Why this ride
It goes by way of Thulli koshk, Takhirbaj Tepe, Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ and Abdullah Khan Kala. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Tahmalaj and Abdullah Khan Kala
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 916 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 15 h 48
- 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: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Tahmalaj
Nobody comes to Tahmalaj by accident. For centuries, merchants travelling the Silk Road crossed this stretch of sand and clay, stopping at caravanserais, fortified enclosures and wells along the way, some of which still stand as ruined walls in the desert. The ride names nearby sites such as the Nagym Kalas and the Mansaf caravanserai, part of a cluster of monuments along this old route, and little is known about many of them beyond their names and outlines.
Read the complete Tahmalaj write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Tahmalaj is where the day begins. Next is Thulli koshk.
2. Thulli koshk
Koshk is the local word for a fortified house, and around the oasis of Merv, in south-eastern Turkmenistan, dozens of these buildings survive from the early medieval period. Thulli koshk is one of them, a mud-brick structure with walls built in a distinctive corrugated pattern, like the folds of a curtain, which made them both stronger and more striking. These buildings were probably the homes of wealthy landowners, built to defend against raids, with rooms on two floors around a central hall.
Read the complete Thulli koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Thulli koshk comes up about 149 km into the recorded legs. Next is Takhirbaj Tepe.
3. Takhirbaj Tepe
The Murghab river flows out of the mountains of Afghanistan and dies in the sands of the Karakum desert, and where it fans out into a delta lies the oasis of Merv, in what is now southern Turkmenistan. For thousands of years people have farmed here, building cities one beside another as rivers shifted and empires came and went. Takhirbaj Tepe is one of the oldest of these settlements, a mound in the northern part of the oasis dating back to the Bronze and Iron Ages, long before the great medieval city that made Merv famous. It forms part of the State Historical and Cultural Park Ancient Merv, listed by UNESCO in 1999, alongside sites such as Yaz Tepe and Gobekli Tepe nearby.
Read the complete Takhirbaj Tepe write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 248 km into the recorded legs you reach Takhirbaj Tepe. Next is Kurtly ‘caravanserai’.
4. Kurtly ‘caravanserai’
Kurtly sits on the flat plain near Merv, in the south of the Karakum, and the caravanserai that gives the place its label is a reminder that the old Silk Road was a network of small stops as much as great cities. A caravanserai was a fortified inn where merchants and animals could rest, drink and sleep within walls, usually a day's travel from the next one. Some were grand, with arcades and domed rooms. Others were simple compounds of mud brick. Few survive intact, and the ones in Turkmenistan are often reduced to low walls and mounds.
Read the complete Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Kurtly ‘caravanserai’, about halfway. Next is Abdullah Khan Kala.
5. Abdullah Khan Kala
Abdullah Khan Kala is a mud-brick fortress on the edge of the Merv oasis, about five kilometres from the town of Bayramaly, and it makes a surprising amount of noise for something so silent. Its walls are enormous, rising out of the flat desert plain, and from the top you can see the pale shapes of other Merv monuments far away, all of them made from the same earth.
Read the complete Abdullah Khan Kala write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abdullah Khan Kala sits at 458 km, about halfway. Next is back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’.
6. back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ comes up about 554 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Takhirbaj Tepe.
7. back through Takhirbaj Tepe
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Takhirbaj Tepe write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 662 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Takhirbaj Tepe. Next is back through Thulli koshk.
8. back through Thulli koshk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Thulli koshk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Thulli koshk, late in the day. Next is Tahmalaj.
9. Tahmalaj
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Tahmalaj 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 916 km.
Leg by leg
Tahmalaj to Thulli koshk
Tahmalaj → Thulli koshk is 149 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Thulli koshk to Takhirbaj Tepe
Thulli koshk → Takhirbaj Tepe is 99 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Takhirbaj Tepe to Kurtly ‘caravanserai’
Takhirbaj Tepe → Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ is 108 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ to Abdullah Khan Kala
Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ → Abdullah Khan Kala is 99 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abdullah Khan Kala to back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’
Abdullah Khan Kala → back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ is 99 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ to back through Takhirbaj Tepe
back through Kurtly ‘caravanserai’ → back through Takhirbaj Tepe is 108 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Takhirbaj Tepe to back through Thulli koshk
back through Takhirbaj Tepe → back through Thulli koshk is 99 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Thulli koshk to Tahmalaj
back through Thulli koshk → Tahmalaj is 149 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.