Irkeshtam Pass
3 cyclists are nearly killed by a blizzard at the summit of the Irkeshtam pass in Kyrgyzstan.
15 minutes before the storm, and 15 minutes after I was nearly pinned against a 2 meter ice wall by a cargo truck.
I’ll post the entire story later and photos.
Team Windbraker Carrots
The brothers of North East South West and I have joined up for a tour of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. There will be a few days solo on my part, as my Visa expires a few days before their’s.
After being diagnosed with “Desert Syndrome” by Matt and Lucas, it will be great to have some company for a few weeks.
Not only will it be an entertaining tour, I’m also learning French and Belgium culture…the goal to learn at least one French song. If you don’t know, I’ll also be studying Russian in Bishkek for 2 weeks, a wonderful gift from my mother.
I will breakaway in Uzbekistan and cross into Kazakhstan and head to Almaty.
They informed me upon their arrival, that I, was their carrot at the end of the stick through the Taklamakan. The boys of The Cycle Diaries had alerted them of the solo girl up ahead and they were attempting to catch me. If I hadn’t gotten so sick, I would of missed them. Ahhh, fate!
We start our mini tour tomorrow.
Matt during our matching stache hunt.
Lucas motivating me for…well, “it’s kind of a secret”.
Lunch
2rmb for a bowl of pickled shredded potatoes, chick peas/garbanzo beans, chunks of potato, something else, hot sauce, and a whole bunch of awesome.
Orchard Camp
Two nights before arriving to Kashgar, my first orchard camp. This is my proof to Matt and Lucas, of North East South West by Bike that I don’t sleep under roads and bridges…and train tracks EVERY NIGHT.
The three of us will be leaving Kashgar on Saturday morning and riding to Osh, Kyrgyzstan together. The border crossing is closed on weekends so we should arrive Monday morning.
We are a little worried of the weather, as it was snowing and raining here this morning.
Arrival to Kashgar
Last 50km into Kashgar was fantastic, hundreds of donkey carts, horses, and of course, the few camels. You can see these majestic beasts a half a kilometer away, their hair swaying back and forth.
