Category Archives: Hiking

Day 286 – Over the hills and far away

Another bright and sunny day!

Another bright and sunny day!

The night had been slightly eerie as we could hear the wolves howl. I was happy when the sun was back up and we could pack and leave. I know that there were enough sheep around that no wolf would be interested in us but still…

All of today was dedicated to exploring the Alamut valley. We started with a stint to Evan Lake which was the back-up camping option yesterday. Arriving at the tiny lake with lots of rubbish at the shore and almost no privacy, we were glad that we’d camped in the fields. However, on the way out we met a retired French couple doing an overland trip in a 4WD. They were lovely even though the conversation was in French (go Flo!) and gave us the coordinates of a possible campsite further on.

almost back on the main road now

almost back on the main road now

The next “attraction” in the Lonely Planet is a road that leads through or alongside canyons. Flo found a loop that we could ride to not double up and so we went in on river-level. First, we follow the road along the ride with the cliff side to your right. It was hard to photograph as the sun was right behind the cliffs. After a while, the road starts to wind up into the mountains. From here, you can look into the valley with the canyons below. Again, we saw the tents of nomads up here.

Full service overland adventure ...

Full service overland adventure …

On route to Alamut Castle, the next of the famed Assassins’ castles, we saw a group of overlanders parked in a little side alley. They rode down from Switzerland in a tour, complete with support vehicle full of spare parts and tires, and will continue for a month. Thus, they were in a bit of a hurry…once a flat tire was fixed. We talked to them until we were near melting, standing in full gear in the sun.

A quick roadside lunch at the Alamut Castle parking lot prepared us for the hike up to the castle. The “Assassins” were prosecuted and thus quite paranoid when they built their castles here: There is no easy entrance and no easy siege. The mountainside is steep so the narrow staircase is the only way up (the second entrance has been destroyed).

one wing of the castle. Must have been decently manned

one wing of the castle. Must have been decently manned

Alamut Castle is the one with a bit more structure remaining but it is also the one where you have to pay a fee and most of it is covered in scaffolding. We were a bit disappointed, yesterday’s castle had much more to offer.

Technically, the “attractions” end here. There is a pass leading out of the valley all the way to the Caspian Sea but the Lonely Planet only describes it for hiking. The French overlander couple from his morning came in that way and while the views are gorgeous, they said the road was in bad condition and muddy. They were happy to have 4WD. Thus, I was not keen to go that way. However, coming from Alamut valley, most of the road up is sealed. Flo wanted to go as high up as possible…fair enough. First, the road continued on in the valley in a rather unimpressive way. When the incline finally started, the road became interesting again. Up and up and up and up. When we seemed to be level with the snow-capped mountains on the other side of the valley, the tarmac ended and Flo stopped as promised. We took a couple of pictures of the valley, Rocinante and us before heading back down.

The 'final' view - pretty cool

The ‘final’ view – pretty cool

It was late enough to look for a camping spot but we were lacking in the important departments of food, water and fuel. So we hopped from village to village hoping to remedy these lacks without having to go too far. The first shop, with a lovely owner, had water, eggs and veggies for us. Good start but not all we needed. Again, he gave us the things for half the price and a toffee on top. The next village supplied cheese and bread but fuel was only available in the third village. By now it felt late. The first possible spot next to a field of wheat was ours.

Flo cooked the tomato-egg dish for me that Azemeh had made for breakfast all those days ago. It worked well and was delicious with bread and the seed mixture that Azemeh had given us as well. Well fed, we had a short visit by a shepherd asking for water before settling in for the night.

Day 285 – Assassini, assassini!

On the road to the mountains

On the road to the mountains

Rejuvenated, we left our guest house in Hamadan in good time to tackle the 340 km for the day with little worry. I was looking forward to some more camping, but if we had to stay in a hotel, I wish it would always be like this one.

The road started out really flat, with only the occasional hill to hop along the way to Qasvin, the gateway to the Alamut valley. We reached it in time for a slightly late lunch and settled in our hurry for an overpriced restaurant in town, only to end up with kebab and salad once more.

All the more reason to leave for the mountains – not least to escape the heat. On our way out, we grabbed some of our now standard dinner / breakfast fare of bread and cheese. Once more, the local baker could not be persuaded to take our money.

Great views from the road

Great views from the road

There are only two sealed passes from Qasvin over into the valleys – we decided to take the western one in, and work our way east to take the eastern one on our way out. That meant the first point of interest would be Lamiasar Castle, one of the famed castles of the Assassins.

But before that, the pass itself was the first real attraction. Rising steadily from 1200m to 2300m, this narrow mountain road was just our cup of tea. When we first dipped over and saw the snow-capped peaks of the Alborz Mountains, we slowed down and started exploring a bit. One of the dirt tracks leading off to a particularly epic lookout / picnic spot lead us right into another Persian encounter. A family seemed to have arrived shortly before us and was getting ready for their picnic. The spot was so nice that if it were not for them, we probably would have camped right there. Instead we took pictures and got invited to tea right away.

A better look on the affair

A better look on the affair

We once again did not share any language, so conversations were had by pointing and gesturing a lot. We got treated very kindly and had to take the chance to leave at an opportune moment, just before the chicken skewers over the fire were done or we probably would have spent the rest of the evening up here. We could not, though: there was a castle to be seen. We were not even stopped by the swarms of crickets trying to suicide themselves on the road in droves.

It looked even more like Altaïr in reality :)

It looked even more like Altaïr in reality 🙂

It was a nice but exhausting climb up to the ruin of Lamiasar Castle. Not much is left up top, though. The Mongols really knew how to raze a castle. We still enjoyed climbing around the impressive site all on our own in the afternoon light.

Soon enough, it was time to look for a camp spot. Our first try further up the side valley was a nice ride, but did not score any good site. Instead, we headed back for the main road and towards the next point of interest from the guidebook. After maybe 3 more tries, we did find a lovely and secluded patch of green near the road but just out of view for anyone around. This time, we really appreciated the longer days further north, as we got everything set up just in time to have a sunset dinner …

Day 270 – Sneak peek into Persian family life

We enjoyed the wildflowers

We enjoyed the wildflowers

It got really cold over night, up in the mountains in a cave. When the alarm went off at 5.30 am, there was simply no way I could get out of bed. No way. Luckily, Flo didn’t insist on getting up so we stayed in the warm bed until the much more reasonable time of 7.30 am. Breakfast was served at 8 am in the restaurant and consisted of flat bread, butter, honey, a cream cheese that is somewhere between Philadelphia and feta cheese, hard boiled eggs and a plate with cucumber slices. Thus, we were ready to face the day.

Reached a nice high point of our hike.

Reached a nice high point of our hike.

Everyone else who wanted to had gone up the mountain hours before but we thought it would be sad if we leave without the slightest bit of hiking. So we put on our boots, packed some water and snacks and left on the dirt track towards the mountain. We had no idea how far we will get as it started to be quite warm in the sun already but there wasn’t much ambition in play anyway. We just wanted to have a nice view. Following the track around four bends, Flo spotted a tree up a hillside that looked like a great resting place. Up the hillside we went and it was definitely nice in the shade. Exploring further, we hiked up to the top of that hill, then spotted another, higher hill behind which we also climbed. Here, after another break and many pictures, we decided to call it and head back into the village.

Our escort to Shahr-e Babak

Our escort to Shahr-e Babak

Once back in the village, we came across Azemeh again. She had invited us yesterday to stay with her family in Shahr-e Babak and now her whole family (husband Mohhamad, three daughters and herself) were here to pick us up and escort us to her home. Such a sweet gesture! We, of course, were unprepared and hurried up to pack all our things so we were good to leave as well. Shahr-e Babak is the closest town to Meymand, maybe about 30 kilometers away. In no time, we arrived at the house where we also met the grandmother and an aunt and uncle who we had seen before yesterday. Being great hosts, they gave us the chance to have a shower and make ourselves comfortable before it was time for many, many questions from both sides.

The eldest daughter Mahdiye speaks English very well and was able to translate for people who didn’t speak much English. Mohadeseh, the middle daughter, also knew enough English to ask questions while little Maedeh only said my name and then relied on translation to get across what she wanted.

Everybody having fun

Everybody having fun

Being a vegetarian, which is not very common in Iran, I made lunch slightly harder for Azemeh. We went out for a tour through the town and to give Azemeh a chance to pick up some ingredients including a kind of bread that Shahr-e Babak is famous for. This is how we ended up in a car, Flo on the front seat next to Azemeh, all the girls on the back seats and Maedeh dancing to Persian pop music on the middle console.

When lunch was served, it turned out that I am the biggest food barbarian when it comes to Persian food. I simply know zero about it which equals knowing zero about what to eat with what. The table sported big bowls of rice which was a good start so I took some. It was clearly meant to go with the chicken which I skipped on. Next to my plate was a bowl with something that looked like sauce so I was about to put it on my rice when I was stopped. It was a yogurt soup that you eat with a spoon or rather you drop chunks of fresh bread in to soak up the soup and then eat the chunks with a spoon. I have never heard of it before but it was delicious. Plus, the Shahr-e Babak bread is delicious, too, and goes well with the cream cheese.

So yummy, so hospitable

So yummy, so hospitable

Next up, I put some salad on my plate next to my rice. This time, no one was quick enough to stop me but it is not what you do. There are special plates for salads and then you pour the dressing over it without it mingling with our other food. Whoops. Tea was served after lunch and I continued my barbarian streak when I asked for milk to put in the tea. One does not do this here but I was allowed to. 🙂 Then Flo dropped a cube of sugar in his cup which you also don’t do. You dip it into the cup, let it soak up some tea then put it in your mouth and drink the tea while it melts away.

During lunch, we also tried to learn Farsi words for the things we were eating but only a couple stuck, mostly the ones for bread and cheese. Tea is also on the list of things so I think I’ll be okay in the future. A little bowl with pistachios was served which was yummy AND an easy word in Farsi. Afterwards, I was really tired so I had a little 30 minute power nap before the day continued.

The rain did not scare all those Persians from their picnics

The rain did not scare all those Persians from their picnics

Since it was Friday and everyone was off school/work, we were good for an excursion to a huge field with rhubarb plants (or something very similar). It’s a very popular spot for the locals to go and have a picnic. We would meet up with more aunts and uncles and cousins there who gathered to be merry and cook a big pot of ash (not quite a soup, not quite a stew) together. The weather seemed to turn on us but we went anyway. Tea was served again and I shared the box of sweets that I had bought in Bandar Abbas so I could contribute something at least. It was great to see so many people and we played some volleyball or a version of dodge ball before having a bowl of ash.

Mohhamad, Azemeh and Maedeh with Charowo

Mohhamad, Azemeh and Maedeh with Charowo

The rain and wind picked up for real now. Packing everything back in the car, we still had many more pictures to take so everyone had their memory shot. Maedeh wanted some with us on the big leaves of the rhubarb plants which was sweet. Strawberries appeared from somewhere so there’s a picture of all of us holding up strawberries and then we all hopped into the car.

On the way back, we stopped at the field with pistachio plants. Flo had asked about it earlier as we both were unsure how the plant looks like and how pistachios are actually “made”. Here, we got a glimpse of tiny pistachios in the making.

The evening passed with more tea, conversation and then a serving of different fruits. Azemeh asked when we would like to have dinner but we had been eating the whole day and really didn’t need more food. Instead, she brought out her home-made baking. Full to the brim, we tried a small piece each and if we liked it, Azemeh packed a whole bag for us to take with us as snacks tomorrow. So, so kind and so, so yummy. I particularly liked small dough balls filled with chopped pistachios and probably dipped in a rosewater-honey blend (maybe).

At 9.30 pm, I nearly fell asleep on the couch so we went to bed which was earlier than any family member was accustomed to go to bed. It was a long day full of new experiences.

 

Day 249 – Thunder and lightning

The morning started out sunny, in more than one way. The sun was actually up and we finally got a chance to really sleep as long as we want. Breakfast was good as well (and also cheap, thanks to the kitchen in our studio). We even fully caught up on blogging, to the point that I am just writing this on the day, as it happened.

Finally got it. Been driving through it for about five times by now!

Finally got it. Been driving through it for about five times by now!

We booked two nights in Muscat, so this was our day to go back to town to explore and take heaps of photos. Pretty much only take photos, because today is Friday and most museums are closed on Fridays. So we saddled our bike in the usual town setup with empty panniers and a ready backpack and got going some time after 9 am. The plan was to roughly follow a walking tour suggested in the lonely planet.

Since we were not feeling like going to the fish market and had done the Souq last night, we did the first km along the promenade on the bike until we were below Mutrah fort. We parked our bike in the shadow of this impressive piece of Portuguese heritage and made on our way around it to maybe find a way up and inside. We failed, but judging by the works that were going on near the entrance, future travelers might have better luck than us.

Looking out to the harbour

Looking out to the harbour

By this point, more and more clouds had gathered overhead. Good in principle because they keep the midday sun at bay, this time the sky looked a bit more serious. Sheets of rain could be seen over the sea and hills to the north-west. We still decided to keep walking a little bit more along the corniche towards Old Muscat. All around, police and workmen were busy preparing for some sort of event along the road. We saw at one point that there would be a show-run of the Red Bull F1 team tonight. Nothing that sparked our interest, though …

There was a bit of back and forth about how far we would walk when I saw another option in the guidebook. Apparently, there was a hiking path from Al-Riyam park back to where we had parked Rocinante. Once back, we could get on the bike and ride the remaining 3 km to Old Muscat and explore further. The guide book recommended sturdy shoes, but how bad could it be in the middle of town?

I'm mostly for scale

I’m mostly for scale

As it turned out – the track was really all out hiking. The path was well marked, but went up over steep steps and along a ridge. The last kilometer was down a narrow wadi. It was spectacular! Beautiful views of both the city and the hills, serene peace in little valleys and almost total quiet in some places. Unfortunately, the weather was a bit fickle at this point, with bits of light rain now and again. What really got to Nina though was the building up in the sky a couple of kilometers further, with regular thunder and lightning going. Although we were in a wadi, there was still not much to worry about. We were really close to town (although out of sight) and even in case of flooding could have climbed our way out.

About two thirds in, we were overtaken by a jolly group of four early-twenties Omani guys. They were real charmers and helped to calm Nina down a lot. We even got some wild sorrel they had found to try. It was really good. At one point we spotted a snake – something I had been looking forward to since Australia. It was not too big and pretty shy, so there is no photo, but wohoo!
From the end of the track (ending at the wall of a protective dam) it were only a couple of meters to our bike. We came out of the track just in time for lunch, so we hopped on and made our way to Old Muscat to a recommended cheap restaurant. Along the way, we saw that the preparations along the corniche had progressed a lot. One direction was now completely fenced in and police was setting up checkpoints along the route.

Iconic Muscat photo with Rocinante

Iconic Muscat photo with Rocinante

The sky got darker and darker during lunch. That led us to decide to modify the walking tour a bit more and do it on the bike instead. The Sultan’s Palace and two more forts framing the harbour were the highlights of this part. When the rain started for real, we were ready to call it a day and head back to the hotel. This time, the police was on the road and directed the traffic onto a back road. Seems the Red Bull party was about to start … shame about the weather.

Slightly soaked we arrived at the hotel. Even though it was only just 3 pm, we called it there. I only went out one more time to pick up fresh veg from the supermarket for a dinner of delicious sandwiches and fresh strawberries with yoghurt for dessert. Tomorrow will be an early start to make it to the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque by 8 am.

Once again, the day was filled with unforgettable moments – amazing and terrifying alike. Although we have been doing this for 8 month now, we are still surprised by how these things work out. Most importantly, we are humbled by the unending friendliness and hospitality of the people we encounter along the way.

Day 242 – Ancient lands

The Easter holidays of Lina and Michael’s international school were coming to an end. Today was the last day for any shenanigans as they needed the last day to prepare. Yes, school starts on Sunday. Which makes Friday and Saturday the weekend days. Now that I know, it seems very logical but really, I haven’t thought about it so it took me by surprise.

The road to the grave site ended quite abruptly

The road to the grave site ended quite abruptly

Another lovely long breakfast was had and then we decided to have a pot luck of sight-seeing. School colleagues had given Lina and Michael their GPS with many, many points of interest in the area on it. Not knowing what a lot of them were, we decided to check them out anyway.

The first one led us to old graves which lay very close to the road. A sign gave us at least the information of “old graves” and the information that violators will be persecuted. Apart from that, we were left to make sense of the scene ourselves. Slightly unsure, we looked out for stone heaps which we thought might mark the graves and pottery shards. Michael had been at an archaeological site with his class. Once you know what to look for, he said, you’ll find shards everywhere. So we kept an eye out for them, looked at them and then carefully placed them back. We pretty much did the same with interesting rocks we found.

Two very different qualities apparently from very different time periods.

Two very different qualities apparently from very different time periods.

From here, we went off road as the next point of interest was only 8km away. Maybe these tracks would lead there? Also Michael was keen to drive more off roads tracks. The scenery, again, was beautiful. When the tracks turned into a washed out riverbed, we stopped and hiked up to the ridge of the hill to have better views. Up there, many ruins of walls and houses could be seen. Also, the whole area was littered with pottery shards so we were especially careful. Here, we saw shards with patterns and even some with glaze or colour. I’m not an archaeologist by trade so my knowledge is not better than anyone else’s but as an art historian, this was amazing. Even just to look at without knowing much about it. Once back at home, Michael compared our photos with an archaeological guide book and the ones we saw were about 2000 years old.

The wadi has no flowing water, but the green shows where the water is hiding

The wadi has no flowing water, but the green shows where the water is hiding

Oman seems to be full of ancient relics. So many in fact, that some just won’t be worked on for decades to come. Not, if there isn’t an amazing new fund that sparks more interest in that particular site. However, the government is interested in preserving the past so that archaeologists check the areas that have been green-lit for building.

After this hike, we tried another point but couldn’t really find the off road tracks that would lead there. The one after that turned out to be an industrial mine (at least we think that’s what it meant as we ended up in one) so we stopped for the day. Instead, we had a lovely evening coffee at the mall.

Dinner was a homey affair. Lina and Michael shared their tradition of comfy burgers with us. To accommodate Nina, a vegetarian burger patty recipe was tried out. It was delicious and just the right finisher for an all around great day out.

 

Day 241 – Wadi picnic

Just keep following. And don't bump your head

Just keep following. And don’t bump your head

We had been thinking of going camping all together, but the recent heat made that a less appealing idea. Thus, we were keen to join when colleagues of Michael and Lina’s asked us to join on a picnic trip to a wadi nearby.

Wadis are valleys and rivers carved mostly by rain water. Some of them have running water at all times, some just after rainfalls. The one we went to today has water all year round enough for a swim in some places.

Mats are useful all around the world. Might need to buy cheap ones again

Mats are useful all around the world. Might need to buy cheap ones again

Given that we want to have as much time as possible for my arm to heal and we did not know the road, we decided to stick this one out in our friends’ 4×4. It turned out to probably have been the wiser choice nonetheless, since the road up the wadi had deteriorated quite a lot since our guides had last been there. Michael clearly had fun with it, which may not be true for everyone in our little tin can. Either way, Gandalf the White (their car) did a splendid job with the gravel track.

The picnic spot was superb and would be just as good for camping. Nice, even ground raised off high enough off the wadi floor and river to drastically reduce the risk of being caught in a flash flood (not that there was rain today, but people die every year in these). The view was great, the water was pleasant and there were perfect swimming holes nearby, shielded from the road.

Least appropriate swim wear. Exposed shoulders and legs are a no no...for men and women

Least appropriate swim wear. Exposed shoulders and legs are a no no…for men and women

So we enjoyed ourselves – first with a great picnic of delightful turkish food and later with a refreshing swim in the wadi. It was a bit awkward since we have the least appropriate swimwear for a Muslim country, but the good old Rarotongan sarong came in to the rescue. The water was beautifully cool and clear.

After a couple of hours we quickly packed everything up. The sun had come out in the meantime and the views all around were just stunning. Eager to have a bit more fun with the car, Michael convinced Lina and the rest of us to go and explore a bit further down the track and up the wadi. We drove up a hill, down the other side, crossing the river twice for about 800m when the little convoy was stopped again.

The recent rains seemed to have had a bigger impact than just making the road a bit worse. Here, the entire road has been washed away since our guides had last been here, down to the bare and jagged rock underneath. Even the decent 4×4 were not ready to cross the 60cm steps of rock that now lay were the road has been. It was nice enough, we walked around a bit more and enjoyed the landscape on foot before finally turning around and heading home in the golden afternoon light.

After all this excitement, we were all pretty hungry again. Instead of cooking home-made burgers for two hours, we went for lazy pasta which was soon done.

Day 214 – Tat Kuang Si (7th Month-i-versary)

Lovely French couple travelling the world in their Defender

Lovely French couple travelling the world in their Defender

Adamant that he is up to riding the bike today, Flo decided that we would go to Kuang Si to see the waterfall (even if we wouldn’t swim in it) and so that I could see the bears at the bear rescue there. We had originally planned this visit for an afternoon but Flo’s sickness made it fall through.

The ride there was about 30km long. We stopped once at the roadside when we thought that a modified Defender from France had a problem (which wasn’t the case) and stayed for a short chat with the French couple who spend their retirement travelling the world. They were very cute. 🙂

As I said, tourists are around

As I said, tourists are around

Parking the bike, we entered the “park” where the path leads you through the bear rescue first. We saw a couple of them but then they were called into the closed off part for food so we went on to see the waterfall before coming back for the bears. The waterfall is amazing! I know it is touristy and yes, many tourists are swimming in it but…it is so beautiful. The water has a turquoise colour. You approach it from the bottom where the water runs over some low steps and swimming is allowed here. Further up, the steps become even lower looking how I imagine the pink and white terraces in NZ would have looked like before their destruction.

The actual Kuang Si waterfall

The actual Kuang Si waterfall

The last view you are treated to is the actual, tall waterfall. Again, it’s a beautiful sight. We were very happy that we went on this detour. To make the visit even better, we managed to buy yummy and cheap rice paper spring rolls from a local lady in the park rather than sitting down in the expensive restaurant. So we took our little packed lunch close to one of the waterfalls and happily munched away before returning to the bears.

On the way there, we saw the French couple again, waved shortly and recommended the local lady for lunch. Luckily, Flo remembers way more of his French lessons than I do so it was actually okay to talk. Back at the bears, ALL of them seemed to be out and about, looking for hidden food or just hanging out. One of them gave his best impression of a bear skin rug while a super fluffy one sat at a “table” eating something.

A snap shot of a butterfly on the way out

A snap shot of a butterfly on the way out

It was already 1pm when we left so the 360km to Phonsavan were out of the picture. However, we just started on the journey to see how far we would make it. Not wanting to retrace our steps for too long, we now took the old road down from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng. This one is in worse repair as it is significantly older than the “new” one we had taken on the way up. It is also more frequented by tour buses and apparently made for scooters as it twists and turns so sharply that it even effected us on the motorbike…at least speed-wise. Still, the landscape was pretty to both sides.

Somewhere on this road, we passed a sprinter with an Austrian number plate. This is usually a good indicator for overland travelers so we stopped at the next opportunity. And yes, the sprinter pulled up right behind us. Werner and Susi (www.naglwitz.com, it’s in German though) are travelling from Austria to Australia but in intervals of 6 to 8 weeks before returning home to their jobs. This way, it took them more than two years to get to Laos but they didn’t have to completely quit everything at home. More importantly, they didn’t have to save all of their travelling money in one go.

The great view from our abandoned guest house

The great view from our abandoned guest house

At 4.30pm, with the sun already low above the horizon, Flo saw a roadside guest house by chance. He liked the look of it as it sat on the hillside, having a view so we stopped and asked for a room. Being on the cheaper side, we paid and asked for food. This ended in a rude-sounding conversation between two of the ladies and then the answer that food was not available. Slightly caught on the wrong foot, we looked around. The nicer one of the ladies than explained that we could eat out somewhere else in the village. First, we had trouble finding the place before it turned out that it really only was up the road from the guest house. Serving up a delicious vegetarian noodle soup, we then retired to our room.

No one who we had identified as the owners was still around, the shop tightly shut and really, it just looked abandoned when we were back. The only other person, also staying in the guest house tonight, was a dude with a Kalashnikov on his back who was busy putting his scooter into the hallway when we arrived. A dark, almost empty guest house didn’t feel too nice but it seemed to fill up some more before we went to bed.

The room turned out to be not so clean in the end as Flo had to dispose of a big spider before we realized that the bed or at least the pillows were molding. 🙁 Again though, I forget to take a picture as an example of one of our shabby cribs along the way.