Tajikistan
Tajikistan is a newly-independent republic on the southern fringe of former Soviet Central Asia. Beautiful and remote, Tajikistan has much to offer to the mountaineer, the hiker and the independent traveller in search of remote locations and unusual cultural experiences. There are opportunities for alpine mountaineering, rock climbing, hiking, horse or camel riding, cycling, historical exploration, cultural experiences or simply relaxing among dramatic mountains and lakes.
The Pamir region has three peaks over 7000m in height: Peak Somoni, Peak Lenin and Peak Korzhenevskaya. For alpine climbing, high level walking tours and breathtaking lakes (especially when you take a dip) the Fann mountains, just across the border from Samarkand, are ideal.
The populated valleys have a rich history. The famous silk road split in this region to find various ways through the high mountain chains and the valleys of the Wakhan and the Zeraphshan are known to have been key routes. Zorastrianism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity and Islam have all left their mark, as have the great empires from the Persians to the soviet era.
For more information, take a look at the website Travel Tajikistan.
Our website can only give you a taste of this amazing country. Before you come, we strongly recommend that you secure a copy of ‘Tajikistan and the High Pamir’ by Hugh Thomas and Robert Middleton, published in 2008 by Odessey. The guides and leaders of Hamsafar Travel contributed to this guide book, which also provides a unique compilation of regional history, culture and natural history within its covers.