An eventful day in the Fann Mountains

With a 9am start for today's trip to the Fann Mountains, we were looking forward to a little lie-in this morning. Unfortunately, we got woken up 2 hours early by the alarm clock from the room next door, which didn't actually stop for about an hour. The sun wasn't even up yet!

After a questionable breakfast, we are 'on the road again' and travel by minibus to the Fann Mountains, an extension of the Oamir-Alay range which features about 100 peaks, with several over 5000 metres.

After about 1.5 hours, we reach the entrance to the valley where our driver and guide have to hand in copies of their passports ... why, one asks ...

And here, the paved road stops and a full day back massage starts - at least that's how Feistyboy calls it. For us, it's more reminiscent of the drive to the 'Gate of Hell' with a lot more dust thrown in.
No wonder AccuWeather labelled the air quality as 'unhealthy' when I check the forecast this morning. No doubt it's nothing unusual as everything is covered in a fine layer of dusty sand.

After driving through several very poor and dusty looking villages, past a gold mining area - run by the Chinese of course - and a lime stone quarry, also in Chinese hands, we finally reach the entrance to the Shing Gorge with its famous 7 pearls of Tajikistan: Seven mountain lakes - locally known as Haft Kul or Marguzor Lakes - each with its own distinctive colour, microclimate - some are pale, milky turquoise, others deep bottle‑green, colours shaped by different minerals and changing light.
The lakes are stacked like beads along the Shing River valley between about 1,600 and 2,400 metres.

We slowly make our way up the valley and welcome a stop at each lake for picture opportunities and stretching our legs.

The first lake - Karashmai Haftkul (eye-lash) sits at ~1,640m and has
vibrant turquoise-green hues caused by dissolved minerals. There are even some local boys swimming.

The second lake Soya (Shade) at ~1,740m is tucked between steep rock cliffs that keep its waters shaded for much of the day, giving it a dark, moody mirror reflection.

The third one, Gushor at ~1,770 m is a wide, serene lake with a small surrounding settlement and homestays. We stop for lunch here and marvel at the scenery while enjoying the traditional plov (rice dish).

After a decent break we made our way to the fourth lake Nofin (Umbilical Cord) at ~1,820 m. It's a narrow, elongated lake winding through the gorge (almost 3km long) and the rough unpaved mountain road hugs its eastern bank. Interestingly, in winter this lake is almost empty.

The fifth lake, Khurdak (Tiny) at ~1,870m, definitely honours his name. It's the smallest lake and least impressive of the group, located just before the mountain village of Padrud.

There is quite a climb to the sixth Marguzor at ~2,140 m. It's the largest and most dramatic lake in the chain, stretching nearly 4 km with petroglyphs and traditional stone villages along its shoreline.
Of course we stop for more pictures. Just when it was our turn to get our picture taken with the marvellous view, 'disaster' struck and Fergus tripped over a rock. Luckily, he lives to tell the tale and the bruises and cuts will heal. (Fergus: 🙄🤕)

In autumn and winter, only the lower part of the lake is filled with water and we drive through what seems like a dried-up bed to the end of the lake. Until a few years ago, the drivable dirt road stopped here. Nowadays, the Chinese are exploring areas further up in the valley and have built another stretch almost up to the seventh lake.

The original plan was to walk from the end of sixth lake up to the seventh but we are all glad the Chinese did a good job and built a few more kilometres - the road is steep, very narrow, dusty and one would have to share the track with all the cars & minibuses going up & down.

At least we walk the last 900m up to the seventh lake Haft-Kul (thousand Springs) at ~2,400 m which is fed directly by underground mountain springs and glaciers rather than the Shing River itself, giving it crystal-clear, icy water surrounded by high rocky ridges and birch trees.
The lake is at the end of the valley and with a name like 'Thousand Springs' it really does feel like the dramatic finale to the whole Seven Lakes story.

The plan was to have some tea with a local family but unfortunately, they are still at their 'summer residence' higher up in the mountains.

To make up for it, our guide invites us to his family home back at the first lake.
Tajiks pride themselves in their hospitality and it's an invitation we can't turn down (even if we probably have preferred to go back to the hotel for a rest and a proper clean-up of Fergus' wounds).

But as it works out, having tea with Feistyboy's family (male members only) was a very interesting experience and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Our guide lives with parents and the families of his two brothers in a close compound, each with the own house.
There is a multitude of kids who welcome us with louds 'hellos' but only the two older nephews of Feistyboy, his brother and his father are allowed to join us for the tea ceremony.
We talk about some tradition, learn that our guide is actually an English teacher in the local village school and the two older boys (aged 12 & 13) are keen to practice their English with me.
They start with the standard questions - What's your name, where are you from, how old are you ...
Then they rattle through some sentences they have learned by heart about their village, the make-up of their family - how many brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles etc. Then talk about sports (Ronaldo is their favourite player) and they can't understand that I am not a football fan.

An hour goes by very quickly and we have to make our way back to Panjakent for dinner.

We were getting into the minibus when the driver spots a problem with the wheel which takes a little while to fix.
Hence the kids are still entertaining us with their 'hellos' and smiles.

Finally, we are on our way and stop at a lovely place for dinner. It's the usual Central Asian food and opulence.

After 11 hours 'on the road' we are ready for bed but need to get sorted for tomorrow's early start.Read more