year dream of walking across Australia along The Tropic of Capricorn, a 229 day, 4637 kilometre journey raising funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Stage 2 of Capricorn Expedition, a two-stage walk across South America began in October 2017. In 2007 Andrew founded Australian Desert Expeditions, a Registered Australian Charity that partners with leading universities and national research institutions to conduct scientific & ecological surveys in the far reaches of the inland deserts. Andrew believes that Australia’s long cameleering exploration heritage can successfully partner with modern science to further our ecological knowledge of Australia’s great arid wilderness.
Snowy River, Horse Riding, & Paddling
Jayd Wieland
Jayd Wieland is an experienced outdoor guide, instructor and leader, having run trips and taught outdoor related subjects for the last 25 years for schools, universities, TAFEs, outdoor companies, the Australian Defence Force and commercial clients. He completed a Bachelor of Arts in Outdoor Education in 1997 at LaTrobe Univeristy in Bendigo and then became a high school teacher, majoring in outdoor education. Jayd is experienced in remote area hiking, rockclimbing and whitewater paddling, and has instructed in search and rescue, vertical rescue and swiftwater rescue.
Originally from rural Queenland, he has a background in beef cattle production mustering with horses and dogs. He has a passion for horses and horse training, having also worked as a professional horse breaker. Jayd has led trips in India, Malaysian Borneo and Mongolia.
Mongolia & Australia
Ian Arbuckle
Ian Arbuckle has lived and breathed river journeys for decades, and has guided across the world, including on the Colorado in the USA, the Franklin in Tasmania, the Snowy River in Victoria, and in Mongolia. Ian has been working with Tim in Mongolia and Australia since 2018.
Trip Grading
Please note that due to the remote nature of regional Mongolia, and the type of trips that Tim Cope Journeys offers, most journeys are on the range of moderately challenging to challenging. Our grading system takes into account the length of a trip, the location, the climatic conditions, the type of activities, and the support provided. Fitness should always be considered important for the safe enjoyment of any trip. We will consider minors on trips (under the age of 18) with parent/guardians on a case by case basis.
Easy – Moderate
These are trips that are within 24 hours of professional medical facilities, less than 10 days, and require a lower level of fitness. Skills and outdoor experience are not required. However there may be optional parts of the trip that can make this moderately challenging.
Moderate – Challenging
These trips are usually up to 18 days in length in remote areas that can be more than 36 hours from professional health facilities. They include trekking in zones that reach above 2500m above sea level. The most challenging parts of this type of trip are often optional, which means the trip can cater for a mix of capabilities from moderate to challenging. Experience in a certain activity such as horse riding, or paddling may be recommended but not required.
Challenging
These are longer trips (more than 18 days), and are in locations that are potentially more than 36 hours from professional health facilities, and can be at more challenging times of year (for example during winter). They may require some experience or skills in some cases depending on the activity, and there may be difficult sections which cannot be avoided. Most of our exploratory trips and ‘expedition lite’ trips are rated as challenging and may require a higher degree of fitness and willingness to contribute to activities such as setting up camp, and cooking.
How To Book
There is a simple three-step process to secure your place on a journey that you can initiate at any time after browsing the site
Download Itinerary
Download the itinerary you’re most interested in and receive a link to schedule your Q&A session
Schedule Q&A
Schedule your Q&A session with Tim to get the final information you need for a decision
Make Deposit
Make a deposit to secure your place on the trip
Giving Back
$100 from every trip is donated to a local cause. Since 2009, Tim Cope Journeys has raised over $75,000 AUD for different initiatives including the Down Syndrome Association of Mongolia, Autism Association of Mongolia, and the Khovd School in Western Mongolia. We plan to continue this legacy across all trips in every country.