Meet the Big Sky Team

Ari & Matt founded Big Sky Adventures in 2024, opening the Big Sky Gobi camp in the Summer of 2025. 

They met in Mongolia in 2006 and married in Caerphilly Castle in 2011. Their daughter, Daisy Khulan, was born in 2017.

Ari & Matt have a shared passion for adventure and travel and are delighted to welcome you the Big Sky Gobi camp located in the spectacular Gobi desert, within easy reach of Bayanzag's flaming cliffs, petroglyphs, Khongor singing dunes and Yolanda Am nature valley.

Ari & Matt try to spend as much time as possible at the camp to participate in and lead camp activities.

Ari is a tourism professional, working as a tour guide, interpreter and in hotel and residence management for over 20 years. 

She has worked in Asia, the Caribbean and Europe, graduating in Tourism and Hospitality in London in 2008. 

A Mongolian national, Ari is fluent in Mongolian and English, and also speaks Russian. 

Matt is a career diplomat and has worked for the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office for almost 25 years, serving in Guyana, Jordan, Kuwait, Taiwan, Tajikistan and Trinidad & Tobago.

With a love of the natural world, Matt loves to lead hikes and nature tours and is a keen birdwatcher and photographer.

Matt can turn his hand to offroad driving expeditions and can often be found helping out in the kitchen or mixing cocktails at the Big Sky bar. 

Matt is an Arabic speaker and also has a word or two of French, Spanish and Portuguese. 

Erdenekhuu is our chief driver (and fixer!). His knowledge of the backroads, shortcuts and hidden treasures of the Gobi make him indispensable and he will always get you to where you need to go in safety and style. Never short of an interesting fact or story, Eegii brings your tour to life and his willingness to help is in unending supply. 

Having worked in Australia for over a decade, Eegii speaks great English. He's a founding member of our team. 

Jak & Bayaraa akh are the glue holding Big Sky Gobi together. Jak delivers delicious meals for you every day and has a great range of traditional Mongolian and Western dishes, deserts and bakery. She'll make sure you've tried the best local produce and can even prepare lunch boxes for long days on the road.  

As a trained electrician, Bayaraa akh is a vital part of the team. He keeps Big Sky Gobi ticking along, making sure the electricity is working as it should, the showers are hot and everything is neat and tidy.

Bayaraa akh and Jak spent years living and working in Korea and speak it well. 

Tumee & Eegii have been our biggest supporters since Day One! 

As well as being OUR tour guides the first time we came to the Gobi, Tumee Egch helps co-ordinate bookings and ensures the camp is kept fully stocked and ready to serve you. Eegii plots routes and has a knowledge of the Gobi dating back to his military service in the 1970s. 

They also speak Korean and English and the couple are well travelled, with regular visits to the UK, Australia, Taiwan and China.