• Home
• Blog
• Photo Gallery
• Route
• Equipment
• Compass Expeditions
• Contact Us

Samara, Russia to Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Posted by admin  |  Posted on 29-07-2010  |  2

Here we are in Tashkent, Uzbekistan (it has been more than a week since our last blog). We left Samara, Russia and headed toward the Kazakhstan border with trepidation. Mick, owner of Compass Expeditions, warned us that these border crossings from Russia on can get a bit dicey as oftentimes there are hours upon hours spent where they go through ALL of your luggage, personal effects and they just plain “hold ya up” for no apparent reason. Yet, this was not the case for us.

We arrived and had to wait for a bit to exit Russia and then to enter Kazakhstan (approx. 4-5 hours to do the entire exit/entry thing crossing customs with troopie and the bikes). Just past the gates, we had to purchase insurance for riding the bikes in Kazakhstan (their law) which we calculated to be a month once we return from Uzbekistan. We spent our first night camping near a very small village and body of water. People came from all directions as this appeared to be a pasture for their cows, sheep, goats, horses. Kids arrived by horseback, dirt bike as well as just walking up from nowhere. They brought us gifts of cookies and milk. The sunset was amazing making it very peaceful even though their is a bit of work involved in setting up camp. We all received a crash course on our personal tent setup in conjunction with learning how to set up the cook tent. Carmen, Leo and Mick have assumed chef/cook details. Jacquie is the “go girl for ingredients” as well as helps out Mick from Tasmania, Pat and Murray wash dishes. The guys also load and unload the troopie each night

As we left the Kazakhstan border we expected to hit gravel, sand and dirt within about 50km, however due to much road work having been done since Mick McDonald’s last trip, we rode on smooth, paved surfaces until we hit Aktobe, Kazakhstan. After that hotel stay, we camped for three nights and rode many gravel, sand and dirt roads which was something we all looked forward to attacking and conquering (no falls or injuries). I guess the riding can be compared to operating a jack hammer all day long with the constant vibration and hammering and it was necessary to ride on “the pegs” for greater handling and control of the bike. Let’s suffice to say, this can be quite tiring for extended periods and we were all happy to see pavement when it surfaced.

Our group slogan, “it’s an adventure, mate” is Mick McDonald’s favourite saying when any problems arise. After Aktobe and spending three nights, we crossed the border into Uzbekistan where we were to spend two nights in Tashkent. Once again, this was “an adventure mate!” as it was a day that should have only taken two hours of riding since it was only 120km, however, due to the fact that the Uzbekistan border near Tashkent was closed we had to take an hour and a half detour to another border crossing in which a part of the road was closed which made us detour the detoured route. We were approx. 4 hours crossing the border (much better timing than what Mick had gone through 5 years prior) with most of the time spent filling out declaration forms in duplicate. We had heard that a group had been through the Uzbekistan border within the last month and they were completely strip searched. Thank God this did not happen to us as rest assured no one would have wanted to see any of our underwear after three nights of camping and not showering. Once cleared, we then re-tracked the hour and a half ride back to Tashkent. It was a Full Days Ride. We spent two nights in Tashkent where a group went off to see the sights such as the Tamerlane museum while Joe worked on his bike with Leo and Mick. Today we rode to Samarkand, Uzbekistan; the historical Silk Road territory where we will be spending three nights and will have lots to report in a few days. Until then……

Posted by Jacquie

Comments Posted (2)