15-day mountain bike trip through Uzbekistan

You will reach Tashkent depending on the flight connection in the late evening hours (Uzbekistan Airways) or early morning hours of the following day (Turkish Airlines, Aeroflot). We will meet you at the airport and take you to the hotel. Then it’s time to catch up on sleep in our tour hotel in the city center.

Today, Tashkent awaits you with its numerous sights and vibrant bazaars to be discovered. Our German-speaking city guide from Tashkent will take us on a discovery tour: we will see, among other things, the Kukeldash and Barak Khan Madrasah, the Kaffal Shashi Mausoleum, and let ourselves be carried away by the oriental Chorsu Market (craftsmen's bazaar). We will end the first day with a joint dinner.

With the tour bus, we travel about 350 km to the foothills of the Nuratau Mountains. We are welcomed by a comfortable yurt camp in the middle of nature. We have enough space here to set up and adjust our bikes. In the afternoon, we can explore the surroundings on a walk or enjoy the natural idyll by the pool.

While setting up the bikes, your guide will assist you with expert help and the right tools. We will store unnecessary luggage and bike bags in our office in Tashkent before departure. At the end of the trip, we will also pick up the items from there.

Our tour starts with a descent along a gravel road to Bogdon, about 10 km from the yurt camp. We continue for about 40 km westward on the main road between the Nuratau Mountains and the Aydar-Kul Lake. In the afternoon, we turn into a 10 km long ascent to Uchum in the Nurata Mountains. There, we will spend the night in a beautifully located guesthouse in the nature park. There will be time for exploration, petroglyphs, a trail excursion, or relaxation in the garden.

After breakfast at the guesthouse, we start the crossing of the 1,690 m high Sob Pass. First, we go down a gravel road into the valley, then 15 km westward on the main road into the Sob Valley. The ascent leads through the village of Sob, past walnut trees and flower meadows. Behind the village, it becomes steeper until we reach a seven-kilometer push section. Even though it's a tough challenge, we take our time and enjoy the view of Lake Aydar-Kul from the pass. Along the ridge, we reach the idyllic Fazilman Lake by noon, where we set up camp and spend the night in a tent.

Today’s journey offers almost twice as many descent meters as ascent meters, passing through numerous villages, the Urganchy river valley, and with a final climb on the newly paved road up to the village of Chuya. The descent in the morning to the village of Aktash goes through lush meadows on the high plateau of Lake Fazilman. At our destination, Chuya, we are already in the next mountain range, the Aktau Mountains. We set up our camp a few kilometers above the village. 

Short, but spectacular is today's mountain bike stage. In the morning, we conquer nearly 500 meters of elevation over the well-paved serpentine roads of the scarcely traveled mountain pass to Langar. Just before the pass, we turn onto gravel roads and single trails through a breathtakingly beautiful landscape of rocks and sandstone formations. Shaped by the elements over millennia, one can discover caves, figures, and sculptures in the stones. At the end of the stage, we ride through the Larksai Canyon. A gorge of rugged rock and home to numerous bearded vultures. We set up our camp near the village of Maidan.

Our kitchen team is once again preparing a delicious breakfast for us today, so we can start the final stage through the Aktau Mountains well-nourished. Scenically, on the bike, and culturally, today's stage is a dream once again! It offers views of the Aktauberge, a 10-kilometer descent through the Sarmish riverbed, and at the destination, the huge Open-Air Museum Sarmishsay with over 10,000 petroglyphs, dating back up to 9,000 years. At the end of the stage, we pack the bikes into the tour vehicle and cover the last kilometers to the hotel in Navoi by vehicle.

Today we have a rest and transfer day. About 280 kilometers and five hours of driving along the main road to Samarkand lie ahead of us. On the Silk Road, where once caravans from the Far East traveled to Europe and back, trade now rolls along roads and rails at a modern fast pace. In the afternoon, we will reach Shahrisabz, the "green city" and birthplace of Timur, the later ruler of Transoxania. We have time for a city walk to the white palace, the old city wall, the mausoleum, and the Dorut-Tilavat complex.

The second part of our MTB journey takes us to the majestic Hissor Mountains with peaks reaching up to 5,000 m. Here we can expect more challenging stages. After a short transfer, we start at the Hisorak Reservoir and follow the Aksu River through a narrow gorge up to Gelon, the highest inhabited place in Uzbekistan. The charming mountain village delights with its unique architecture and authenticity. In the afternoon, we enjoy the green idyll or explore the village before a hearty dinner awaits us.

This unique stage brings us today to the border region with Tajikistan and to the highest peaks of the country. Until a few years ago, this region was virtually an inaccessible restricted area. Under the new president, a border permit now allows for a stay, albeit strictly controlled. Few tourists get lost here. Only the access to Hazrat Sulton (4,643), the highest mountain in Uzbekistan, brings some climbers this way. In the morning, the pass to Kul and the pass to Shut are on the agenda. By early afternoon, we reach the remote mountain village of Shut. Here we are accommodated in the private home of the village teacher Hakim. In the afternoon, we have time to get to know life in one of the most remote villages of Uzbekistan.

Note: The guesthouse is very small and has only two sleeping rooms. There is the possibility to sleep in a tent in Hakim's beautiful garden. The sleeping arrangements will be decided on-site after consultation.

Our last cycling stage takes us "back to civilization." In the morning, we ascend the last pass of the journey at 2,450 meters and are rewarded with a unique view of the Hissor Mountains. From here, we ride approximately 10 kilometers up and down along the mountain range and then descend into the valley, where our permits are checked once more. The descent takes us through many mountain villages and after 50 kilometers, we arrive at the gates of Shahrisabz. We conclude our mountain biking tour at the home of a beekeeper. The family welcomes us with delicious food and we toast to the end of the tour. We take a bus to Samarkand, which we reach in the early evening.

The 2,700-year-old city was one of the most beautiful and important cities in the world during the Middle Ages and has earned the nickname "the planet's most magnificent visage." On our full-day city tour, we will visit the most significant buildings and places in the city and learn more about its history as a trading center on the Silk Road. The central Registan Square, with its three right-angled and richly decorated madrasas, Ulugbek, Tilla-Kori, and Sher-Dor, is certainly one of the cultural highlights of our trip.

In the morning we have time for further sightseeing in the city or last-minute shopping at the bazaar. Late in the morning, we return to Tashkent where we check back into our tour hotel. For those who have traveled with their own bikes, there is time to pack the bikes. During dinner, we will conclude this unique journey together.

In the early morning hours, we begin our journey home.