Day 70. Osh - Toktogul 

We have shed another 5kg. Not us- bits and pieces we haven’t needed and some gifts and nic nacs including a 5 day old broken camera we have shipped home.

So once we got this chore done we set off for Toktogul reservoir
We didn’t get off to the best of starts as Maps.me directed us via Uzbekistan, we wondered why all the trucks were lined up along the road. Doh.



So route recalculation and we are out of Osh after about an hour. Kurien and Jason are with us for one last day and night so that is nice. They will return to Osh tomorrow.



There are some roads you ride on and you think, why the hell am I doing this on a motorcycle, then there are roads and you think, why doesn’t everyone ride motorcycles. Well today we had both. Bumpy and potholed followed by sublime tarmac through a spectacular gorge. This gorge has been dammed in places and forms a large hydro scheme. The surrounding mountain range is devoid of vegetation but the colours are beautiful, shades of grey and red, set against the blue sky. It is hot, in the mid to late 30’s.




We arrived at our destination but they only had 1 room left. Fortunately it is a big one, so Robyn and I have the bedroom and the boys have mattress’s on the floor of the lounge.

First on the agenda for me was a swim in the lake, very nice but the water was almost too warm. My English friends rolled up their trousers for a paddle, I kidded them asking them where the knotted hankies were!
The hotel is full of local families, many swimming. It is a bit tired with overgrown gardens and empty swimming pools. It sort of looks like the Russians have left and the party is over. Anyway the people here are enjoying themselves which is nice.




The only thing on the menu tonight is Plov, so they are preparing one especially for us to share. Very nice it was too.



Comments

  1. Audrey Larsen27 July 2019 at 12:25

    Shame about the camera....are you using your phone? Photos are great!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark27 July 2019 at 18:12

      Hi Audrey, I use my big camera when I'm not on the bike and its working well, most of the photos are from that. I purchased a small camera that I could use whilst travelling on the bike. It was hanging from my neck when we fell off in the sand and got sand in the lens, only a few days old and not working. So off to find another one in Osh as I realised that I was missing a lot of quick shots whilst travelling on the bike. All good now another one purchased- hopefully no more sand dives. Robyn

      Delete
  2. Rick27 July 2019 at 21:09

    You are actually not that far (well a long way really) from Tashkent. But the long way gave you a great look at Tajikistan. Great Blog - keep up all the work so we can all enjoy it at this end - FANTASTIC - thanks :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark28 July 2019 at 03:26

      Yes its been a big circle but a really good one So pleased people are enjoying the stories.

      Delete

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