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

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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.