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India -> Pakistan -> Tajikistan -> Problems?
Has anyone made their way north out of India into Pakistan? How is the situation for an American traveling alone? Any paperwork issues?
Additionally, as anyone continued north into Tajikistan? How did you get there, via Afghanistan or China? How much did China cost etc. Thanks y'all, Yankee Andrew :scooter: |
Throught China
Hi Andrew
I'm crossing China from Pakistan to Krgygstan on June16th (2013). There are 5 people travelling on 4 bikes and I believe it's costing about $1000. I'm in the process of researching the india pakistan issue too. There are northern crossings but I think they are closed to foreigners so I'm trying to work out where I can cross at the moment. Not that it matters much to know now but after Delhi I'm heading to Northern India but it looks like I have to head south again to cross into Pakistan. If you're worried about being American in Pakistan, chuck a couple of canadian flags on you. Good luck with the Visa though, that might be a pain. |
We did it in reverse last September & our bike has Washington, D.C. Plates. Everyone was really fantastic in Pakistan. There are many checkpoints and police escorts. We did travel with others which was a great experience:) The only border you can cross from India to Pak is Amritsar. Then up the KKH into Hunza, across lake Attabad and up into china out of Sost via the khunjerab pass. China you need to join a group and the tour companies that arrange the guides and licenses require 3 months lead time (though we were able to add one more person inside of this timeframe). China to Kyrgyzstan via the torugart pass. Then over to Tajikistan via Osh. This way is to go around Afghanistan. Kyrgyzstan & northern Pakistan are just amazing.
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And India and China do not have any border crossing options for foreigners, you can only go North Pakistan <-> China, or Nepal <-> Tibet. (At least a few years ago this was the situation... and I´m about 95% certain, that there have been no major changes since my visit.) |
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How much did the China trip cost? Sounds like you went straight into Kyrgyzstan. Is this the fastest possible route? Did you check out Tajikistan? Im on a bit of a budget, and wanna burn through China as fast as possible (ride 16 hrs a day :eek3:). China sounds like a bit of an issue. I was considering shipping straight into to Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan from Thailand for this reason. Plus I wouldn't need a carnet or Pakistan visa hassles, if any. |
We did the reverse, west to east. So we came from Tajikistan through Dushanbe (pamir was closed so we took the other road) into Kyrgyzstan. Met up with the others in Tash Rabat then down to the Chinese border. China was 5 days and our share was around 900usd 2up including lodging. The logistics were a mixed bag, we had some inexplicable waiting outside of the DMV all day long...the riding distance in china is very short. Then down into Pakistan at Sost.
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Crossing Pakistan
There are only 3 working borders for tourists with vehicles apart from Afghanistan which is practically a no go area. Atari/Wagha with India, Taftan for Iran and Sost for China.
If you can get the paperwork and visa sorted out Pakistan would be easy and welcoming. It might be world's best kept secret; explore it for yourself. All the best. |
Ive been reading about the KHK highway between Pakistan and China. Apparently there was a big land slide back in 2010 that wiped out a big section of the road. An artificial dam has welled up at the base of the land slide which is 20 odd Km long. They were using small boats to move the cargo etc across to trucks waiting on opposite sides. This wont be a prob for a motor bike but we are planing on doing it in a 4x4.
I read a blog about a bloke who traveled this route only a few months back. He got a small boat across to the China side from Pakistan where a bus was waiting. He also mentioned that he saw a British couple that had managed to get their 4x4 across somehow which was encouraging. We are planing on travelling the stans from south east Asia which makes for some difficult border crossings, this being one. We are not too interested in China and only plan to use this route because Afghanistan is a no go. After the crossing from Pakistan to China on the KHK Hwy there is only a 200km approx journey through China to the Tajikistan border crossing which is where we want to cross. Is any one familiar with this crossing and if they allow foreigners to cross at this point. Also for such a short journey through China is it still necessary to go through all the red tape of booking group tours, guides etc? |
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I don´t think it´ll make any difference, whether you plan to make shorter or longer distance inside China, the paperwork to get your vehicle into the country would still be the same. |
Last fall we transferred 10 bikes on one boat. Loading and unloading was quite hairy...
On our way we saw one 4x4 on a small boat (or in two boats) on that lake. They do not have bigger boats over there (at least I did not see any). That nature dam is huge! Did not realize it until I saw it my own eyes... -Hemuli |
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Though it appears hairy but works. There hasnt been any reported mishap. Omar |
Those 10 bikes were on a pretty small boat:) normal loading spot on the north end is very steep, on the south end where the slide is-even steeper. They use big wooden planks to get between the boats and the loose rock & dirt that makes up the land. Then there is a tiny switchback track up the slide over to the other side. And its very crowded. You see it, your mouth drops and then the amazingly industrious pak people make it all work. Biggest vehicle we saw crossing lake Attabad was a medium truck or lorry. They probably fixed a platform across 2 boats. It's all incredible and the lake itself lined with massive sheer granite cliffs is unspeakably beautiful.
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So once you've crossed the lake and are heading into china what are the formalities? I'm a little confused because I've read that you need to book a guided group tour with several vehicles. But there's mention of people with single 4x4's crossing the lake. As mentioned we only want to do a 200km run through china to the first crossing into Tajikistan. It seems a bit over the top to have to arrange all that for such a short period.
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