In Search of the Gusgarf Waterfall - Short story

Long before I set off on this journey, I was asked if I had been to the Gusgarf Waterfall. "No," I answered, "what waterfall is that?" Various descriptions followed, all of which essentially amounted to it being a large waterfall, about thirty meters high, also known as "Pioneer". I decided I should go, but I couldn't find anyone to go with me. It seemed like many people were hiking, but not specifically to that waterfall. I asked where exactly the waterfall was located, but the explanations were confusing. In the end, I decided to go by myself and find it. If it's such a big and famous waterfall, I'll surely find it, I thought. I'll ask the locals if I need to.

The Odzhuk Ring - Short story

People usually go on mountain hikes in groups - it's more fun and safer that way. However, there are exceptions to this "usually," and there is such a thing as solo hikes. Sometimes a person finds themselves alone in the mountains out of necessity, but that's different. I'm talking about when someone chooses to hike alone. The specific reasons why people choose to hike alone are always different, and this phenomenon applies to all types of mountain hikes. There are even mountaineers who climb peaks alone, the so-called solo ascents. This phenomenon is not new, it's just not very common. In the Soviet past, such individualism was not encouraged at all, so in the West, this phenomenon is more developed.

Little Boats - Short story

In my childhood, I lived near a big park. It was the main park of the city, traditionally named after the leader of the world proletariat. The park was truly big, but in my early childhood, it seemed simply enormous, like a whole world full of amusements, wonders, and interesting places.

Once, I don't remember exactly for what occasion, my cousin and I were given small plastic boats, one yellow and one blue. In the evening, after discussing it, we decided that early in the morning we would go to the park to set our boats sailing, to "launch boats," as they say. The park had many small ponds, perfectly suitable for our idea.

Just Annoying - Short story

“And what does that mean?” he asked, busy making coffee and not turning around.
“Just what it sounds like, and then I’m leaving with my friends,” she said, holding a cigarette in one hand and arranging slices of cheese and sausage on bread with the other.
“You’re leaving... with your friends?” he asked, frowning, putting two cups of coffee on the table, black for himself and with cream for her.

The Cave of the Mountain Spirit - Short Story

After hiking four kilometers up the gorge, along the river, I arrived at a wide hollow nestled between the mountains. Just above this hollow, three other small mountain rivers merged together. For some unknown reason, this hollow was called the "Meadow of Power." It had an oval shape, with the confluence of the rivers at the northern end of the oval. The southern edge of the meadow was surrounded by an archway of trees. Along the western edge of the meadow flowed a river. From the east, a massive mountain slope with White Bar Peak surged towards the meadow, with boulders and debris. Although I didn't know what made this meadow so powerful, all the accompanying attributes were present, such as towers made of stones and ribbons tied to the trees. The trees here were also peculiar, most of them had twisted trunks growing in various directions. However, I presume this is simply the result of constant avalanches and rockfalls.

Hiking the Odzhuk circuit, across the Kichkine and Childukhtaroun passes, Varzob, mountains of Tajikistan

I completed a solo trek along the Odzhuk loop. The route, as the name suggests, passes through the Odzhuk gorge in Varzob, Tajikistan. To complete this route, one must hike through the entire Odzhuk gorge up to the Kichkine pass, then traverse the plateau to the Childukhtarun pass and descend back into Odzhuk. Ideally, this route can be completed in two days with one overnight stay, but since I was alone and taking my time, climbing and taking photos wherever I could, my trek took three days and two nights.

Desperation - Short story

The chilly night of late autumn. The wind coldly rustles the fallen leaves. The full moon stares at the frozen ground with a lifeless gaze, creaking the well chain. Suddenly, the silence was broken by a prolonged, melancholy howl.
"No wolves yet?" - Mikhalych, lost in thought, was startled by his wife's remark.
"Just like last time, remember? The wolves howled the same way when you drowned Marta's puppies," his wife grumbled.

Hiking from Begar Gorge to Odjuk along the ridge between Takob and Odjuk, Varzob, mountains of Tajikistan

Spontaneous hike, when it was offered to me, I didn't really know where we would end up or how we would get there. Despite the uncertainty, the hike turned out to be very successful. There were a lot of impressions, first of all, intriguing old mine tunnels at the beginning of the hike. Secondly, it was very interesting to walk along the watershed ridge, looking down at the gorges that I had already walked through many times at the bottom.

The hike to the mine in the Beggar gorge, Varzob, mountains of Tajikistan

We decided to hike from the Beggar gorge to the Ojuk gorge and wander around the ridge separating them. During this hike, we stumbled upon abandoned mines in the Beggar gorge. These abandoned mines, where fluorite used to be extracted, seemed interesting to me, so I decided to dedicate a separate photo review to them. I have already come across old mines in the Varzob gorge. Just this year, I did a photo review of such a hike, which can be viewed here if anyone is interested.".

Hike in the Arg gorge, near Lake Iskanderkul, Fann Mountains, Tajikistan

In the Fan Mountains of Tajikistan, near Iskanderkul Lake, there is a river called Arg, which gives its name to the gorge. The Arg River is a tributary of the Sarytag River and one of the rivers that feeds Iskanderkul Lake. We were interested specifically in the Arg River, which is sometimes spelled ArX on maps, but I am more accustomed to ArG. We drove from the "Iskanderkul" tourist base to a fork in the road and continued on foot. From the beginning of the gorge, where the Arg River flows into the Sarytag, it was about four kilometers to the area we were interested in.

Snake Lake near Iskanderkul Lake, Fann Mountains, Tajikistan

Another famous landmark near Iskanderkul Lake is Snake Lake. It has been named so by numerous tourists who believed that there must be a large number of snakes in its stagnant water. While there are indeed snakes, they are not more abundant than elsewhere, they are simply more visible due to the transparent water. Snake Lake is not its only name, as the lake has several others including Vernikul, Serima-darun, and Morkul....

Waterfall on the Iskandar River, near Iskanderkul Lake, Fann Mountains, Tajikistan

Waterfall on Iskanderia, one of the main attractions in the vicinity of Lake Iskanderkul and a must-visit for tourists. This waterfall is sometimes called the "Fann Niagara". It is located 800 meters downstream from the Iskanderia River, which flows from Lake Iskanderkul. The prominent scientist-botanist V.I. Lipsky officially mentioned this waterfall in his memoirs.

Iskanderkul Lake: Description, History, Legends

Lake Iskanderkul in the Fann Mountains of Tajikistan has a very ancient and rich history. It is believed that Lake Iskanderkul is named after Alexander the Great, who was called Iskander Zulkarnain in the local language, meaning "Iskander with two horns," due to his helmet resembling two horns. But this is only partly true, as the lake existed here before Alexander the Great's arrival and was called Iskan-dara (which may be slightly different), meaning something like "high water" or "high mountain lake."

Iskanderkul Lake, Fann Mountains, Tajikistan

Iskanderkul in the Fann Mountains is probably the most famous and photographed lake in Tajikistan. I had the chance to visit there and, of course, take pictures of this beautiful mountain lake. We stayed at Iskanderkul for a few days, walking around the lake and its surroundings. We were very lucky with the weather, we swam and sunbathed, and only on the last day did clouds appear and it started to rain. In the end, we had a great time, and I put together this and several other photo reviews of our outings in the area, as well as a separate detailed article about the description and legends of Iskanderkul Lake.

Spring hike to the waterfalls in Gusgarf, Varzob Gorge, mountains of Tajikistan

I can't say exactly how many waterfalls there are in Gusgarf, but the most famous ones are two waterfalls: "Pioneer" and "Eagle's Nests". Well, officially, these waterfalls are called the Big Gusgarf Waterfall and the Echo Waterfall, respectively. However, I have been to these waterfalls even three times, as I found another one, let's say, unnamed but quite decent waterfall. I visited these waterfalls at different times, and it was interesting to see how these waterfalls look in spring, when there is a lot of water. So, when spring came, I went to see the waterfalls in Gusgarf.

Journey of Journeys

Travel, it can be said without exaggeration, is one of the most interesting, exciting, and perhaps beloved pastimes of a person. Even Mark Twain once remarked, 'Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.' Travel comes in many forms, from a picnic in a nearby park to the great outdoors just outside the city, to far-off lands and extreme adventures. But I am not writing about them.

Hiking to Childukhtaron Pass, Odzhuk Gorge, Varzob, Mountains of Tajikistan

The elongated canyon along the Odzhuk River begins from the Varzob highway, or from the Varzob River if you will. The canyon has many branches that lead to Begar, Kharangon, and Chayka. The official end of the Odzhuk canyon is considered to be the Childukhtar, Kichkine, and Kumkayakutal passes. The first two passes lead to a high mountain plateau with Takoba tributaries, respectively, beyond which lies the Takob canyon. The Kumkayakutal pass leads to the mouth of the Semiganch River, a tributary of the Romit River, and thus to the Romit canyon.

Hiking to the mine in the Ojuk valley, Varzob, mountains of Tajikistan

I was always amazed at why there was such a good, wide path in Odzhuk that went almost all the way through the canyon. It turned out to be an old dirt road that led to an abandoned mine where they mined or searched for something like fluorite until 1947. There are many such abandoned mines in the vicinity. Apparently, they dug and searched, but didn't find anything significant and abandoned them. Industrial fluorite mining may still be taking place in the Takob and Magof valleys, not far from here. Locals also call these mines quartz, but quartz is just a accompanying mineral of fluorite and is not of interest for development and mining, at least not the local variety.