Tajikistan 2022 - Dinosaur footprints and Iskander Kol

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Another quick Trekkup trip. This was a makeup trip for the one I missed a month before with stupid Covid. I was a bit wary of this one - work was killing me, I was so tired, and the thought of a long hike in the hot mountains was a bit daunting. But since my last meeting on Friday went well I decided to suck it up and go. We met up at Terminal 2 at the airport; I had driven and parked because I had an early meeting Monday morning upon return. I realized there was no group leader on this trip even though there were 14 of us. However, T said the guide was very knowledgeable and would be able to handle it himself. He was right - Saidbek was great!

The flight was fine, but arriving in the airport was... just chaos. Customs / immigration had no line and the locals would just walk up to the front of the counters without waiting in line. It was pure madness and a bit frustrating. I was able to get in line fairly early and was one of the first to make it through with one other guy in our group. We left the customs area to arrivals and .... wow. You could barely move. There was a tiny little open circle around which many people were just packed in like sardines awaiting their loved ones. We made it outside to meet Saidbek. He said that there were many villagers there to welcome back a bunch of people returning from Hajj (indeed, that was clear once we realized it), plus many people coming back from Russia now that the conscription had gone into effect - lots of people trying to leave so they would not be called up. Very sad.

Shirkent Valley

We finally got the group together into a bus and car and went to our hotel for a quick sleep. I was able to get about two hours and then up for breakfast upstairs in the morning. Breakfast was meh, but it hit the spot. We then had a two hour drive for our first adventure. We arrived near a village where we hiked up heading for the Dinosaur footprints. This was to be an 11 km hike; I had got mixed feedback when one guy said it was long and tough, while another said it was easy just long. It was not hard persay, but it was definitely not an easy hike as was advertised and one girl was having trouble (this was her first trip with our group) and another guy got on a donkey within about ten minutes of starting. It was a bit hot, but the hike itself was beautiful. It was very steep in places; at one spot, we literally had to scramble up a loose gravel hill and it was not easy, but I kind of enjoyed that part actually. The geology in the distance was really cool. And it was green and peaceful. We took a couple of short breaks along the way, so no one felt really pressured. Our group was actually pretty good that way the whole time. One guy who was a very experienced trekker walked with the slower people the whole time.

We made it to the top and walked another twenty minutes to see the footprints. It was a bit disappointing, but still the closest I had ever been to dinosaur footprints, so I enjoyed it. There is like a wall and once you can kind of see the arc of the footprints, it's clear, but it is pretty far away. Then we made our way back, coming down a different path which was very steep in places and I thought a bit dangerous - not a beginner trek.

Then we had an amazing, beautiful lunch! The family had a few kids just hanging around, including two young girls who had a bottle of water for us to wash our hands before we ate. The food was spread on a couple of large blankets. Whenever I have a hard workout, I do crave something sugary, so my eyes immediately went to the luscious fruit waiting - melon, grapes, apples, etc. They also had a homemade cheese with honey. There were tomatoes and cucumbers, fresh herbs like basil. Once everyone arrived, they brought out the grilled food: plov with lamb. It was good, very good, but I was happy with the fruit at this point. I could have stayed here to eat all day just so it would not go to waste.

It was soon time to continue down to the buses, with some people taking their time. It was quite hot and became dusty with the foot traffic. Once we got to the bottom, Saidbek showed me where I could stick my feet in the river to relax so I did and was the only one to do so. It was quite cold and my feet were actually numb for a bit! We had a bumpy ride back - one guy in our car was pretty rude to the older drive which made me uncomfortable - he was not a great driver, but i think he was mostly nervous with many other crazies on the road.

We had a short time to get a rest in the hotel before going out for dinner. It was pretty nice - a few of us got a huge beer for like $0.80. It was very meat heavy! Compared to the lunch, very few veggies. Then we made our way back to the hotel for a well deserved bed time.

Iskander Lake

The next morning after breakfast, we took two small buses, about 7 in each. I sat in the back with Saidbek and I was pretty much the only person awake the whole time. I could not sleep as the passing scenery was just gorgeous. As we made our way out of Dushanbe, Saidbek told us a bit about the buildings we were passing.... Soon the rest of the bus was asleep for the most part, but I enjoyed the drive along the river as made our way up into the mountains. There were many spots outside the city where the people would come to celebrate, including some small huts which were small dining areas along and over the river itself. Very cool. Saidbek continued to tell us some interesting tidbits during the ride for those awake (pretty much me and the guy in front of me). For instance, Dushanbe means "Monday" and comes because most markets were held on Sundays in the region, but Dushanbe held theirs on Mondays, making it a bit unique. However, the city was named Stalinabad from 1928-1954.

We continued onto the Fann Mountains in the distance. Climbing up the narrow valley with the two lane roads, lots of trucks, slow and fast moving cars was an experience on its own. We even passed a few small glaciers sitting on the river valley floor, while more prevalent ones were easily viewed at the mountain tops in the distance. Fascinating. Towards the top of the pass, we had a stop to get great photos of the view. Then it was time to head into the Tunnel of Death, aka Anzob Tunnel. This was constructed in 2006 and had some major issues, reopening in 2015. It saves 4 hours of time to get one part of the country to the other, without having to go through Uzbekistan where there could potentially be issues crossing borders. However, it is 5.5 kilometers of nerves.... The tunnel is dark, dusty, in poor condition, two way two lane traffic, and has water issues. It was very interesting to experience, but yeah... the nickname is understandable!

Then it was time to make the descent down into the next valley, with even more interesting views! One area Saidbek pointed out that the hills were smoking - I guess from coal seams? I can't really find information about it. The villages were generally located along the river and soon we left the main road and on a gravel road. We had turned left, but to the right was the Yaghnob valley, which preserved its own language from the time of Alexander the Great. After about another 45 minutes of a bumpy ride, we were again at the top of a pass which had amazing views over the Iskanderkul (Lake Alexander), with a river flowing down the valley we had just driven. We continued to the park, where there were quite a few local tourists. From here, some people continued to the lake itself, while the rest of us hiked along the river to waterfalls - about a 45 minute roundtrip hike. It was very neat! Still a warm day, but absolutely beautiful weather and the color contrasts of the red hills, blue sky, greenish-blue river, and green trees was beautiful. Even some blooming flowers along the way.

We returned to the lake and a few of us went on a short boat ride (the splash from the water was freezing!). We had been hanging out at a little structure near the lake and one of the local guys brought two plates of Plov for us - Saidbek said it was free and they were being friendly. I took a few bites and it was delicious! And so nice.

Then we got back to the buses and made our way to the local village about a 30 minute drive up the other side of the lake into the mountains. We had lunch in a guest house, similar to what we had previously had with fruits and bread, but here we had homemade soup and stuffed peppers. It was a tight squeeze for all of us, but it was also good to chat and get to know each other. Then it was time to leave and we made our way back to Dushanbe. I thought I might try to sleep this time.... but I was still too impressed with the views.

We got back pretty late and went immediately to dinner - a "pub" type place, open air on the upper floor. After a few minutes I noticed that aside from some wait staff, our group had the only women to be seen. Still a great atmosphere and the dinner was good! I had some grilled lamb, but the appetizers for the group were yum, especially a toasted pumpernickel type bread with raw garlic and cilantro. Another tall $0.80 beer too. Then we went back to the hotel. I got talked into joining a few at the bar / restaurant at the hotel and sipped a shot of vodka before saying I had to go to bed (stupid work!). The airport was just as crazy as expected, but I actually preferred it to Almaty a few weeks before. Slightly more friendly and more to do, and more organized.

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Comments

[Dancing Dave]

Iskanderkul
How lucky you seem to be to take a jaunt in Tajikistan on a whim or a dream. For Denise and I when we joined Travel Camel and the Binkleys for our roadtrip into the High Pamir, it was not easy getting there from Oz...but so so worth it. This pic captures the coloured palette of incredible views that is await you there. I have heard the Fan Mountains are sensational and your pic gives just a taste. Understandable that you could not doze as you'd miss so much of the spectacular. Love the roads cut into the sides of mountains in your pic. I'll post it in our 'Follow that road' thread in the Photography Forum. For those that venture there those roads lead to Heaven in my book! Hope you have further hikes there.

[lexispence10]

Pamir!
Thank you so much! I would love to travel the Pamir Highway - it's still on my list. I would definitely return to Tajikistan for that.

[D MJ Binkley]

Tajikistan
We spent two weeks in Tajikistan and loved every minute of it. So much beauty.