Share
Mar 22, 2018 • 4 min read
Discover Tajikistan’s Fan Mountains: A Hidden Gem in Central Asia
Often overshadowed by the popular Pamir Highway, Tajikistan’s Fan Mountains are a wonderland full of rugged alpine landscapes and stunning glacial lakes. This region offers an ideal combination of village homestays and ancient trails that connect them, and is easily accessible from the Zeravshan River Valley and the regional urban centre of Penjikent.
Experience the Charm of the Seven Lakes
Tajikistan’s Fan Mountains are an under-appreciated delight, even among the lesser-travelled routes of Central Asia. Join us on a pictorial journey through this stunning region’s epic peaks and friendly homestays.
Welcoming Local Traditions
‘Chai budesh?’
This local greeting – an invitation to tea – is frequently heard by many trekkers in Tajikistan. It often arrives at just the right moment, as you sweat uphill over the last few steps of a mountain track. A cup of tea is the perfect remedy just outside the village of Marguzor, a hamlet along the Haft-Kul, or Seven Lakes – a 20km-long series of lakes situated in Tajikistan’s northern Sughd province.
In true mountain-community hospitality, a comfortable pallet of blankets is set atop a dried-mud rooftop – an inviting perch from which to survey the wide mountain valley below. This is not a homestay; rather, it is a friendly family offering to share tea and bread with a tired passing traveller – but their warm welcome is representative of many small villages across the Fan Mountains in this part of Tajikistan.
In Marguzor, like in most of the villages that dot the Seven Lakes, a single family-run guesthouse accommodates occasional foreign travellers who wander through – typically in search of adventure, mountain landscapes, and Central Asian hospitality. Once popular as an entry point for travellers heading out of Uzbekistan, the closure of the direct border crossing between the Uzbek city of Samarkand and the Tajik town of Penjikent in 2012 has reduced the stream of visitors to a trickle.
The Wonders of Kulaikalon Basin
In a parallel valley, other Seven Lakes wonders can be found. The Kulaikalon Basin features a forest of snowy peaks, providing a stark contrast to the blue sky. Trekking a few hours out of the village of Artush, signs of life steadily diminish as the peaks rise. Around a dozen cerulean lakes are hidden within Kulaikalon, where the world reveals only stark, rocky greys juxtaposed against the sharp white peaks peeking over the horizon.
Historical Context and Cultural Legacy
Tajikistan’s north, particularly Sughd province, possesses all the history yet lacks the recognition of the popular Pamir Highway in the country’s west. Sughd was named for historical Sogdia, an Iranian civilization thriving in what is now Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. During its golden age from the 6th to the 11th centuries, Sogdia essentially controlled Silk Road trade, and the rural communities across this part of the Fan Mountains carry the cultural legacy of this once-great empire.
Exploring Modern Penjikent
Walking through the outskirts of modern Penjikent, overgrown hills mark the site of one of the 5th to 8th centuries’ most cosmopolitan cities. The ancient frescoes and artifacts of old Penjikent have long been moved to museums far away, yet it takes only a touch of imagination to envision the streets and structures of what was once one of Central Asia’s most significant trading cities.
Penjikent today stands on a high plateau in the western arm of the Zeravshan River Valley, serving as a hub for trekkers, explorers, religious pilgrims, and villagers returning to their small mountain hamlets after trading in Penjikent.
The Enchanting Iskander-Kul Lake
In the remote Yagnob Valley, which lies nearly at the last ridge of the Fans before they descend towards the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, villagers still converse in a dialect of the Sogdian language that ancient traders might recognize. Moreover, Iskander-Kul (Alexander Lake), home to a once-popular Soviet-era holiday camp, bears the name of the historic conqueror said to have rested his armies here on their long march across Central Asia from Macedonia.
While the holiday camp at Iskander-Kul features the vivid pastels of the Soviet-era turbaza (tour bases) found throughout Central Asia, the bright colors feel discordant against the serene and deep blue waters of the lake.
However, lounging on a lakeside tapchan (tea-bed), snacking on dried fruits and nuts, one can easily understand why rulers from Alexander the Great to Tajikistan’s current president, Emomali Rahmon, have sought rest along this shore, and why today’s travellers continue to enjoy the same experience.
To arrange homestays and transportation within the Fan Mountains, consider contacting the Zerafshan Tourism Development Association.
