The Nomad Ride, Eight Days Across Kyrgyzstan
Eight days and 1,330 kilometres from Bishkek, over 500 of them off road, with a night in a yurt camp at three thousand metres on the Song Kul plateau.
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The route
Eight days is not long for a country like Kyrgyzstan, but this loop from Bishkek covers 1,330 kilometres and gets over three mountain passes above three thousand metres, and more than five hundred of those kilometres are off the tarmac. It is the shortest of the three Moto Yak expeditions and the sensible way in for anyone who has not ridden Central Asia before.
The first riding day climbs straight over the Too Ashuu pass at 3,300 metres and drops into the Suu-Samyr valley, which is summer pasture and very little else. The second takes a mix of asphalt, gravel and open track up to Song Kul, a lake sitting at three thousand metres with no permanent settlement on its shores, where the night is spent in a yurt camp.
After that the route turns south and the riding gets looser. Down over the Moldoo-Ashuu pass on dirt to Naryn, then 235 kilometres of gravel along the Eki Naryn river through sandy canyons and semi-desert to Kochkor. The sixth day crosses the Semiz Bel pass before finding pavement again into the Chon Kemin gorge, and the last run into Bishkek ends, as these trips should, at a motorcycle bar on the edge of town.
Fuel, accommodation, eighteen meals, a guide, a mechanic and a support vehicle are included, and the operator says plainly that no enduro skill is required. The motorcycle is extra, hired by the riding day or brought from home. Medical help can be a long drive away, so the guide and mechanic are both first aid trained.
Photography and film: the operator
The Nomad Ride, Eight Days Across Kyrgyzstan
Arrive in Bishkek
Check in from 2pm, briefing at 6pm, then motorcycle collection.
Bishkek to Kyzyl Oi
196 km over the Too Ashuu pass at 3,300 metres and down into the Suu-Samyr valley, with a guesthouse at 1,800 metres.
Kyzyl Oi to Song Kul
142 km on asphalt, gravel and off road up to the lake at three thousand metres, with a night in a yurt camp.
Song Kul to Naryn
270 km down over the Moldoo-Ashuu pass at 3,300 metres, mostly on dirt, to a hotel in Naryn.
Naryn to Kochkor
235 km of gravel past the Eki Naryn river, through sandy canyons and semi-desert.
Kochkor to Chon-Kemin
305 km over the Semiz Bel pass at 3,012 metres, then onto pavement into the Chon Kemin gorge.
Chon-Kemin to Bishkek
182 km on quieter mountain roads. The motorcycles are left at a roadside bar on the edge of the city and the group travels the last stretch by minibus.
Departure
Check out at midday.
What's included
- Fuel for the whole route
- Parking charges and road tolls
- Third party motorcycle insurance
- Accommodation along the route
- English speaking guide
- Experienced mechanic
- Support vehicle
- Visa support
- Luggage carried in the support vehicle, one 80 litre soft bag per person
- Eighteen meals, 7 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 5 dinners
Not included
- International flights
- Motorcycle rental, from EUR 19 per riding day
- Travel insurance, which riders must arrange themselves
- Personal expenses
- Visas where required
Ready to drive it?
8 days, from £1,684pp