It was a bit of a mix of no or very bad internet connection, being part of a group so we all passed the Pamir Highway not alone (which was a wise choice for all of us) and simply being a bit lazy after a couple of extremely hard days riding after we left Osh.
Osh to Sary Tash was in fact a nice ride, not too long and with a number of nice view points on some interesting roads, not too bad but shared with a lot of trucks going to or coming from China. The weather was on our side and I did not even put on an extra thermal layer. We reached Sary Tash in the early afternoon, stopped for lunch at the Akun restaurant and the nice lady owner convinced us quickly to stay in their guest house behind the restaurant. As all guest houses in Sary Tash offer only shared bedrooms and shared showers we just took it, as it also came with hot water, at least, the dinner was good, just the right mix to have a good sleep and to power up for the next day to get up to the pass and crossing into Tajikistan, one of the highest border crossings in the world with 4,100 m on the pass in the 30 km nomans land, followed by another peak of 4,600 before the road decent to Mughab , the one cross road settlement in the middle of nowhere in one of the harshest places on Earth to live. It started all good on a relatively good road up to the border post on the Kyrgyzstan site, where you get checked out of Kyrgyzstan. All friendly and easy, then the ascent to the pass on a not maintained dirt road track up hill with some not too difficult switchbacks and then the pass. Like all good riders we left our sticker marks on the sign board next to the Marco Polo sheep, swapped for air and moved on to the Tajikistan Border post a bit further down only to be greeted with the bar down and the information that the computer is down and we have to wait. I make it short, we all five made it somehow through that Border post, however, two of us had to surrender their drones, as they have not been registered in or for Tajikistan. It was a completely fuck-uo by one of the custom officers who asked only the last guy in our group if he has a drone and he honestly answered with yes and was then called into the small office alone with the officers. On top, suddenly he was asked to pay 5 USD for each of us (25 USD), what he did in hope he gets his drone back but this was just a side maneuver to extract some tea money. In the meantime a group of five girls (two from Turkey and three from France) on T7s and one Tuareg came up from the Tajikistan side and after some introduction and explaining what is going on, they told us they have drones but never got asked about when they entered Tajikistan.
As we was waiting we asked about the road conditions ahead of us and got some scary stories of corrugated roads and smashing potholes and so on, what all conformed earlier stories I was told by other riders (one smashed his windscreen on a BMW 1250 GSA, what gave me some ideas). One of the girls (the Touareg) had lost her side stand and could not get off the bike without leaning it against a wall or pole. It’s one of my nightmares that this will happen to me. As one of us already custom cleared guys had a drone in his luggage, but was never asked about, we decided to get away from the border post and wait for the two in the office further down. Well, so was the plan until we hit the dirt track going downhill from the pass on the worst hard corrugated gravel conditions I personally ever encountered, the traction control kicked in instantly, the bike came almost to a stand still, same for the Transalp next to me, while the 500 X stumbled ahead in an almost uncontrollable manner. And see it went on for the next 20-30 km or so, with my traction control going completely wild (even in the highest mode) and I try to figure out how to switch it completely off. And I thought I understood the manual, hahahaha.
Hello Honda, do you hear me, can you make a single button traction control switch off, like I have on my old Africa Twin. Thank you.
Well, everything has an end and gradually the road turned into a smooth asphalt surface until we reached Karakul (lake) and stopped for lunch (what gave us the first taste of Tajikistan food) and waited for the two behind us. The two arrived without drones but the promise, the drones would get delivered to Murgabh, where they can register the drones and get them back. (Long story short, they have not received the drones up to today)
After lunch we set off again to get over the next pass of 4,600 meters and to Murgabh. The roads became only worse, to the degree, we decided to use the far out desert pistes, which have been used by the big SUVs, and where it was nice flat and I could easily go up over 100 until I reminded myself I should not get so cocky as there can be always sudden dents, water crossings and holes.
I must say, that was where the Africa Twin with the Heidenau tires was absolutely in its element and outshined every other bike in the group by being miles ahead. I could go easily over 100, standing relaxed and balanced on the pegs and simply controlled steering by just leaning in. Well, maybe I was also a bit over confident in the thin air. However, putting it in offroad mode and with a bit lower tire pressure was still hard work but there was nobody who came close to overtaking the Africa Twin. Somewhere in the middle of nowhere, we bumped again into Nathan on his BMW who had obvious fuel system problems as the engine came to a studder and died every couple of kms. We took him in and somehow we all made it to Murgabh and stayed in the Pamir Hotel, still the best choice amongst the other offers, even when we had only shared bathrooms. After such a day, you only want some food, refill the body with liquid and ab early sleep. Good thing, no Air Condition needed in the cool thin air.
The next day, we could only start after 9 am when the petrol point with cans of petrol opposite of the hotel opened. But we could at least see, it was clear and clean petrol. I assume, Nathan had simply bad luck and got bad petrol filled the day earlier and his filter struck.
Anyway , we set off, this time with trucks on the road again, coming from and going to China and or to some mines in that area, as I saw a number of trucks with typical mining and road construction material. Trucks on such roads mean they will turn left and right at will, dictated by the swallowing portholes and if you are on the wrong side at the wrong moment you will find yourself on the thin edge of the road sides, hoping you can make it to the front. Having said that, honking and head light beaming helps to make them aware you ate there and in many cases they will give you some room to speed quickly ahead.
While the first 40 km or so looked promising, it turned slowly into a real shitshow with a gravel road of small head size borders and suddenly appearing deep potholes. Glad, I had put the preload to the highest point in the morning, after I bottomed out the day earlier twice. With the suspension on the highest and softest level and standing on the pegs almost all day, the Africa Twin again showed the best of Honda engineering. The bike took everything that the road was throwing at us with a stunning sturdiness and kind of coolness like I didn’t know exists.
Somewhere in the middle I stopped where I saw a lot of truckers stopped as it means there must be a restaurant and I could wait for the others behind me. After lunch we set off again, when we met a French/Swiss couple on CRF Rally’s who told us that the road around the next peak gets worse, but at least we also knew, after that peak it will be all good on a constant slow decent to Khorog.
But yes, that last stretch got really worse, with bigger borders, more potholes, less options to take side roads and that all on the wide plain where you could see 10 km ahead realizing that there is no end to it with one truck after the other going in both ways. Well, everything has an end, and we finally reached the last pass, with a sudden surprisingly steep decline via a good number of switchbacks until we reached the bottom and asphalt again.
The problem with those days is also that it is hard to gauge how long it will take to reach what place or if you can make it all the way to the desired destination. So we decided to get at least to a village where I knew, there would be a guest house. Took us a bit less, as the road condition improved, with more asphalt and less broken roads and gravel and potholes. Hence, after a quick drink stop we decided to press on as Khorog was 2 hours away and we could reach it before darkness. As I do not like darkness, or even driving in the dark shadows of the towering mountains ahead (with hard to see sudden portholes and whatever gravel) I pressed ahead, using the gravel mode and the bike was a real bliss to make it to Khorog. I do not want to brag, but yes, I had to wait over 30 minutes for the others, who also had to stop, after one of them had to throw up after some bad food mixed with hard work on the bike, two drops, the altitude and simply the excitement which comes with such long riding days on bad roads.
We arrived at the hotel, unfortunately there were not enough rooms for all of us and the two moved to another recommended hotel on the other side of the river. Funnily, at the hotel where I stayed were two Korean and Japanese riders who had stayed together with one of the others in Almaty in the same hotel, so we had a good meet-again dinner at the rooftop Restaurant of the other hotel, one of the few places, which also served beers. Keep in mind, we were just opposite of the Afghan border.
Yesterday we all had a chill and bike maintenance day before we met for dinner again also after two others from the group had arrived who took the Wakhan Valley from Murgabh. Watching the videos of them going through the water crossings with twice dropping the bike in the water, only confirmed, it was a very wise decision that we took the direct route to Khorog and not the route via the Wakhan Valley. On top, one of them knocked out his rear suspension seal, lost the oil drop for drop and has no dampening in the rear suspension anymore.
They went off today all together to Kalaikhum on the last stretch of gravel on the Pamir Highway, before the road to Dushanbe is comparable to a highway after the last 500 km stones, swallowing potholes and gravel with some patches of asphalt all served on a 3,000 to 4,600 meter high table.
I will follow them tomorrow, back driving solo and will join them again in Dushanbe with the idea to get together over the border to Uzbekistan and to Samarkand and Bukhara, before they turn south again towards Afghanistan and I’m north towards Tashkent.
So is the plan.
This was a bit longer, but I had to press four days into one post and a lot of things happened over the four days to me and my travel buddies.
Will try to post some pictures later, as Internet is really bad and unreliable here. C
Cheers