TO ANCIENT SOGDIANA
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
Margheb - Yaghob - Noumetkan - Kiriyonte - Pskon - Noumetkan - Margheb
Accommodation
Double occupancy at the homestay & tents
Maximum altitude
2700 м
Highlights
Tagi Chanor, Wildlife, Folk show by locals, Zoroastrian Pillars, Petroglyphs.
When they tell us that Sogdiana is in history and the Sogdian language is the language of the past, I tell them – the heart of Sogdiana still beats and Zarafshan still hears our Sogdian language!
TOUR PROGRAM
Day 1
Arrival in the village of Margeb. Free day in the village. Dinner and overnight at the homestay.
Day 2
After breakfast we will go to Shokhsara (25 km, 1 hour) and from here we will begin our excursion to the ancient village of Yagnob - Noumetkan (6 km, 3 hours), where only 12 families live. Excursion and lunch in a traditional homestay. After lunch we will continue our excursion to Tagi Chanor (3 km, 30 min). During the excursion you will see alpine pastures that stretch between the mountain ranges to the north and east of the valley. Wildlife is abundant, especially birds including eagles. Marmots are the most common animals in the Yagnob fauna. Dinner and overnight in the tents.
Day 3
After breakfast we start our excursion to the Yagnob Gorge, called Tangi by the locals (4 km, 1 hr). It is located at the crossing of two rivers called Duoba. Close to Duoba we will visit an ancient stone mill that is still in operation. We continue along the Yagnob River to the heart of the Yagnob Gorge: Pskon and Kiriente (7 km, 2 hrs). In the village of Pskon local musicians Boboi Inoyat and Boymurot will play you a Yagnob melody. After lunch we will go to the eastern part of the valley to the village of Kiriyente (10 km, 3 hours). On the way we will see 7 pillars, still remaining from Zoroastrian times. The legend about the pillars will be told by the residents of Kiriyente during lunch. Dinner and overnight in tents.
Day 4
After breakfast we will have a chance to visit places with petroglyphs. Then we will hike down to the village of Pskon (10 km, 3 hours). Here we will have lunch and then a short visit to a local school for children from 8 families. In the evening we will reach the village of Noumetkan (12 km, 4 hours), where a car will wait for us and take us to Margeb (32 km, 1.5 hours). Dinner and overnight at the guest house Zaminkaror in Margeb.
Day 5
Departure.
INTERESTING
Margeb means a green, blooming place, and upon arrival you can see it yourself. One of the most stunning places is the one-kilometer rock Zaminkaror or "Earth Holder".
The traditional house of the Yagnob residents is very low and has small apertures instead of windows. It is divided into Mura - a room where the oven Inkir in Yagnobi dialect or Tandir in Tajik is for baking bread. In this room there is one opening - a chimney: Khona - a room for processing and storing dairy products: Pstik - a room for storing other things and a small corridor.
The central part of the territory of Yagnob is divided into four small parts: Soyaru (“in the shade"), Oftobru ("the sunny side"), the valley of the Kul River and Pskon. The most amazing fact is that the small areas have their own ethnographic features. People living in four parts are speaking different dialects of the Yagnobi language.
In the 1st millennium BC, Sughd (Sogdiana or Sughdia), was the center of a developed ancient civilization with high levels of culture, applied art. In the 8th century, the Arab Caliphate invaded Central Asia and spread a new religion, Islam, with fire and sword. The Sogdians fled through this inaccessible mountain wilderness. On the eastern edge of the Zarafshan Valley, one can still hear Sogdian, spoken. It was the language of the Persian kings – the language of Roxana, the wife of Alexander the Great.
In the 1970s, many people from the higher areas of the Zarafshan Valley moved to today's Devashtich, Zafarabod and Mastchoh districts of Sughd region. Among these people were also people from Yagnob. But in the 1990s, after Tajikistan got independence, many began to return back to their own villages. Today, Yagnobis live in 14 of the 22 villages in the valley. The villages are located at an altitude of 2500-3000 m. Here they have sought to preserve their culture and traditions, including elements of the fire-worshiping religion of their ancestors – Zoroastrianism.
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.