Why this ride
The stops in between: Besh Agyz koshk, Yaki Pir koshk and back through Besh Agyz koshk.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of and Yaki Pir koshk
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 74 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 24
- 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 Besh Agyz koshk.
2. Besh Agyz koshk
Out on the edge of the Merv oasis in southeastern Turkmenistan, where irrigated fields fade into the sand of the Karakum desert, stand the ruins of buildings known as koshks. These were fortified mansions of mud brick, with heavily ribbed walls that look like giant corrugated cardboard, built in the early medieval period by the landed gentry of Merv. Besh Agyz, which means five mouths, is one of them, and it is part of the UNESCO listing of the Silk Roads, alongside the vast ruined cities of Ancient Merv, a World Heritage Site since 1999. Merv was for centuries one of the great cities of the Islamic world and a key stop on the routes between China and the Mediterranean, until the Mongols destroyed it in the thirteenth century.
Read the complete Besh Agyz koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Besh Agyz koshk comes up about 14 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 37 km into the recorded legs you reach Yaki Pir koshk. Next is back through Besh Agyz koshk.
4. back through Besh Agyz koshk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Besh Agyz koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Besh Agyz koshk, late in the day. Next is Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of.
5. 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
Back at Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of to Besh Agyz koshk
Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of → Besh Agyz koshk is 14 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Besh Agyz koshk to Yaki Pir koshk
Besh Agyz koshk → Yaki Pir koshk is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Yaki Pir koshk to back through Besh Agyz koshk
Yaki Pir koshk → back through Besh Agyz koshk is 15 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Besh Agyz koshk to Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of
back through Besh Agyz koshk → Mausoleum of Huday Nazar; the Mausolea of is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.