Author: Micah Markson

For the last week we have been riding across the desert of Turkmenistan. This country is 86% desert! It has been really hot, and not all that interesting. I have a few photos, but this internet cafe won’t let me plug anything into the computer to upload them, so you’ll have to wait! When I…

      We have been in Uzbekistan for about two weeks. We had two rest days in Samarkand, a beautiful ancient city. I spent most of my time there sleeping and eating, but I did see the Registan, a square surrounded by three Madrasahs. We are now in Bukhara, another ancient city. It is…

A couple of weeks ago, somewhere between Kulyab and Dushanbe, Tajikistan, we had a talent show. It included track-side coverage of a horse race featuring the riders as horses. The Australians in our group sang a song about Vegemite, and we even got to try some! It wasn’t as gross as I was expecting.

We have done a lot in the last two weeks – too much to describe in detail here. Here is a summary, with photos! We rode from Kashgar across the border into Kyrgyzstan … Continue Reading ››

We are at the Serena Hotel in Khorog, Tajikistan. The hotel only has six rooms, so we’re camping next to the river. The opposite shore is Afghanistan! The internet here barely works, so I’ll have to wait post everything from the last several days.

Tomorrow morning we’re riding West from Kashgar towards our first border crossing, into Kyrgyzstan. We have been told that there will most likely not be any phone or internet service for the next three weeks. So don’t expect any updates!

We have arrived in Kashgar, our last stop in China. After a few more days of riding we will cross into Kyrgyzstan! Today I went on a tour to Shipton’s Arch, the world’s tallest natural arch. It was quite beautiful, and I enjoyed hiking up to the arch from where the bus dropped us off.…

Last night we camped next to a (mostly) dried up salt lake. Some people even set up their tents among the salt! I went for higher ground, fearing that it might rain during the night. Click here to see the PhotoSphere if you’re using a smartphone! As we move further west the daylight hours are…

We are now resting in Kuqa, before five long riding days to Kashgar, our last rest stop in China. We spent one night camping in a nice spot in the mountains. I climbed up one of the big gravelly hills next to our camp to take some photos. I have not been taking many photos…

We made it to Turpan! The region is known for its grapes and wine, and the street our hotel is on is covered in grape vines. It has been very hot the last few days, although they keep telling us that Turkmenistan will be much hotter. Turpan is in a giant hole in the earth, going…