Why this ride
A 174 km round trip from Murgab - roughly 4 h 16 in the saddle. On the way it passes Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi, Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala, Bairam Ali Ding and Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Ovliali koshk and Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 174 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 16
- 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. 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
Ovliali koshk is where the day begins. Next is Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi.
2. Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi
The Merv oasis in southern Turkmenistan was once one of the greatest cities of the medieval world. Watered by the Murghab river, which flows north from Afghanistan and fans out into the Karakum desert, it was a capital of the Seljuk sultans in the eleventh and twelfth centuries and a key stop on the Silk Road. The Mongols destroyed it in 1221, and the ruins of successive cities, spread over a huge area, now form the Ancient Merv archaeological park, inscribed on the UNESCO list in 1999. Among the ruins stand several mausolea of revered figures, small domed buildings that have drawn pilgrims for centuries and still do today.
Read the complete Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi comes up about 22 km into the recorded legs. Next is Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala.
3. Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala
Merv was one of the great cities of the world, and today it is a field of mud-brick walls in the Karakum desert. At its height in the twelfth century, under the Seljuk sultan Sanjar, Merv was among the biggest cities on Earth, a Silk Road oasis with libraries, mosques, markets and an elaborate water system fed by canals from the Murghab river. The Mongols destroyed it in 1221, and although a later city grew nearby, the old centre never recovered. The ancient cities of Merv, which spread across a series of walled sites from the time of the Persians to the fifteenth century, were inscribed as a World Heritage site in 1999.
Read the complete Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 40 km into the recorded legs you reach Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala. Next is Bairam Ali Ding.
4. Bairam Ali Ding
North of Bayramaly, toward the edge of the irrigated land of the Merv oasis, the remains of a ding stand on the flat plain: a fortified building of mud brick, often square or rectangular, with thick walls and corner towers, used as a manor, a refuge or a watch post. The oasis is scattered with structures like this, from medieval times to the more recent past, and many are associated with the defence of farmland and water channels against raiders from the desert. They are part of the wider archaeological landscape of Merv, one of the richest in Central Asia, where every mound and wall has a story, even if not all of them have been told yet.
Read the complete Bairam Ali Ding write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Bairam Ali Ding, about halfway. Next is Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas.
5. Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas
Two ruined buildings stand a short distance apart on the plain of Merv, and both are called Kyz Kala, the maidens' fort. The larger one is a vast square block of mud brick with walls that are corrugated, with a row of vertical flutes that give the surface a strange rhythmic texture, and the smaller one is a similar building on a smaller scale. They are among the best-preserved structures from the early Islamic period at Merv, probably dating from the sixth or seventh century or thereabouts, though historians still discuss their exact date and purpose.
Read the complete Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas sits at 75 km, about halfway. Next is back through Bairam Ali Ding.
6. back through Bairam Ali Ding
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Bairam Ali Ding write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Bairam Ali Ding comes up about 117 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala.
7. back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 134 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala. Next is back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi.
8. back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi, late in the day. Next is Ovliali koshk.
9. 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
The route ends here after 174 km.
Leg by leg
Ovliali koshk to Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi
Ovliali koshk → Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi to Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala
Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi → Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala to Bairam Ali Ding
Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala → Bairam Ali Ding is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Bairam Ali Ding to Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas
Bairam Ali Ding → Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas to back through Bairam Ali Ding
Greater and Lesser Nagym Kalas → back through Bairam Ali Ding is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Bairam Ali Ding to back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala
back through Bairam Ali Ding → back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala is 17 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala to back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi
back through Koshk Imaret near Abdullah Khan Kala → back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi to Ovliali koshk
back through Mausolea of Imam Bakr and Shafi → Ovliali koshk is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.