Some places appeal deeply to the imagination. Even if the spot isn’t a big deal in itself. It’s about how it relates to other locations or the terrain surrounding it, its history or simply just its mere remoteness. The latter at least from the traveler’s point of view. All these features apply to Murghab, which is the Persian word for prairie river (margh-ab).
The town isn’t much more than a bunch of modest houses and containers serving as shops. The river in question rises from the Little Pamirs at the end of the Wakhan corridor. Its headwaters are called the Aksu. The river passes through Murghab, from where it takes the town’s name downstream, later once more metamorphosing itself into the Bartang. Near the small town of Rushon, the Bartang flows into the Panj. This wild river forms the natural border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan. It is the main vein which feeds the mighty Amu Darya that runs through Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
View of the Aksu river, with Murghab in the distance
The Amu Darya is the largest river in the entire region. Call it the Nile of Central-Asia. In antiquity, it was known as the Oxus. Its name has kept changing throughout history, depending on who ruled the region. For millennia the entire river system has formed a 2,400km natural route connecting east and west, and became one of the main branches of the Silk Road. These rivers formed the lifeblood of an area stretching from the edge of the Ustyurt plateau between the Caspian and the Aral Sea to the Pamirs, ‘the Roof of the World’ near the border of China.
On its course, most of the Amu Darya’s precious water is used for irrigation. Unfortunately, about 40% of it is lost due to poorly maintained irrigation canals and evaporation. In the end, what is left of the stream hardly reaches the Aral Sea through its delta near Moynaq. The Amu Darya’s problem – a result of inconsiderate decisions by the rulers of the former Soviet Union – became the main factor that caused the Aral Sea to shrink to less than 10% of its original surface since the 1960’s. The Aral Sea disaster has been an early wake-up call of man’s large scale negative impact on the environment. Moynaq, which was once a prosperous fishing port, dwindled into nothing more than a favourite detour and starting point for overlanders wishing to explore the Aral Sea region or visiting the rusted ship wrecks that are stranded in the sand.
Houses in Murghab. Shipping containers make up the town’s bazaar
Murghab film trailer by Martin Saxer, Marlen Elders & Daler Kaziev. An anthropological study of life in Murghab, “a winter film of hardship, work and hope”, created with special attention to the local sounds.
Life in Murghab is harsh. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, there has been a continuous decline in the region’s population. The combination of long and cold winters with a continuous lack of fuel and electricity, the lack of a regular fresh food supply, the difficulty of growing fresh crops locally and expansive, poorly maintained roads are all factors contributing to the hopelessness of earning yourself a decent living. Tourism is one thing, but generally speaking it’s small-scale and restricted to just a small part of the year. Most tourists are nothing more than passers-by for an hour or a day. They just buy some additional supplies, fill up with fuel – if available – and head further on the Pamir Highway in either direction.
Murghab. If you’ve never been there, it calls out to you. When you’ve arrived, it feels like an accomplishment. At the same time, you ask yourself, what am I doing here? Once home again, it beckons you back.
The Amu Darya river basin, with Murghab situated in the east. The thickness of the line reflects the ratio of average annual water displacement. Map courtesy of ZOÏ environment network
Overlander’s tips: Pamir Highway through Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO) – permit – refueling – money
Along the Pamir Highway, expect demanding road conditions for your car’s mechanics and suspension, and a total lack of service points along the route. Most dangerous to drive are the better segments of the route, as driving too fast could lead to very unwelcome surprises. Regularly check the important nuts and bolts of your car’s suspension, engine, gearbox and transfer case, especially when making the detour through the Wakhan valley.
Anyone traveling through GBAO needs a special permit, which can be procured through the online application for the Tajik visa. We learned from other travelers that, for reasons that are obscure to us, not everyone automatically obtains this special permit. When we applied for the visa, we didn’t get an answer right away. After sending a (very polite) reminder, we got the visa including the GBAO permit within a couple of hours.
For drivers with modern diesel engines like Euro V and VI: If you’re heading to Kyrgyzstan and don’t find or trust the quality of diesel delivered from the barrels at Murghab, one can fill up at Sary-Tash, the first town in Kyrgyzstan 223km further. Diesel is of unknown quality there, but might help if your car is thirsty. Euro5 diesel (called K5 in Russia and Central Asia) is available another 115km further at Gazprom in Gulcha. So, anyone with a compulsory need for good quality fuel, should have a substantial fuel autonomy to span the 1,255km Dushanbe-Gulcha trajectory. If you make the detour through the Wakhan corridor, the distance is 1,500km or more, depending on possible detours you might make along the route.
In 2019, there was no ATM available in Murghab.