GOLDEN FANS
Discover the wild
Jamshed Yusupov is the executive director of the Zarafshan Tourism Development Association (ZTDA). Under his leadership, the organization actively develops community-based tourism in the Sughd region, providing local residents with employment opportunities and preserving cultural heritage. Jamshed pays special attention to environmental issues and the creation of sustainable tourism infrastructure that contributes to the development of the region.
Executive Director
Route
Panjakent - Seven lakes - Tovasang - Munora pass - Dukdon pass - Saratog - Iskadarkul lake.
Accommodation
Double occupation at the homestays & tents
Maximum altitude
3,812 m
Overview
An amazing tour that starts in the eastern Pompey and then goes to the legendary Seven Lakes and picturesque Archamaidan and ends in the legendary Iskandarkul lake, the dream of any tourist!
Tour program
Day 1
Today we will plunge into the era of the Sogdians, with a visit to Panjakent - one of the oldest cities in Central Asia, among history buffs it is known as the Eastern Pompey! A trip to the Seven lakes. One of the most beautiful places in the Zarafshon Valley! Acquaintance with the first four lakes Mizhgon, Soya, Hushyor and Nofin. Dinner and overnight at “Najmiddin” homestay.
Day 2
After breakfast, trekking to the 7th lake - Hazorchashma (9 km, 3.5 hours). We’ll see 6th lake - Marghuzor - the largest in the chain of lakes its length is 4 km. Overnight in tents on the shore of Hazorchashma lake.
Day 3
Free day, walk around Lake Hazorchashma and preparation for overcoming our first pass Tovasang. Overnight in tents.
Day 4
Overcoming the Tovasang pass (3307m, 14 km, 7 hours). The view from the passes is always impressive, including Tovasang. Overnight in one of the most picturesque places near the Sarimat river.
Day 5
Overcoming the Munora pass (3500m, 12 km, 6 hours). There are places where you want to return, Pshtikul is one of such places, an amazingly beautiful small lake surrounded from three sides by mountains. Overnight next to Lake Pshtikul in the tents.
Day 6
Hike to the Archamaidan river (12 km, 4 hours). After two passes today is a relatively easy day of trekking to the Sariob area, which means the beginning of the water! The saddle of the Dukdon pass is visible from far away. Amazingly beautiful landscapes will pleasantly surprise you! Overnight in a tent.
Day 7
Overcoming the Dukdon pass (3812 m, 13 km, 7 hours). Here is our last pass, it is a little difficult, the last meters we pass along the glacier. Overnight at the foot of the pass after the descent.
Day 8
Hike along the Karakul river to the village of Saratog (4 km, 1 hour). We pass through a dense forest of juniper, poplar and birch. After the passes we have overcome, our trekking seems easy. Overnight at the homestay where a shower and a hot lunch awaits us!
Day 9
Hike from Saratog to Lake Iskandarkul (5 km, 1 hour). Here it is, the legendary Lake Alexander! The largest lake in the Pamir Alay - pearl of the Fann Mountains! Overnight on the shore of the lake at the homestay.
Day 10
A walk around Lake Iskandarkul (10 km, 3 hours). Today we will see an amazingly beautiful waterfall, which is jokingly called the Fann Niagara, Five Springs, which water is said to be healing, Snake Lake, which was once part of Iskandarkul.
Day 11
Departure. End of the tour.
According to legend, Alexander the Great, during his campaign in India, reached Lake Iskanderkul and set up camp on its shores. He had a favorite horse, Bucephalus, which means "Bull-headed". Having overcome the difficult high mountain passes of the Kuhistan Mountains, his lathered horse drank cold water from the lake and fell ill. But Alexander could not stay on the shore of the lake for long. He had to hurry. He became sad, his favorite horse had saved Alexander more than once, and wherever he fought on Bucephalus, he always emerged victorious. For many years, he had the belief that if he was with Bucephalus, the battle would be won. Alexander convened a council of elders and asked them what he should do. After much debate, everyone came to a unanimous decision: Leave Bucephalus with several warriors on the shore of the lake until the horse was fully recovered. The next day, they brought another horse to Alexander the Great, he mounted it and the entire army set off. The remaining ones pitched a tent near the cave and began to care for Bucephalus. Time passed, the horse was getting better. The grooms fed him select grain and gave him spring water to drink. When the time came to set off, something incredible happened to Bucephalus - he suddenly did not let anyone near him, stopped eating and drinking. And this continued for several days in a row. And then one fine day, Bucephalus climbed the cape, raised his muzzle up and neighed so loudly that the neighing rolled like thunder over the lake. Then, he ran and jumped into the cold water, sinking to the bottom. And now you can see the horse here, on the day of the fourteen-day full moon, when the moon illuminates the shores of the lake with its greenish light, a sharp wind blows, the water in the middle of the lake begins to boil. A white-maned horse emerges from the white foam onto the shore, grazes in the meadows, plays until the morning. And with the first dawn he goes into the water. Sometimes Bucephalus gets excited, starts jumping from cliff to cliff, from mountain to mountain… He makes the mountains shake, stones fly. Locals say that Bucephalus went to the bottom of the lake, sensing the death of his master, who, having conquered India, fell seriously ill on the way back and died before reaching his homeland…
ROUTE ADAPTATION OPTIONS
On trekking
On trekking in the Fann Mountains there will definitely need good trekking boots, rain protection, comfortable trousers, some warm clothes and other components. The exact list of required equipment and things depends on the campaign and the season: we send it at the time of booking and ask all the participants of the hike to read it carefully. Here we give an explanation of the equipment, which can be useful in preparing for the campaign.
Clothing
Although the Fan Mountains are considered warm all smoothly when hiking in the mountains you need to think about clothes.
A waterproof and windproof light jacket is an indispensable attribute of every person going on a hike into the mountains.
Trousers for trekking can be almost any – from loose pants from natural fabrics to narrow tight-fitting synthetic materials. It is not necessary to have special trekking trousers. The main thing that in trousers it was comfortable to walk on mountains. Absolutely not suitable for mountains jeans and dense cotton pants – they restrict the movement and dry out for a long time.
Fleece jacket will be in demand every evening. An alternative is a warm sweater.
Thermal underwear is always necessary, because in the event of a bad weather, the temperature can drop dramatically even during the day. In addition, thermal underwear can be useful in the morning, when the air has not yet warmed up.
Headgear and gloves may be needed especially for those who are going on a hike in June or September. In any period, a bandage on the ears will be useful.
Jacket and pants from rain or cloak-cape. The best means from a rain – trousers and a jacket from the rubberized material which are put on top of the basic clothes.
Easy removable clothing. In the mountain shelter can be convenient to clean removable clothing – T-shirt and light trousers – one set.
Boots for trekking
Boots for trekking are a must and a key element of the equipment. For the mountains do not fundamentally fit sneakers and sneakers. If there are no trekking shoes, then they need to be purchased – they will be useful not only in the mountains and for hiking in the forest.
Having bought new trekking boots, it is important to carry them before you go on a long trip.
The sole of trekking shoes must be fluted, non-slip, rigid and at the same time flexible enough. It is also important when choosing shoes to pay attention to materials inside and on the surface of the shoe. It is better to exclude shoes with a coating of leather and suede, as in these shoes when walking is hot and the foot is not “breathing”. Today, there is a mass of artificial materials that have high water resistance, while quality membranes allow excess moisture to evaporate from the shoe.
High boots are preferable to low ones in all respects: they better “hold” the foot on an uneven surface and protect the bundles and protrusions of the large and tibia from stone impacts, which can be very painful. Some of our routes include glacier crossings, such as crossing the Kaznok Pass, Dukdon, Chimtargu, on these routes we recommend high boots and they should be able to join climbing cats.
Things
Backpack. Depending on the duration of the trip and the amount of things that you plan to take on the route, we recommend taking a backpack from 30 to 50 liters. Before going on the route, a map and a thin sleeping bag will be added to the backpack, in a folded and packed form, having a cylinder shape of 20 cm in length and 8 cm in diameter.
Sleeping bag. For overnight stays in mountain conditions it is necessary to have a good sleeping bag. ARTZ has good sleeping bags of BASK. Sleeping bags
Syntepone TML PLACID and downy sleeping bags with goose down. Such sleeping bags can be rented from us.
Means of personal hygiene. In a linear campaign it is necessary to take with itself personal hygiene means: a towel, soap, shampoo, tooth accessories. The bathrooms in the guest houses have toilet paper and soap. There is nothing in the showers – everything you need should be taken with you.
Sticks for trekking. We strongly recommend using trekking sticks – they allow you to redistribute part of the load from foot to hand while walking and are especially useful on the descents.
From other things you need to have with you:
first-aid kit (necessarily – adhesive plasters)
a jar or a bottle for water (we recommend taking at least 2 liters of water for the day’s transition)
mobile phone with charger
cream from the sun (necessarily, the degree of protection – as for the beach on the sea in August)
sunglasses
penknife
whistle (in case of an emergency)
For every day transition it is desirable to provide for light meals (chocolate, dried fruits, nuts).
We recommend taking a thermos – in the mountain shelters, where you stop for the night, you can ask to fill it with hot water before going on the route.
Safety in tours
The ZTDA has established clear and valid internal safety rules when conducting hikes, which are followed by our guides. In accordance with our security policy, we attract only local guides to work on the routes, consisting of a professional association of mountain guides in the region of trekking. Most of them are people who grew up in Zerafshan and know “every stone” in their region, peculiarities of meteorological conditions and are able to act in any situations.
We organize not only trekking in groups accompanied by a guide, but also we are one of the leading organizers of independent campaigns in several regions of Zerafshan. Our safety criteria limit the season, regions and routes of independent tours. Participants of such hikes receive from us detailed safety and logistics instructions prior to going on the route and can call us from the route by an emergency support phone available 24 hours a day. In addition, our coordinators monitor the passage of the route by the participants of independent campaigns, being in contact with the managers of the mountain shelters on the route.
Every participant of trekking must know simple rules of action in emergency situations. This is important for participants of all walks – both in the group with a guide, and independent.
Rain and thunderstorm in the mountains
In case of rain and thunderstorms in the mountains it is necessary:
Wear a rain suit or raincoat.
Find a sheltered place and wait out the rain or thunderstorm. For this, it sometimes makes sense to deviate from the route, for example, if there is a mountain shelter or a bivouac nearby.
If there is no shelter or a prolonged rain, you can continue the path with the utmost care, – carefully walk on the stones. In case of heavy rain, find a safe place and wait for the downpour. In mountainous areas one of the most dangerous disasters is mudflows.
In case of prolonged rain, if there is such a possibility, you can shorten the route at your discretion by using the map.
When approaching a thunderstorm, leave the hill in a lower place and find shelter.
How to deal with an accident in the mountains
In the event of an accident in the mountains, you should call the helpline in the mountains and provide the following details:
exact location of the incident;
type of trekking performed by the group (trekking, mountaineering, etc.);
the total number of people in the group;
the number and condition of the victims;
weather conditions on the scene;
telephone number for communication (the line must remain free).
Acoustic and light signals in case of an accident in the mountains
It is necessary to remember the general rules for giving signals about help in the mountains.
Request for help: give a signal with light or sound 6 times for 1 minute. Repeat the same signal after 1 minute.
Respond to a request for help: give a signal with light or sound 3 times for 1 minute. Repeat the same signal after 1 minute.