In the far southeast of Azerbaijan, where the Talysh mountains rise from the Caspian lowlands near the border with Iran, the İstisuchay valley winds into a world of dense, damp forest. The name means hot water river, and the valley is known for its thermal springs, which locals have used for bathing and healing for generations. The forests here are Hyrcanian, a relic of the ancient broadleaf woodland that once covered much of the region before the Ice Ages, with ironwood, chestnut-leaved oak and hornbeam, and they have been added to the UNESCO listing of the Hyrcanian Forests. In spring and autumn, mist drifts through the trees, and the green is intense.
The Talysh people, who speak an Iranian language related to Persian, live in the villages of the mountains and lowlands, and their culture has its own songs, dress and cooking. The lowlands around Lankaran and Astara are famous for tea plantations, citrus orchards and rice paddies, a subtropical landscape unlike anything else in the Caucasus. Lankaran cuisine is celebrated across Azerbaijan, especially lavangi, chicken or fish stuffed with walnuts, onions and sour plum paste and baked in a clay oven.
The riding is a mix of good main roads and rough mountain tracks. The highway along the Caspian coast from Baku to Astara is fast and straight, with heavy traffic and plenty of police. Turning into the mountains, the roads become narrower and more interesting, climbing through forest along river valleys with tight bends and steep gradients. Surfaces deteriorate quickly, with potholes, gravel and mud after rain, which is frequent; this is the wettest region of Azerbaijan. Cows, sheep and dogs share the road.
Astara, on the Azerbaijani side of the border, is the nearest town with fuel and shops, and there is a busy border crossing to the Iranian town of the same name. Lankaran, a little further north, is larger and has more choice. Kizhaba and the mountain villages have small shops and teahouses where you will be offered tea in a pear-shaped glass, with jam or a sugar cube.
Check the travel advice before you go, particularly for border areas, and be aware that riding in Azerbaijan requires an international driving permit and that police checks are frequent. Spring, when the forests are at their freshest, and autumn, when the leaves turn, are the best seasons.