Why this ride
It goes by way of Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala, Ovliali koshk, Timurid iwans or Askhab and back through Ovliali koshk.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of and Timurid iwans or Askhab
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 178 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 14
- 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. Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of
The oasis of Merv, in south-eastern Turkmenistan, was for centuries one of the great cities of Central Asia, a stop on the Silk Road and at one point, under the Seljuks in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, possibly one of the largest cities in the world. Today its ruins are spread over a vast area of desert and farmland near the town of Bayramaly, and they form the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Ancient Merv. Scattered among them are small mausolea, tombs of holy men and companions of the Prophet, and the Mausoleum of Huday Nazar is one of these, a modest brick structure that has long been a place of local pilgrimage.
Read the complete Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of is where the day begins. Next is Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala.
2. Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala
Two squat, ribbed fortresses stand on the plain outside ancient Merv, and they have kept their purpose a mystery. Greater Kiz Kala and Lesser Kiz Kala, the Maiden Fortresses, are fortified buildings dating from the sixth to the seventh century AD, when Merv was a provincial capital of the Sasanian Persian Empire, and they are a fine example of the fortified country house of the period. The larger one is about thirty metres square, with massive walls, rounded corner towers, and a surface made of shallow vertical grooves and arrow slits that give it a corrugated look, and the smaller one stands a short distance away, built in much the same style.
Read the complete Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala comes up about 29 km into the recorded legs. Next is Ovliali koshk.
3. Ovliali koshk
In the oasis of Merv, in southern Turkmenistan, the landscape is dotted with strange buildings of mud brick with walls that look like they have been folded or pleated, rising like fortresses from the fields. These are koshks, fortified manor houses built by the landed elite in the early Islamic period, from about the seventh to the tenth centuries, and the corrugated walls were not just decorative: they strengthened the structure and cast shadows that kept the interior cool. Ovliali koshk, near the town of Murgab, is one of them, and like the others it is part of the World Heritage site of Ancient Merv, one of the great cities of the Silk Road.
Read the complete Ovliali koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 57 km into the recorded legs you reach Ovliali koshk. Next is Timurid iwans or Askhab.
4. Timurid iwans or Askhab
Just outside the town of Bayramaly in Turkmenistan's Mary region lies the biggest archaeological landscape in Central Asia, the oasis of Merv. People have farmed here since the Bronze Age, thanks to the Murghab river, which fans out into the Karakum desert and makes a green island in a sea of sand. Over the centuries, Merv became a great Silk Road city, called Mary or Marw, and at its height in the twelfth century under the Seljuk sultans it was one of the largest cities in the world. Then, in 1221, the Mongols came, and the chroniclers wrote of enormous slaughter. The city never recovered its former glory.
Read the complete Timurid iwans or Askhab write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Timurid iwans or Askhab, about halfway. Next is back through Ovliali koshk.
5. back through Ovliali koshk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Ovliali koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Ovliali koshk sits at 102 km, about halfway. Next is back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala.
6. back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala comes up about 148 km into the recorded legs. Next is Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of.
7. Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of closes the day.
Leg by leg
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of to Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of → Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala to Ovliali koshk
Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala → Ovliali koshk is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Ovliali koshk to Timurid iwans or Askhab
Ovliali koshk → Timurid iwans or Askhab is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Timurid iwans or Askhab to back through Ovliali koshk
Timurid iwans or Askhab → back through Ovliali koshk is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Ovliali koshk to back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala
back through Ovliali koshk → back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala to Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of
back through Greater and Lesser Kiz Kala → Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.