I have been on top of this hill in the northern Indian territory of Ladakh for more than four hours, waiting for an elusive snow leopard to emerge from his resting place on a neighboring hill.

Polish explorer Mateusz Waligóra became the first person in recorded history to cycle across Mongolia’s Gobi Desert in winter, covering 1,285 kilometers in 26 days. Mateusz Waligóra is the ...