Once the sun had peered over the
distant mountains we arose and headed into Bulun-Kul for a closer look. The
friendly village folk welcomed us into their community offering us clean water
from their wells and a place to stay the night. Eager to make progress towards
Murghab on the Pamir Highway we exchanged photos, waved goodbye and pressed on.
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| Lake Bulunkul |
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| Bulun-Kul Village, the most remote village in Tajikistan at 12,000 ft |
Back on the hallowed tarmac of the
Pamir we continued to ascend up to the highest point that the car could reach
at 15,270 ft or 4,655 m.
Factoid: the Pamir Highway is the
second highest international highway in the world
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| On top of the Pamir Highway at 15,270 ft |
Not content with being only 345 m
short of reaching 5,000 m we began the gruelling climb up a nearby peak hoping
to reach that milestone. Wearing boat shoes, toms and plimsolls the intrepid
explorers of Team Rub-a-Dub-Dub channelled their inner Shackleton and began the
steady ascent to the top. Progress proved to be slower than an asthmatic snail
thanks to the thin air as we could only muster a handful of steps before
needing a breather. Either that or sitting on our arses for 5 weeks in a car
may have had something to do with it.
When we finally summited the top we
were standing at 16,130 ft, only 80 m short of our target 5,000 m. Despite
feeling slightly deflated, it felt good being higher than the peak of Mont
Blanc and the accompanying views over the neighbouring snow dusted mountains
were sensational. Mid celebratory huddle, the wind and snow suddenly picked up as
the conditions closed in. A black scar appeared in the sky resembling the dark
mark Barty Crouch Jr had cast only a few hours before on the audiobook. Keen
not to mess with the newly reborn Dark Lord, we began our descent back to the
safety of Margiold.
Just when you thought you’d captured
the best shots on the Pamir you turned the corner and there in front of you was
another stunning valley. It is impossible to articulate how beautiful this leg
of the journey was. Totally isolated it was just the three cars in the convoy,
a winding highway and an unquestionably magnificent landscape. It was like
being in a wonderland.
Posted by: Rich