WAKHAN EXPLORER

Itinerary

M41 "WAKHAN EXPLORER"

Day 1. Bishkek
Arrive Bishkek. Meet agent and transfer to hotel. Free time for rest before we visit Tajikistan embassy to apply for visas. Lunch in downtown. Free time to explore the environs or optional sightseeing. PM receive passports with visas. Dinner. Overnight in hotel. Meals: BLD

Day 2. Bishkek - Osh - Sary Tash (190 km)
Early breakfast. Transfer to Airport. Boarding and 40 min Bishkek-Osh flight. Sightseeing of Osh including oriental bazaar - one of the biggest  bazaars  in  Central  Asia,  Suleiman Too  - the sacred hill of local Muslims also known as Solomon throne and local history museum in cave. Lunch. Drive to Sary-Tash village (190 km). Here the mountains are Pamirs - the roof of the world. Accommodation in homestay. Dinner. Overnight in homestay. Meals: BLD

Day 3. Sary Tash - Karakul
Breakfast. Drive towards Kyrgyzstan/Tajikistan border enjoying the views of Lenin peak (7,134 m) which dominates over the area. End of Kyrgyz section at Kyzyl Art pass (4,280 m) which forms the border with Tajikistan. Border formalities and drive down 95 km to the shore of Karakul lake which at 3,915 m is too high to support aquatic life. Karakul is the largest of a range of about 800 ancient lakes in the Pamirs which were created by earthquake, tectonic activity and glaciers. By the lakeside, there are some mysterious stone circles. Lunchboxes.  On arrival free time to explore the environs. Accommodation in homestay. Dinner with a family. Overnight in homestay. Meals: BLD

Day 4. Karakul - Murgab - Bulunkul lake
Breakfast. Drive to Murgab (135 km) over Ak-Baital Pass (4,655 m), the highest section of road in the former USSR. Murgab is a center of the most highest mountain region in CIS bordering China. The terrain here is becoming barren and rocky. This region is inhabited by nomadic Kirgyz herders. Murgab is located in a valley at about 3,000 m above sea level and surrounded by high peaks. Also from this point you can see Muztag Ata peak – the highest mountain in Pamirs of 7546m. Lunch. Continue to Bulunkul lake thru picturesque Alichur valley. At night the clear view of the Milky Way is unparalleled. Accommodation in homestay. Dinner with a family. Overnight in homestay. Meals: BLD

Day 5. Bulunkul lake - Lyangar - Yamchun
Breakfast. Long day. Drive to Lyangar (126 km) over Khargush pass of 4,344 m. As we enter the Wakhan, there are amazing views of the Pamirs to the right and the Hindu Kush to the left. On the other side of the pass we cross thru another check point as we now drive along Afghan border. The view is stark and desolate. If time permits we make a steep climb above the village and see the petroglyphs carved into the rock, depicting mountain goats, caravans, horse riders with banners, and the Ismaili symbol of a hand. Lunch. Continue to Vrang where on a cliff-side pitted with caves, stands a Buddhist complex dating from 4th-7th centuries. In Yamchun we stop for Yamchun fort of Fire Worshippers. Further up the hillside are the hot springs at Bibi Fatima. The crystal clear water is full of minerals and very silty, it is possible to take a natural steam bath in a rocky cave. Accommodation in homestay. Dinner. Overnight in homestay. Meals: BLD

Day 6. Yamchun - Ishkashim - Khorog
Breakfast. Drive north to Ishkashim, which stands at the mouth of the Wakhan River valley. This is where the 19th century Great Game ended, when Britain and Russia signed a treaty adding a strip of the Wakhan valley to Afghanistan to create a neutral buffer zone between their two empires. We stop here for lunch and internet. Continue to Khorog (130 km) - the center of Gorny Badahshan. Optional stop to bathe at the hot, mineral filled springs at Garmchashma on the way. Accommodation in guest house. Dinner. O/N in guest house. Meals: BLD

Day 7. Khorog
Breakfast. We are not in hurry today. We spend full day in Khorog exploring the environs and visiting the most highest in the world botanical garden. If that falls to Saturday morning visit Afghan market to buy traditional Afghan hats and scarfs and make photo with Afganis. Visit small History Museum.

Day 7. Khorog - Kalaikhumb
Breakfast. Long day drive (190km) to Kalaikhumb – a small village on Pamir Highway. Follow the fascinating road along the Afghan border. On the Tajik side, the road is asphalted and buildings have metal and glass in their construction. On the Afghan side, about 100m away, everything is mud, wood and donkey tracks. Here the people are Pamiris, not Tajiks, a number of separate tribal groups with their own languages. Overnight in guest house. Meals: BLD

Day 9. Kalaikhumb - Dushanbe
Breakfast. Long day drive west from Kalaikhumb towards Dushanbe – the capital of Tajikistan. Today's drive is a sharp contrast to the first few days of the tour. This region is much more strongly Muslim and this can be seen in the conservative dress and beards. Over a mountain pass to Dushanbe and the scenery and people change again. On arrival accommodation in hotel (***). Meals: BLD

Day 10. Dushanbe
Breakfast. Fee day for sightseeing of Dushanbe or visit nearby Hissor Fort - former capital of Eastern Bukhara province. We can also arrange hike in the mountains that day on request (subject for extra charge). O/N in hotel. Meals: BLD

Day 11. Dushanbe - Istaravshan - Khodjent
Breakfast. A long day as we drive over 2 passes (220 km). From Dushanbe we start climbing to the top of Anzob pass 3373 m and then decent to Ainy where we have lunch in a small road cafe. Continue drive to Istrafshan over Shahriston Pass 3,378 m. Istarafshan history has shaped the character of the people who live in the city. It's a fascinating place with some of the oldest and most intact Islamic buildings in Tajikistan where the traditional street layout of the old city has been preserved. Continue to Khojand. Dinner in downtown. Overnight in hotel***. Meals: BLD.

Day 12. Khodjent - Oibek - Tashkent
Breakfast. Drive to Tajik–Uzbek border crossing "Oibek". Border formalities. End of tajikistan section. Meet Uzbekistan agent. Onward travel - transfer to Tashkent.  Accommodation  at  the  hotel. Meals: B.