Kazakhstan - Poor road
 

We have just travelled by motorcycle from Atyrau to Aqtobe via Maqat and Shubarqudyq.
This has taken us three days due to the poor ( potholed/bomb crater) condition of the allleged road. Apparently the road to take is the one north to Oral then east to Aqtobe.
Hope this stops anyone having the nightmare we have just had.

As a matter of fact, the "normal" route from Aktau to Almaty seems to be the following one:
Beyneu --> Atyrau --> Makat --> Atyrau --> Uralsk --> Aktobe --> Kostanay --> Astana --> Karaganda --> Balkash --> Almaty
This is the itinary chosen by truck drivers when it has been raining, or snowing, or whatever might happen in the kazak steppe...
The other easy route is shorter, but has 250km of difficult section:
Beyneu --> Atyrau --> Makat --> Atyrau --> Uralsk --> Aktobe --> Aral --> Baykonour --> Shymkent --> Almaty.

Does somebody know if the stretch between Nukus and Beyneu has been reconstructed?
I read that there were plans of Uzbek / Kazakh governments to rebuild this bad stretch by 2010...

I'm interested for my 2011's motorcycle journey to Samarkand...

Its not a bad road as it is. Its half gravel and half "old-ish" asphalt ... but its all good for 100 km/h

Hello Colebatch! :thumbup1:

Well, I found this Dave's Gallery :: KAZAKHSTAN.

A friend of mine that rode solo from Italy to Samarkand last August 2009 astride his Fazer got stuck just like this guy because there was rain between Beyneu and Nukus and that road rapidly turned into a channel of mud.
I would not like to meet the same destiny, since I fought hard with my boss to have a 30-day off period and he'd be quite upset if I was some further days late at work due to this reason...
This is why I really hope that next year that stretch will be OK for my big Tourer.
If it won't rain, I will not be scared and I'm sure I'll make it riding veeery slowly, but in case of slippery mud... I'll be through!


Cheers, mate!

Road Condition
 

I did this route solo in June last year, and was pretty apprehensive about the road conditions etc. The map I had showed it as unsurfaced, and the locals didn't agree on how difficult it might be.

As Colebatch said, on an adventure type bike you'd have no worries doing most of it at 60MPH. In the dry.
Without rain you'd manage it on a road bike, but it may take you all day. There is petrol en-route, but the station didn't look like the kind of place to adhere to any hard and fast opening hours.

Might be a wise idea to carry extra fuel unless your bike is good for long long fuel range.

http://www.gabe-rtw.co.uk/forumimg/K...yneu_fuel.jpeg

Did this route last summer , was not prepared for it as all my maps stated "higway on it" these were maps from 2008 !

very bad "road" well 90% of it looks like the surface of the moon and the rest its dirt tracks covered with sand. I did it in one day on a 1200gs took about 14-15hours to drive from Aturay to Aktobe. painful ride but good for the skills.

Was planing to go south from aktobe to aral , but according to the locals that road was even worse and I was adviced to take the long way north via Astana to Almaty. Very good roads all the way to Almaty .

I just take the road Atyrau Nukus, till Bejneu the road is fine new tarmac and je ride 180 if you want but wach out foor animals on the road.
after Bejneu to the Uzbek border the road is terrible, after the border the road is fine for 200 a 300Km, then it starts with many potholes and other shit (ca 100Km before Kungrad), In Uzbek de road to Buchara were I am now is also terrible for 200Km.

Dont expect them to get any better in Central Asia ...

Which is the stretch you are talking about? Bukhara to....?

Terrible why? Sand, potholes, destroyed asphalt...?