The Yagnob Valley
In the remote valleys and uplands of the Western Pamir, it is still possible to hear the Sogdian tongue being spoken. This was the language of the Persian kings - Cyrus, Darius and Xerxes - and of Roxanne, the wife of Alexander the Great.
The people of the Yagnob valley have preserved their culture and traditions, including elements of the Sogdian religion, Zoroastrianism. Fire worship is believed to have been associated with the underground coal fires which have been burning for thousands of years and can still be seen today on the mountains in the region where smoke is visible by day and fire by night.
This trek combines walking in some of the least frequented mountains of Central Asia with an chance to see this almost extinct culture and hear a language that echoes from 2500 years ago.
