Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
there are brief but impressive glimpses
of peaks
Engels
(6507m) and
Karl¨Marx
(6723m) peeping above a curiously cor-
rugated intermediate ridge. This area
would make for great camping. Alterna-
tively there's a signed homestay if you can
get across the river ford at
Javshanguz
,
which is less a village than a wide scat-
tering of 65 Pamiri houses spread across
several kilometres of valley. A cleft valley
frames more views of Marx Peak, but for
the next sighting of brilliant knob-topped
Engels' glacier ridge, look behind you
some 10km beyond Javshanguz as the
track degenerates and climbs to the north.
The toughest part of the 4WD road is a
river crossing just below the Maisara Pass.
This can be mitigated by driving up to a
high-altitude shepherd camp halfway to
the large lake
Turuntai-Kul
, and crossing
the stream at a smaller ford nearby. Rejoin
the main track which winds down hairpins
to the main Pamir Highway, rejoining it
east of Jelandy across a bridge that is only
just wide enough for a 4WD.
There are signed homestays at Vezdara,
Sindev, Shohirizm and Javshanguz plus
at Bodomdara, a very rough 14km off the
main road at Bidiz on the trekking route to
Darshai.
Khorog to Ishkashim
The 100km between Khorog and Ishkashim
is scenically varied. For the northerly section
the border river rages through a narrow val-
ley across which Afghanistan's donkey traf-
fic seems sometimes close enough to touch.
Nearer to Ishkashim the river widens, with
pretty green meadows that look almost like
golf fairways, notably around Sumjin Km92.
Anderob
(Km39) is the turn-off for
Ga-
ram¨Chashma
(soak 5TJS;
h
men 5am-8am,
3.30pm-4.30pm, women 8am-noon, 1.30pm-
3.30pm, 4.30-5.30pm)
, 6km east. There a
natural bowl of mineral deposits forms a
hot-spring pool that up close looks less at-
tractive than the brochure photos, and the
village is unexpectedly commercialised.
Contrastingly few visitors venture 1.7km up
hairpins from Anderob's southernmost end
to
Dasht¨Village
. Panoramic views down
across Anderob are postcard-perfect. Dasht
is home to
Rustom¨Masain
(
%
93-450 06 26;
Dasht Village, Anderob)
, a nationally famous
yet seemingly impoverished septugenarian
maker of traditional (and sometimes amus-
ingly kitschy) musical instruments.
South of Anderob towards Ishkashim,
you'll pass the
Koh-i-Lal¨ruby¨mine
. Marco
Polo noticed gem mines here in 1274 and
Badakhshani rubies remain internationally
famed.
8
Getting¨There¨&¨Away
Other than Khorog-Roshtqala minivans (10TJS)
there's minimal transport. Adding the Shokh
Dara Valley plus Bulunkul to a Wakhan Valley
trip, creating a six-day 4WD-loop, should cost
around US$600 total for a chartered land-
Cruiser including driver's expenses. Overall,
doing the loop clockwise gives the better views.
Ishkashim Ишкашим
Ishkashim is the Wakhan's regional centre
and largest village. It's certainly not an at-
traction in itself, but if you're here on Sat-
urday morning, don't miss the trans-border
market which bustles with Afghan traders
in turbans and
pakol
(flat caps). The bazaar
is held in three metal-roofed halls 3km west
of town on a no-man's-land island (passport
but no Afghan visa required). This is also
the main
border¨crossing
(Km 102, Ishkashim-
Khorog Highway;
h
Mon-Sat)
used by most visi-
tors heading for the Afghanistan Wakhan,
though it's worth checking the status of
the Langar and Shaimak borders. If open,
either would prove altogether more useful
for reaching the Little Pamir.
Well-marked just west of central Ish-
kashim,
Hanis¨ Guesthouse
(
%
93-582 58
20; vai4hope@gmail.com; Miyona 2, Ishkashim; bed
only/half-board/tent-space US$10/18/2;
h
Mar-
Nov)
has the rare luxury of Western toilets
and hot showers. It's big, sparse and insti-
tutional-looking but popular with travellers
Wakhan Valley
Ваханская долина
The Wakhan offers up a seemingly endless
parade of scenic superlatives. Vivid green
villages counterpoint towering valley
walls, which open regularly for glimpses
of the dazzling white Hindu Kush ('kill-
er of hindus') mountains marking the
Afghanistan-Pakistan border. A sprinkling
of castle ruins and ibex-horn shrine-walls,
even a Buddhist mini
ziggurat
-stupa, add
zest. And while you're here you might be
tempted to nip into Afghanistan. Beware
that without your own wheels, transport
is pitifully infrequent. Consider hiring a
4WD in Khorog or Murgab.
