Maps and Mapping software for Silk Route?
 

Hi all,

Please forgive me, I'm a newbie here, could do with some help. I'm hoping to do the Silk Route with my boyfriend in April/May/June. He's doing the car (Landcruiser 80 series) and visas, I have to do the route planning and navigation, but I'm a bit stuck.

We plan to go through Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, (Caspian), Turknenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China maybe Mongolia on the way out and return north of the Black Sea via Russia and Ukraine.

Anyone know what digital maps/mapping software is the best for this area? We have used Fugawi in the past, but they have no maps of this area. I don't really want to scan loads of paper maps unless I have to, so does anyone know of anything readily available in digital form?

Can anyone help please? Also, anyone done it? Any tips? Unmissable places or great routes?

Thanks,

Julie

Look at smellybiker.com and googlemaps.com

Don't forget to read all about getting into China http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/southern-asia/

Cheers,
John

Yes, lots of people do it every year on a bike ... not so many but still quite a few do it in 4WDs

openstreetmap.org for digital maps. routable Garmin maps from OpenStreetMap for free garmin compatible maps based on the openstreetmap data.

You should to to Tajikistan .. its unmissable - the Wakhan Valley and Pamir Highway. I would recommend you do go into Mongolia. Khiva and Bukhara are two not to be missed citied in Uzbekistan. Olkhon Island on Lake Baikal as you come of Mongolia. China will probably be too much to organise on that short notice

Thanks Guys for your replies.
Two different mapping options, and even better they're free.
I'll check them out

Hi, I will do the route from Italy to Samarkand next august 2011, passing trought Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria,Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, (Caspian), Turknenistan, Uzbekistan; and back Iran with my Land Rover. At the moment I am studing the route with Oziexplorer and Russian Maps fully calibrated for Ozi in different scale 500k 200k 100k and in same area also 50k. We, my wife and me, want to cross the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan completely off-road. If you are intrested we can share infos

cheers

Marco