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From the former Mongol capital Karakorum to the Danube River in Hungary, through diverse nations linked by nomadic roots, Tim retraced the path of the first nomads and followed the route taken by the legendary Genghis Khan as he forged his great empire. Over three and a half gruelling years, and guided by an old Kazakh wisdom – “to understand the wolf, you must put the skin of a wolf on and look through its eyes” – Tim lived just as the ancient nomads did. When Tim set out with his horses and his fearless dog Tigon as a companion, there was no certainty that he would complete the journey. He had no backup from a camera crew, no escape route – and he could barely ride a horse. Ahead lay wolf-infested plateaux, the glaciated Altai Mountains, minus 50 degree temperatures on the ‘starving steppe’, scorching heat in the Kazakh desert, violent clashes between sedentary and nomadic societies, and the deep forests and treacherous peaks of the Carpathian Mountains. Tim would also suffer the greatest tragedy of his life, the death of his father in an accident in Australia. To cope, Tim would have to draw on everything he learnt from the nomads. The extreme challenges gave Tim empathy and insight into the nomadic way of life, and as a young man growing up, the journey became a personal rite of passage. Along the way, just as the nomads did, Tim sought refuge with local families, who welcomed him with open arms and traditional nomad hospitality, and taught him the way of the steppe.
Tim Cope sets off across Mongolia to learn the ways of the nomads. He has never ridden a horse, and many fear he won’t survive the wolves, the thieves, or the extremes of heat and cold. After buying his first horses Tim makes a wobbly start, aiming to reach the Altai Mountains near Kazakhstan before the winter sets in. Not long after setting off, Tim’s horses are stolen in the night. He is lucky however to recover them and is taught a valuable lesson: ‘A man on the steppe without friends is as narrow as a finger. A man on the steppe with friends is as wide as the steppe.’ Tim realises the only way he’s going to make it to Hungary is by leaving his western luggage behind, making friends, and adapting to nomad customs. The horses become the link to the land and the people, and he learns that hospitality is the key to life in the harsh climate of the steppe. Travelling through Mongolia represents an apprenticeship and the beginning of a personal rite of passage as Tim confronts wolves, survival among marmot hunters, and a crossing of high passes in the Altai Mountains. Families take Tim into their tents known as ‘gers’, embracing him as part of the family and
Episode Two: The Land That God Forgot Wednesday, August 4 at With a perilous winter approaching, Tim Cope must now cross Kazakhstan, the largest nomad nation on Earth stretching thousands of kilometres through rugged mountains, desolate steppe, and desert to the Caspian Sea. Tim is forced to leave his Mongolian horses behind, and after buying three new Kazakh mounts finds himself in the midst of a Zhude, the harsh winters that sweep across Eurasia every few years wiping out entire herds and encasing the land in ice. A local man named Aset befriends Tim and accompanies him for the first ten days of this part of his journey. Deeply concerned about Tim’s safety, Aset gives his dog, Tigon, a young Kazakh hunting dog, to Tim. Tigon’s job is to protect Tim from wolves and keep him warm at night. As the coldest winter in 40 years closes in, Tim heads south to escape the deep snow and is forced to travel along a remote railway where one of his horses is stolen by vodka swilling rail workers. The temperature plummets to minus 40 degree, his tent is breaking up – it’s a miserable Christmas Eve. Desperate for shelter, Tim seeks refuge in an isolated mining town. Tigon is stolen and Tim is beginning to understand why the town is known locally as ‘the place that God forgot’. Episode Three: Ships of the Desert Wednesday, August 11 at 8pm on ABC2
After more than a year on the road, Tim is beginning to think and behave like a nomad and as his second winter sets in, he makes it to the Republic of Kalmykiain in southern Russia. The Kalmyks, who are rediscovering their nomadic past after years under Communist control, embrace Tim as a hero. Tim has finally found the nomad spirit he is searching for, but beyond Kalmykia Tim is to discover that not everyone will offer him the same hospitality and kindness, and he will soon suffer the greatest tragedy of his life.
Tim is thrown into the ploughed fields of the sedentary world where he is not welcome. In Crimea he rides into a pitched battle between Tatars and Russians then in Ukraine faces the greatest tragedy of his life.
Episode Four: No Place for Nomads Wednesday, August 18 at 8pm on ABC2 Tim is thrown into the ploughed fields of the sedentary world where he is not welcome. In Crimea he rides into a pitched battle between Tatars and Russians then in Ukraine faces the greatest tragedy of his life.
Tim receives news that his father has been killed in a car accident in Australia. Returning home he realises this is the turning point on his rite of passage and he must finish his journey to Hungary without the support of his dad. Episode Six: The Last Frontier Wednesday, September 1 at 8pm on ABC2 Tim’s bond with his horses and his dog Tigon will now be put to the test as they attempt to find a safe route over the snow and ice of the Carpathian peaks to Hungary, which was the final challenge for the Mongols on their way to invade Europe
Tim Cope is believed to be the first person in modern times to travel by horse from Mongolia to Hungary, a journey made famous by Mongol armies in the 13th century. When Tim set out in 2004, his projected finish date was 2006, the 800th anniversary of the Mongol warlord Temujin being proclaimed Genghis Khan (“strong ruler”) by Mongol nomad tribal chieftains. Tim took three years and four months to ride the steppe from east to west, covering 10 – 12,000 kilometres, crossing five countries and traversing the lands of nomad groups: Magyar, Crimean Tatar, Hutsul, Cherkes, Kalmyk, Kazakh and Khotont – whose forebears made similar westward journeys. Tim finished a year later than planned, delayed by harsh weather, bureaucratic wrangling while getting his horses across national borders, and his father’s death.
Tim Cope is a 31-year-old professional adventurer, author, and film-maker. Fluent in Russian, Tim has worked as a guide in Antarctica and studied as a wilderness guide in the Finnish and Russian Arctic. To date he is the author of “Off the Rails: Moscow to Beijing by Bike”, and maker of two documentary films for ABC TV and National Geographic Channel. Tim was awarded Australian Adventurer of the Year in 2006 and is a fellow of the Royal Geographic Society. In November 2007 Tim was honoured by National Geographic in Washington DC at the annual awards as “cultural ambassador who traced the equine journeys of Genghis Khan 10, 000 kilometres from Mongolia to Hungary.” Richard Dennison is an international award-winning producer and director with a reputation for unusual, character-driven adventures. He has produced more than 30 documentaries including the Logie Award-winner Miracles at Sea (ABC), Mawson: Life and Death in Antarctica (ABC) and Pioneers of Love (SBS). His first film, Mutiny on the Western Front, won a Logie Award and the United Nations Peace Prize.
Early on in the journey, a herder named Aset travelled with Tim for ten days. Before they parted ways, Aset gave Tim his dog, Tigon, a scrawny six month old pup. Although Tim didn’t rate Tigon’s chances of survival very high, it wasn’t long before they were inseparable. Tigon’s own adventures included being stolen and hit by a car. Tigon, which means ‘fast wind’ or 'hawk’, is half Kazakh Tazi breed and half shepherd dog. Tazis are an ancient breed for hunting hares and foxes. They are related to Salukis which are regarded as one of the oldest known breeds in the world
At the end of his journey, Tim arrived on the banks of the Danube having achieved the first crossing of the steppe in modern times. Series duration: 6 x 26’ www.abc.net.au/tv/geo/documentaries/interactive/trailofgenghis Available on iView Producer/Director: Richard Dennison. Cinematographer/Director: Tim Cope. ABC Commissioning Editor: Dasha Ross. A Orana Nomad Productions. Developed and Produced in association with ABC TV. Produced in association with ZDF in co-operation with ARTE. For further information and interviews with Tim Cope, please contact Kim Bassett, ABC TV Publicity, 03 9524 2580/0409 600 456 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it For images, visit www.abc.net.au/tvpublicity
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Episode One: In the Skin of a Wolf Wednesday, July 28 at 8pm on ABC2 
teaching him the nomad ways. As winter begins to set in, Tim is alone in a remote corner of the Altai in Western Mongolia. Ahead lies Kazakhstan, a country still recovering from Stalin’s rule and the collapse of the Soviet Union. There is still 8,000 kilometres to Hungary and Tim is about to ride into the wastes of the ‘starving steppe’ and the coldest winter in 40 years. 
8pm on ABC2 
Australian adventurer Tim Cope has now travelled 3,000 kilometres across Mongolia and the frozen steppe of Kazakhstan, enduring the coldest winter in 40 years. Now he must cross the Kazakh desert with plus 50 degrees heat. Tim’s spirits finally lift when Tigon is found alive in an old mining shack. After five failed attempts to leave ‘the place God forgot’, the dawning of spring allows Tim to escape and recommence his journey. From the Aral Sea Tim must cross the desert in the middle of summer to the Caspian. Temperatures soar to 50 degrees and without shade or water death would be a certainty. Fortunately for Tim, nomadic camel herders come to his rescue, taking him into their underground huts. 
Episode Four: No Place for Nomads Wednesday, August 18 at 8pm on ABC2 
Episode Five: Taking the Reins Wednesday, August 25 at 8pm on ABC2 
Trail of the Great Khans 
Biographies 
Tigon