Photo tour – expedition. Uzbekistan – fabulous cities, nature and exotic villages
An adventurous photo expedition in Uzbekistan for active photographers and nature lovers will take place in the most interesting and also rarely visited places in Uzbekistan. You will see extraordinary landscape areas, waterfalls, canyons, mountains with snow-capped peaks, mesmerizing sunrises and sunsets, villages lost in the mountains, where people live according to thousand-year-old traditions and way of life, cultivate fields on steep mountain slopes with the help of donkeys and bulls, and grind flour on water mills. For several days you will spend the night in the mountains in tents and a guest house in the village. And of course you will see the world-famous monuments of Samarkand and Bukhara.
Tour program
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1
Tashkent
Arrival in Tashkent. Group gathering.
2
Tashkent. Moving to Denau
Excursion-photo session in Tashkent. Transfer by night train to Denau.
3
Neighborhoods of Denau. Excursion-photo session to the Sangardak waterfall and the “Martian” red mountains - canyons
Today is a super-filled day with impressions and incredible landscapes. We will visit one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Uzbekistan, Sangardaksky waterfall in a picturesque gorge with 200-meter rock walls. Unlike many other waterfalls, Sangardaksky waterfall is distinguished by the fact that the water falls not in one stream, but in many separate jets. The water here flows under the pressure of karst waters from numerous holes in the high rock. The rocks near the waterfall are covered with emerald moss and grass all year round. The smallest splashes of the waterfall sparkle in the sunlight and form incredible rainbows. A fantastically mesmerizing spectacle. Having enjoyed this wonderful spectacle, we move to the “Martian mountains”. Picnic lunch in a mountain village. Easy 2.5 hour hiking among red bizarre monolithic rocks. Observation of the flights of numerous vultures nesting in inaccessible rocks. Overnight at the hotel.
4
Valley of the Machay River. Hiking and photo shoot
Transfer to Derbent and further to the valley of the Machay River.
The village of Derbent (Darband) is located in a strategic location at the crossroads of important roads. The name of the village itself is translated from Farsi as closed gate. Historians believe that it was in these places that local residents held the troops of Alexander the Great for a long time. Here was the famous “Iron Gate”, where in the Middle Ages customs duties were collected from caravans traveling along the Silk Road. And today Derbent is considered the gateway to the Surkhandarya region. To the north of the village you can see the entrance to a grandiose canyon, sandwiched in the grip of high steep cliffs. The canyon was formed by the Machaidarya River, which, flowing from the spurs of the Gissar Mountains, reaching a height of more than 4000 m, drilled its way into the limestone rocks over millions of years. In some places the width of the canyon narrows to 15 meters. Driving through the gorge, you find yourself in the incredible world of adventure Hollywood films. On the left side of the canyon, near the large karst vaucluse (source), there is a place of pilgrimage with the symbolic grave of Saint Khuzhamoy-ota. Numerous pilgrims come here. Adjacent to the main gorge, in its central part, is the narrow, winding Kaptarkhona canyon, where thousands of pigeons live.
The road to the Machay Valley to the mountain villages of Machay, Kyzyl Nur, and Kintala passes through the Derbent Gorge. From here, tourist routes to the Khoja Gur Gur Ata and Sarykiya mountain ranges begin. Near the village of Yukara Machay there is the famous Teshiktash grotto, where the burial of the Neandarthals was found. Today we spend the sun and spend the night in the mountains in tents at an altitude of over 2400 m
5
Machay. Moving to Shakhrisabz
We meet the sunrise in the picturesque mountains. Morning photo session and hiking in the mountains. After lunch we move to Shakhrisabz - the birthplace of Amir Temur (Tamerlane), the greatest commander of the Middle Ages and leader of a huge empire (200 km, 3.5 hours).
6
Gissar Mountains
Transfer to the Gissar Mountains to the Tamerlane Cave (160 km, 5 hours with photo stops). Our path lies along a mountain road through numerous mountain villages, picturesque landscapes, juniper forest, alpine meadows to high-mountain pastures and a karst plateau. Overnight in a tent camp at an altitude of 2700 m.
8
Return to Shakhrisabz
After lunch photo excursion. UNESCO sites: Ruins of the Ak-Saray palace (1380–1404), Doruttilyavat ensemble (XIV–XV centuries), Dorussiadat ensemble (XIV century), monument to Amir Temur, Kok Gumbaz mosque (1435), Jami mosque ( 1915), Mausoleum of Jahangir (XIV century), Trade dome “Chor-su”. Dinner. Overnight at the hotel.
9
Gelan
Transfer to the exotic mountain village of Gilan (70 km, 3 hours with photo stops). Ethnographic and landscape photo sessions.
Gilan is the most exotic mountain village in Uzbekistan. Until now, foreign tourists could not visit this village due to a special border regime. Local residents still preserve ancient customs and way of life. The village is surrounded on all sides by high mountains (over 4000 m) and is located at an altitude of 2000 m above sea level. In the surrounding area there are practically no even and flat plots of land where it is possible to use a tractor, and peasants are forced to cultivate fields on steep (up to 400) mountain slopes almost manually, using a simple plow drawn by a pair of oxen or donkeys. Orchards are also cultivated on steep slopes and river gorges. The residents of the village are especially proud of their extensive irrigation network of man-made canals, laid along steep mountain slopes for tens of kilometers. The central part of the village is especially exotic with its ancient houses and narrow streets. Currently, about 7,000 people live here. Overnight at a local guest house.
10
Gilan. Moving to Samarkand
Easy hiking. Photoshoot. Visit to a water mill, a blacksmith's workshop, climb to the pass - an observation point, from where the entire village, as well as 4 thousandth peaks, are clearly visible. Transfer to Samarkand through the legendary Shaitan Dzhilga plateau (devil's plateau). There, huge boulders and granite blocks are scattered across a vast field, the bizarre shapes of which suggest thoughts of unearthly creatures, true demons and monsters frozen in ritual dances. Indigenous people talk about the evil (devilish) reputation of the place. This place serves as a prototype for the scene of the battle of light and darkness in Timur Bekmambetov’s blockbuster “Night Watch”. Cult films about Indians starring Gojko Mitic were filmed here in Soviet times. Overnight at the hotel.
11
Excursion and photo session in Samarkand
10:10 - 11:40 transfer by high-speed train Afrosiab to Bukhara. Excursion and photo session.
12
Continuation of excursions and photo sessions.
Transfer to Tashkent by Afrosiab train, 15:50-19:10.
