Why this ride
On the way it passes Garam koshk, Yaki Pir koshk, State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien and back through Yaki Pir koshk.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Durnali koshk and State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 245 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 31
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Durnali koshk
Merv was once one of the largest cities in the world, and what is left of it lies scattered across a desert plain in southern Turkmenistan. In the twelfth century, under the Seljuk sultans, it was a major capital, with libraries, mosques and markets, and travellers called it the mother of the world. In 1221 the Mongols took it after a siege and, according to the old chronicles, killed a huge proportion of its inhabitants, and the city never recovered. UNESCO listed the park of ancient Merv in 1999.
Read the complete Durnali koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Durnali koshk is where the day begins. Next is Garam koshk.
2. Garam koshk
Out on the edge of the Karakum desert near the oasis city of Merv, odd buildings rise from the plain like giant sandcastles with ribbed sides. These are koshks, fortified mansions built of mud brick, their walls shaped into deep vertical corrugations that gave strength and shade and kept the interiors cool. Garam koshk is one of them, battered by centuries of wind and the occasional rainstorm, but still impressive in its bulk. They belong to the world of medieval Merv, and the most famous, the Kyz Kala, stand within the vast archaeological park that UNESCO inscribed in 1999.
Read the complete Garam koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Garam koshk comes up about 32 km into the recorded legs. Next is Yaki Pir koshk.
3. Yaki Pir koshk
Yaki Pir koshk is a name that points to a ruined building, probably a fortified house or pavilion of the kind that medieval rulers and landowners built in the Merv oasis, and it stands close to Takhirbaj Tepe, the other ride mentioned here. The word koshk comes from the Persian for a palace or pavilion, and in the Karakum world it often means a strongly built mudbrick residence with towers.
Read the complete Yaki Pir koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 80 km into the recorded legs you reach Yaki Pir koshk. Next is State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien.
4. State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien
South of the Karakum and just outside the modern city of Mary, the ground is littered with the ghosts of cities. Nagym Kala, the Greater and Lesser forts, are two of the walled settlements that make up the old Merv oasis, one of the great cities of the Silk Road. The Murgab river spreads out here into a delta that has fed farmers for thousands of years, and Merv grew up where the water met the desert.
Read the complete State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien, about halfway. Next is back through Yaki Pir koshk.
5. back through Yaki Pir koshk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Yaki Pir koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Yaki Pir koshk sits at 107 km, about halfway. Next is back through Garam koshk.
6. back through Garam koshk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Garam koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Garam koshk comes up about 201 km into the recorded legs. Next is Durnali koshk.
7. Durnali koshk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Durnali koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Durnali koshk closes the day.
Leg by leg
Durnali koshk to Garam koshk
Durnali koshk → Garam koshk is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Garam koshk to Yaki Pir koshk
Garam koshk → Yaki Pir koshk is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Yaki Pir koshk to State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien
Yaki Pir koshk → State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien to back through Yaki Pir koshk
State Historical and Cultural Park “Ancien → back through Yaki Pir koshk is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Yaki Pir koshk to back through Garam koshk
back through Yaki Pir koshk → back through Garam koshk is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Garam koshk to Durnali koshk
back through Garam koshk → Durnali koshk is 45 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
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