July 2024 Update

Hello from sunny ~~Khorog, Tajikistan~~ Denver, Colorado.

I mostly wrote this while I was still in Central Asia, so we’ll keep it in that tense.

I’ve been back in Central Asia for almost two months now, mostly running expeditions in the Fann Mountains and then the Pamir Highway up to Kyrgyzstan (and then back to Tajikistan afterward) but that is quickly coming to an end as I do have to return back to the US at the end of the month.

Central Asia went smoothly compared to last year (no surprise trips to Afghanistan that resulted in me being banned from the country, no IVs resulting from a round of food poisoning, no extreme allergic reactions to dust, and no bear maulings).

That said, it was the rainiest (and therefore the greenest) I’d ever seen it in the Fann Mountains. The Pamir Expedition featured a visit to Zorkul which resulted in us being chased off a little later in the journey near Shaimak (a strategic point in the Great Game, and looking like still so to this day) by the local KGB up to Murghab, which meant a headache there and a mandatory visit to the military base to plead our case (it’s getting more police state-y again these days) and show that we did, in fact, have all the permits to be there.

In the end, we made it across the border to Kyrgyzstan eventually without much hitch and on to Tulparkul and finally Osh.

So that more or less is what’s gone on since the last update I sent out. Looking forward, I’ve been working on finalizing some new itineraries for 2025. Nepal, Mongolia, Georgia, Lebanon, Syria, Costa Rica, and Kazakhstan are all destinations we’re moving into for 2025.

Of course, our regular destinations such as Tajikistan and Yemen will be getting some new and interesting itineraries added.

Tulparkul, Alai Valley, Kyrgyzstan — Tulparkul, Kyrgyzstan

Upcoming group expeditions that I will be leading

8 Day Turkmenistan Expedition – October 26-November 2, 2024 (6 spots left!)
8 Day Socotra Expedition – February 11-18, 2025 (8 spots left)
14 Day Socotra & Mainland Yemen Expedition – March 30-April 12, 2025 (8 spots left)
8 Day Socotra Expedition – April 1-8, 2025 (8 spots left)
16 Day Syria & Lebanon Expedition – May 15-30, 2025 (dates are tentative)
Fann Mountains Expedition – August 2025 (dates and itinerary to be locked in soon)
Pamir Highway Expedition – August 2025 (dates and itinerary to be locked in soon)

Want to book a private Socotra trip for yourself or a group of your friends/family?

Click the links below to see all the departure dates and full details for the 4, 5, and 8 day Socotra itineraries. Note that the itineraries on these can be modified to fit your interests. The prices include the cost of the flights from Abu Dhabi to Socotra and back to Abu Dhabi, as well as visa fees.

4 Day Socotra Expeditions (October-March)
5 Day Socotra Expeditions (October-March)
8 Day Socotra Expeditions (October-April)

Posts from May, June & July (and one from August)

Posts coming up for the remainder of 2024

I hope to get a few more of these updates out before the end of the year, but no promises. You can expect to see some coming up about Utah, Greece, Bulgaria, Colorado, Tanzania, Montenegro, Nevada, Tajikistan, Syria, and more.

Where will I be for the rest of 2024?

As for me, I’ll be in Colorado until the second week of September when I’ll be getting sent right back to Kazakhstan for the 5th World Nomad Games being held in Astana, returning to Colorado through mid-October to wrap up a work contract.

In mid-October, it’s off to Turkmenistan to run the 8 Day Turkmenistan Expedition (there’s still space to join us at the Door to Hell this Halloween there). Following Turkmenistan, there are tentative plans to return to Iran to work with a nomadic and sustainable travel company and finally to Belarus to take advantage of its visa-free entry for European passports until the end of 2024.