Why this ride
The stops in between: Mansaf Caravanserai, Tahmalaj, Konegala Caravanserai and Akja Gala Caravanserai. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Yeradzhi and Akja Gala Caravanserai
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 1923 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 33 h 07
- 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. Yeradzhi
Yeradzhi is a name on the map in the middle of the Karakum, the Black Sand desert that covers most of Turkmenistan. There is no town in the nearby list, which tells you most of what you need to know. The Karakum is one of the largest sand deserts in the world, with ridges, hollows, saxaul scrub and takyrs, the flat clay pans that bake hard in summer. It is cold in winter, brutally hot in summer, and when it rains the clay turns to grease.
Read the complete Yeradzhi write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Yeradzhi is where the day begins. Next is Mansaf Caravanserai.
2. Mansaf Caravanserai
Out in the Karakum, the great black-sand desert that covers most of Turkmenistan, the old caravan route between Merv and Amul on the Amu Darya crossed some two hundred kilometres of sand, and along it, at intervals of a day's march, stood caravanserais where travellers could rest, water their animals and find shelter. The ruins of the Mansaf caravanserai lie on this route, a crumbling square of brick walls and gateways in an empty landscape of dunes and saxaul shrubs. They are part of the Silk Roads heritage of Central Asia, and the corridor is on Turkmenistan's list of sites proposed for UNESCO recognition.
Read the complete Mansaf Caravanserai write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mansaf Caravanserai comes up about 495 km into the recorded legs. Next is Tahmalaj.
3. 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
about 653 km into the recorded legs you reach Tahmalaj. Next is Konegala Caravanserai.
4. Konegala Caravanserai
What I can tell you is what a caravanserai was, because the answer explains the place. Along the Silk Road, travellers needed to eat, sleep and water their animals every day or two, and rulers and merchants built fortified inns at intervals along the way, with thick walls, a single gate, a central courtyard and small rooms around the edge for people, with stables and storerooms.
Read the complete Konegala Caravanserai write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Konegala Caravanserai, about halfway. Next is Akja Gala Caravanserai.
5. Akja Gala Caravanserai
The Silk Road across the Karakum was never a single road. It was a series of wells, forts and caravanserais, a day's travel apart, where camels could drink and merchants could sleep behind walls. Akja Gala is one of these shelters, a square brick building with a central courtyard and rooms around it, set in sand and saxaul scrub between Merv and the Amu Darya, the river called the Oxus by the Greeks.
Read the complete Akja Gala Caravanserai write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Akja Gala Caravanserai sits at 962 km, about halfway. Next is back through Konegala Caravanserai.
6. back through Konegala Caravanserai
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Konegala Caravanserai write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Konegala Caravanserai comes up about 1136 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Tahmalaj.
7. back through 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
about 1270 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Tahmalaj. Next is back through Mansaf Caravanserai.
8. back through Mansaf Caravanserai
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Mansaf Caravanserai write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Mansaf Caravanserai, late in the day. Next is Yeradzhi.
9. Yeradzhi
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Yeradzhi 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 1923 km.
Leg by leg
Yeradzhi to Mansaf Caravanserai
Yeradzhi → Mansaf Caravanserai is 495 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Mansaf Caravanserai to Tahmalaj
Mansaf Caravanserai → Tahmalaj is 157 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Tahmalaj to Konegala Caravanserai
Tahmalaj → Konegala Caravanserai is 134 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Konegala Caravanserai to Akja Gala Caravanserai
Konegala Caravanserai → Akja Gala Caravanserai is 175 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Akja Gala Caravanserai to back through Konegala Caravanserai
Akja Gala Caravanserai → back through Konegala Caravanserai is 175 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Konegala Caravanserai to back through Tahmalaj
back through Konegala Caravanserai → back through Tahmalaj is 134 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Tahmalaj to back through Mansaf Caravanserai
back through Tahmalaj → back through Mansaf Caravanserai is 157 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Mansaf Caravanserai to Yeradzhi
back through Mansaf Caravanserai → Yeradzhi is 495 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
More motorcycle rides nearby
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- Yeradzhi and Thulli koshk · 327 km
- Yeradzhi and Mansaf Caravanserai · 279 km
- Repetek and Akja Gala Caravanserai · 307 km