Heavy snowfall in Pamir
 

Hi everybody, i will be in kirgizstan & tajikistan next august.
Third time for me and my friend, and i'm just thinking about...we want to do the Bartang Valley, do you think that the heavy snowfall of this winter could be a major problem for high rivers?
I know...it's april and august is three months ahead...but i'm worried now :rofl:
What do you think? Do we have a chance?
Somebody is going before us?

Hi rombodituono. I am going to try it -not sure- in early or late June. I will try to keep informed you on this post.

Thank you, good luck !!!

snow
 

We had snow in August not too far away from Zorkul. Not all that much, but the road turned into muddy snot which kept us from riding for a day.

We also tried Bartang, but had to turn around where a river had washed out the road (East of Roshorv). With the two of us we did not want to fight walking the bikes thru the river. It was flowing fast and deep, It is pretty lonely there, not much help if you need it. There might have been a way around (I added that bypass to OSM), but we did not know if we would have enough gas if we had to turn around later down the road. The situation can change rapidly, we went over some sections were clearly the river had flowed over the road the last 24 hours, while for us the river level was below the road elevation.

It is all part of the adventure. If I were you I would go for it, worst case you have to turn around and still have a great ride. Make sure you know your limits and keep an eye on your gas situation.

Hi Batelumes,
if you plan to early June I may be able to join you, let me know.

I'll be entering Tajik and should start my Pamir journey by May 7th. I'm currently in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Cheers,
Abi

Hi khpostma.

From where did you start it? Going up or down of the valley? What time was it? And you talk about "way around" at Bartang Valley....man, there are no many places there where is posible to do that....

For sure there are diferents conditioners: dates, time of the day, wheather forecast....and also try to ask to differents local drivers about the track status and even with all this information is not guarantee of success. But it will be great to try it. :thumbup1:

PM sent.

bier

It would be grat if you could get some info. Are you going to try it, also?

Regards!

We went from the West towards the East. As mentioned we got stopped by a river East of Roshorv crossing the road. There is a bypass around that river crossing North of that village, which was not clear to us at the time, but which I found after we got home. We rode it for a little ways. It starts 5 km's or so West of Roshorv and routes you North and then East. I added it to OSM, but I have no idea about the actual condition of that bypass. Locals seemed to think it was rough going.

By the time you get there things will have changed anyway.

Just go for it and see how far you get.

Yes. I'm exploring Uzbek until Muynak and heading back to Samarkhand on 2nd May. I'll cross the Uzbek-Tajik border on 5th May. 6th and 7th, I will be in Dushanbe and prep the bike for Pamir. I should Start toward Khorog on 8th May and take the Vrang road along the Afghan border. Will know about the status of the roads and weather only when in Khorog.
Where are you now?

I will re-start my trip late May from Almaty
I am still working at the moment.

Ride carefully between Kongrad and Muynak. I had an accident there in 2015 because of a flock of sheep than jumped suddenly on the road just few meters in front of me. Vegetation of both sides on the road prevented me of seeing them on time.

Thank you Batelumes!

Sent from my XT1572 using Tapatalk

I'm currently thinking about doing the same route in the end of May, would be nice to have some information about the conditions you find as Batelumes already mentioned. :thumbup1:

Shall let you know. Hopefully we bump into each other in Kyrgyzstan! Cheers.

Sent from my XT1572 using Tapatalk

thanks guys, keep in touch on this post to update Bartang conditions and good luck to everybody!

Hey guys,
Not about Bartang but surely useful for some of you anyhow, please find below latest info from pecta about the southern route to Ishkashim:

Since 3 days now the road which connects Wakhan and the Pamir Highway is open. It was closed due to snowfall.*

When you drive from Langar to M41 via Khargush pass it is sandy in the beginning (7-11km). I guess it is not a problem for motorbikes. However it is tough if you cycle this part of the road.

I guess I'll see some of you down there next week or so?
@Abi: where will you be staying at in Dushanbe?

Save travels to you all,
Cat

Hey guys,
Not about Bartang but surely useful for some of you anyhow, please find below latest info from pecta about the southern route to Ishkashim:

Since 3 days now the road which connects Wakhan and the Pamir Highway is open. It was closed due to snowfall.*

When you drive from Langar to M41 via Khargush pass it is sandy in the beginning (7-11km). I guess it is not a problem for motorbikes. However it is tough if you cycle this part of the road.

I guess I'll see some of you down there next week or so?
@Abi: where will you be staying at in Dushanbe?

Save travels to you all,
Cat

Thanks for the info, Cat. It would be great have some info along the next month.

About the stay at Dushanbe, first we have to arrive...Do you have a suggestion?

Regards.

Bartang Valley
 

Hi all. I finished the Bartang yesterday, from Rushon towards Ghudara and Kara-kul.
I have to say that I spent 12hrs to ride the 290kms from Rushon to the M41 close to Kara-kul. It is no doable by car all the way, Koj-dar has imposible passes, but it is posible drive from the M41 to the top of Koj-dar.
From Rushon to Ghudara is posible depending of the level of the river. I did a deep water crossing helped by locals, pushing the bike up the river with 90cms of water in a very tin pass some kms before Varjach, and it was the only really deep.
A lot of recent "small stone slides" repaired, I found workers in differents places of the track.
After Ghudara it has really dificult passes, landslides with 1m deep and long holes.
For riders, I would say that only with very good enduro abilities and really off road bikes.
Conection is not good to share pictures, I am at Murghab.

Regards.

Bartang Valley
 

Hi all. I finished the Bartang yesterday, from Rushon towards Ghudara and Kara-kul.
I have to say that I spent 12hrs to ride the 290kms from Rushon to the M41 close to Kara-kul. It is no doable by car all the way, Koj-dar has imposible passes, but it is posible drive from the M41 to the top of Koj-dar.
From Rushon to Ghudara is posible depending of the level of the river. I did a deep water crossing helped by locals, pushing the bike up the river with 90cms of water in a very tin pass some kms before Varjach, and it was the only really deep.
A lot of recent "small stone slides" repaired, I found workers in differents places of the track.
After Ghudara it has really dificult passes, landslides with 1m deep and long holes.
For riders, I would say that only with very good enduro abilities and really off road bikes.
Conection is not good to share pictures, I am at Murghab.

Regards.

Hi Batelumes, hope to see pictures soon. Your news let me quite doubtful about making it with an Africa Twin and a Yamaha XTZ660Z.
We are quite experienced off road drivers, but you know...it's difficult to judge what that means in deep water & narrow tracks.
Hope that 30 more days and the hot weather reported in pamir could make water lever drop in the next weeks...
Thanks for updating

Sary tash to dushanbe
 

Hi guys,

I will be leaving osh in next few days and doing the southern pamiir. Anyone around or going in opposite direction? Current road conditions?

Hi all. I am having problems with my device and bad luck the with the conection. I will try to update tonight or tomorrow.
About Bartang, always depends of the ability of the rider. I did it with a 640 Adventure with very light soft luggage.
I will try to send pictures if the most dificult passes at Ko-jar, the water took the full width of the track and there are only a very tin and slippery donkey pass with a big fall in one side. The 90 cms deep water crossing was not the most dificult. Between Ko-jar and Ghudara there are landslides with 1m deep and long holes. Riding 2 people it would be easier to "build" a pass for the bikes, but it would be not easy at all.

Southern Pamir? Wakhan, do you mean? It was just recently renewed, with one rock fall passable by car between Langara and the army control after the pass. I found it clean and fast non paved track from the M41 to Eshkashem, and paved in not good condition from Eshkashem to Khorog.
From the Kyrgyz Border to after Tajik Border is off road, muddy if it rains. More or less "not bad" paved until Alichur, with the high passes not paved.

can't wait to see your photos :D

I am trying....was not be able at the moment....doh

The first picture was taken by my friends of Backroad Vagrants some days after I passed. They turn back with their HZJ78 not being sure to follow the right track under 90cms of water along of the +-20m of flowed track.

Oh.....:clap:

There were few places similar than the last picture, but, where you see the stream there were 1m deep and long holes several followed, I passed it "flying" with the front wheel some of them and falling other times. Also finding better pass.....but nothing much easier than the others.
The sections of small stones were very slippery, don't want to know how it would be with a bigger and more heavy bike, also several passes very close to the left fall.

1 or 2 or 3 years ago even cars managed to drive through this valley: from what I see from pictures, it looks like it is difficult even for bikes now.
Situation can change, but from this pictures it looks difficult.

This is worst then i expected doh...with a fully loaded Africa Twin that narrow passage would be really scary. You've been brave to make it all alone.
Let's see if someone else will make the valleynext weeks and update this post...maybe meanwhile some tajik road worker will throw a little bit of rocks and concrete to fix it :thumbup1:

I have recommended to differents travellers just try from the M41 to Ko-jar pass, and from Rushan to the point that be doable for them. If I hadn't be helped in the deep water crossing I hadn't even tryed it, unknowing the underwater track. It wouldn't have worked just walk close to the mountain, because the track was high respect of the ground, so it is deeper in one side and much worst in the other side with the river. And I pull of my deco as soon as I passed the deeper part of the pass just in case some water went inside the engine.

It is not a courage question. You have to analyze in each moment your posibilities of turn back just in case, and be really sure in the committed passes that you are not going to fail. I made easier that passes cleaning the path of the stones before and after the difficulty. Don't forget the section of the mudslides with the big holes all along the stream, I was exhausted pulling out my bike in the times that I fell inside it and I didn't take pictures of them.

3 years ago i sized bartang valley by 4x4 from rushan to karakul, it took me 3 days and sometimes not easy crossing the side gullies and streams - and it was a very dry year. and comparing with your pictures - i see it's really not possible this year by car.

what was the highest point your friends in tlc has reached from rushan? looking at the picture you attached i suppose they didn't reach even the village of basid (half way of rushan-ghudara) - is this right?
and what's the situation along the southern coast of karakul lake, near jingajir and muzkol and ak-jilga rivers (as there are wetlands and salty swamps usually)?

and as i know - this is not the end of bad weather. there are heavy rainings in tjk and kgz. the road between tursunzoda and hissar is partly destroyed, some people died of "sil".

----

> maybe meanwhile some tajik road worker will throw a little bit of rocks and concrete to fix it
this is not cortina d'ampezzo, this is pamir.
and i hope they will never use conrete in bartang.

After checking my gps, going up from Rushan the first difficulty I had to cross was Razujdara river -few kms after Razuj village-, the track was destroyed by the stream.
And you are right, the deep water crossing was before Basid, where my friends turn back.
From the sheperd's house after Ko-jar pass to M41, following the main track, I did two easy water crossings, one maybe 40cms deep in two streams and the other a low and calm river +-20-30cms deep. It was perfectly doable by 4x4, some small side gullies just repaired and clearly visible paths of some truck.
Not sure about the names of the rivers, my map doesn't have them, but after pass Ko-jar, I just was enjoying riding, only I had to low speed while the track went paralel and close to the river with some closed turns.

I don't have idea if it is going to be repaired or not. It doesn't seems, and for sure that with the time only will be worst.

wetlands:
https://goo.gl/maps/c2kTVHb9yMS2
ak-jilga:
https://goo.gl/maps/pc5bn72uHnk
muzkol (kyzyl jiik):
https://goo.gl/maps/wgZ8ww2nuQw
jingajir (dzingazhir):
https://goo.gl/maps/rtjauWHbTv62

Wetlands only a long "dry stream" but easy to pass.
Muzkol I remember veeeery fast section, just the last 200mts before the M41 were slow, but always without difficulty.

I didn't pass the others.

> maybe meanwhile some tajik road worker will throw a little bit of rocks and concrete to fix it
this is not cortina d'ampezzo, this is pamir.
and i hope they will never use conrete in bartang.[/QUOTE]

Yeah i was joking :cool4: :cool4:
(cortina is 200km from my house)

last update (about a week ago):
upper bartang not passable by car (on the kok-jar traverse many huge stones more than 500kgs each on the road, road partly destroyed). don't even try to enter kok-jar from the north - you'll have to drive back on reverse several hundred meters as there is no place to turn.
by bike - passable, but not easy.

Does anyone know the condition of Wakhan valley and M41? It seems that Bartang will be for bicycles and bikes for some time.

Hello
Ko-jar pass is there?:
https://goo.gl/maps/Pb1wk2nSrWm

Bartang
 

Hi there

June/July/August Bartang should be fine. Its getting crouded every year a bit more, hostels could be full.
Make sure that you have enough benzin on the road. There is for a while no petrol station.

Have a save trip.
Dave

Hello
I will drive with 4x4 car.
Can You confirme me localization of Ko-jar pass/mountaine?

Its this part of Bartang patch?
https://goo.gl/maps/Pb1wk2nSrWm

Best regards
Lecchu

Yes it's. Before and after the "corner", I think.

Hi

I'm planning a trip to Pamir highway on September 2019. I'm just wondering if the weather conditions are getting too hard at that time of year.

Bartang Valey road washed
 

Just got a recent feedback from a client about the Bartang road condition.
Ones the road goes along the river. The entire road is washed away for about 400m. Riding at the river bead is the only left option.

've been told that there is no crossing for cars possible.

Have a save trip, Dave

Just arrived from Osh with the group of riders. Bartang is ok. Just one water crossing on the side river. River is low. We met Toyota on the way down from Karakul. Road is narrow in some parts but nothing very hard.