Aralsk-Aktobe-Atyraou
 

Hi,
I'm planning to do this "road" very soon and I need info about the actual state of it, just to know how many days it needs.
I'm driving a Land Rover.
Please let me also know if there is comfortable accommodations in these towns.
RR.

hello,
I sent you an email.

There is no road from Aktobe to Atyrau (I though this had been covered several times on here...); people need to stop trusting maps of the region. The road runs from Aktobe - Oral (Uralsk) - Atyrau. If you don't like asphalt then try the direct track, but don't expect the 'red' highway marked on maps.

I am 99% sure i went (other way round) from Atyrau to Aktobe then down to Embi in 2013.

All locals in Atyrau stated how bad this route is and is alot better to go Atyrau to Uralsk to Aktobe but i ended up going Atyrau to Aktobe to Embi , mostly it is all industrial buildings and the road stopped near some compound where i waited and saw a dust cloud coming which was the driver of a kamaz driving basically his own route across the sand, i then asked for directions to Aktobe and ended up following him until the road started again which was closed in many sections due to road works/construction.

Road is very heavily potholed to the point where it is better to just ride on the sand

We drove 2010 from Atyrau-Kandyagash-Embi-Shalkar and from there to Aral.
From Kandyagash if you go north there is road to Aktobe (Unless it has been blown up). Certainly it is even in kazak standart bad road but it exists.

Or then you was talking of somehing more direct route but to go Aktobe there is no need to go through Uralsk.

Yes, by 'no road' I mean no proper paved road. If you like a rough track, then by all means take it!

this is my moovie :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82X0s4Gs-hM

I am sure roro will be fine taking this route in a Land Rover, however not to sure about "comfortable accommodations" however most roadside cafe owners will allow you to sleep there or stopping in a small rural village locals should let you stay:thumbup1:

Taiga in Kazakhstan?? I thinnk you mean steppe!

If you drove on an asphalt road it must have been Atyrau - Uralsk - Aktobe - Aralsk.

The direct Atyrau to Aralsk route (via Beyneu) covers some seriously remote terrain, and is not asphalted. Via Kandyagash is also not paved for much of the way I believe.

Well by the way:

Taiga is a very northern wood:
Does not affect Kazakstan

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiga

Nobody is saying there is no forest in Kazakhstan (though there really isn't much), though the true definition of taiga is the continuous boreal (northern) forest, which does not include the islands of forest found in northern Kazakhstan. Even the forest in the Altai mountains is not strictly taiga, as there is still steppe to the north.

Finally, I've done Aktobe,Oral,Atyrou: good tarmac.
RR.

Do you have more info about those tracks? Photos? Blogs?

My map shows about ten villages along that route. I`m not sure if they exist in reality though? Water sources?

Cheers

I was planning to drive from Beyneu to the Aral Sea in June 2014 but I ended up not having enough time.

I had been looking at the route, and it looks very remote. The only villages are around the edges of the former Aral Sea and I don't think there would be water sources between them and Beyneu. You'd need to have a detailed route planned into a GPS, which will require studying tracks on Google Maps. The terrain is sandy and generally inhospitable, so I would not imagine it's a good idea to attempt it on a bicycle.

The alternative, Atyrau - Kandyagash- Shalkar - Aral is probably a better option, though again I have not taken it. It is a formal road until at least Shalkar, then you may need to follow the railway lines to Aral. There are settlements along the way however, so I would say it's pretty doable. The route passes the very southern tip of the Ural Mountains.

I've done some off-road driving in Kazakhstan in a 4x4 and it can get extremely remote. Don't try the Beyneu - Aral Sea route unless you are sure you have enough supplies, and a clear route with alternative scenarios.

EO