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Kishtidjarob River Valley, Pik Engles Meadow Trek, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan

Trekking to Pik Engles Meadow in Tajikistan’s Wakhan Valley

Updated January 2024, Trekking to Pik Engles, Tajikistan was originally published in January 2022

Returning to the Tajik Wakhan, I had moved the trek to Pik Engles Meadows to the top of my priority list, located in the southern sliver of Tajikistan sitting on the border with Afghanistan. 

The trek to Pik Engles’ southern meadows was straightforward, easy for Tajikistan- owing to the mostly well-beaten paths leading from Zong and Langar that meet at the valley’s mouth. 

What I didn’t expect, was to get caught up in a June storm. Before rounding the corner into the valley from Zong I was chased by a menacing dust storm.

I would turn around from time to time to watch the opaque beigeness grow in every direction, inching closer and closer, cloaking the Hindu Kush Range sat across the Wakhan Valley on the Afghan side entirely. 

12 day Pamir Highway expedition

Wanna join a group expedition on the Pamir Highway?

I will be leading a 12 day expedition down the Pamir Highway June 25-July 6, 2024. There is also an option for a 25 day Tajikistan Expedition that also includes a trek in the Fann Mountains.

Pik Engles Meadow Trek Table Of Contents
  1. Getting to the Pik Engles Meadows Trailhead
  2. The Pik Engles Meadow Hike
  3. Where to Stay
  4. Other Treks in Peak Engles Meadows
  5. Things to do in Langar
  6. Things to do in Zong
  7. What to Pack for Pik Engles Meadow

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Dust storm, sand storm, sand storm afghanistan, sand storm tajikistan, sand storm wakhan, Zong, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
The sand storm working its way up the Wakhan Valley and toward me

Luckily, as the storm’s full wrath reached me I was just bending the turn into the side valley carved by the Kishtijarob River that leads into Pik Engles Meadow. My luck would run out about a kilometer further into the valley as the rain began to fall, heavily. 

The remainder of the walk was off and on across patches of boulders, slipping along the way and rolling up a couple of grassy hills to arrive at the famed Meadows under Pik Engles, shrouded in heavy clouds down to the bases of the mountains in the valley as the sun dipped below the horizon. 

Plan your visit: The Tajik Wakhan Valley Travel Guide

dog, dog tajikistan, dog wakhan, Zong, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan-3
Shepherd dog waiting for his flock and shepherd on the trail

Getting to the Pik Engles Meadows Trailhead

There are realistically two starts to reach Pik Engles. One from Zong, which is a longer more gentle ascent, and the other from Langar- shorter and noticeably steeper. 

From a local recommendation, I opted to begin from Zong and end in Langar, though you can choose to flip-flop these or return to the same village from which you started. 

Shared taxis and cars that will likely give you a lift for a small fee ply the route from Khorog and Ishkashim to Langar and back along the Tajik Wakhan Valley. 

From Ishkashim and Khorog you can sometimes find a shared taxi going all the way to Langar leaving when full, usually in the earlier morning. A shared taxi from Khorog to Langar will cost 160 TJS and take about 8 hours, from Ishkashim to Langar plan for 90 TJS and 5 hours. If planning to start from Zong rather than Langar, let the driver know and they will let you off at Zong. 

Start your adventure with the Tajikistan Travel Guide for ideas
Don’t forget to grab A copy of Bradt’s Tajikistan Guidebook before you go

Kishtidjarob River Valley, Pik Engles Meadow Trek, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan

The Pik Engles Meadow Hike

Distance
19.5 km

Elevation gain
912 m+ | 1,144 m-

Time
2 days (9 hours of walking time in total)

Pik Engles Meadow Trek, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
Click map to download GPX file on Wikiloc

Pik Engles Meadow Trek: Day 1

Starting from the end of the drivable dirt road in Zong the path to Pik Engles is pretty obvious, following an old roadbed to the east that eventually deteriorates into a trail, steadily gaining elevation before the path bends back to the west, zigzags a couple of times and then takes off to the east again. Eventually, this path meets with an irrigation canal which you will follow into Kishtidjarob River Valley. 

Zong, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
Getting ready to start hiking from Zong
irrigation canal, Pik Engles Meadow Trek, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
Reaching the irrigation canal

The irrigation canal continues two kilometers into the valley before it ends at a small dam where you should get your first glimpses of the distinct Pik Engles (unless you’re hiking in the pouring rain by this point like I was). From there on, you’ll roughly follow the course of the river.

As many locals from Langar and beyond being their livestock to graze at Pik Engles Meadow, the trail is well-beaten, though do expect it to diverge as animals and shepherds may take slightly different routes due to changing river levels throughout the season.

You will always be on the southwest side of the Kishtidjarob River as you continue higher into the valley.

You’ll reach a nice flat grassy field that could make for a nice camping spot, but the path does continue, zigzagging up 150 meters before the valley widens a bit to land you into the beautiful Pik Engles Meadow.

Pik Engles Meadows Trek, Tajik Wakhan, Tajikistan-2
Views of lush Pik Engles Meadows the following morning (sorry couldn’t see the mountain this day due to low clouds!)

There are a plethora of great camping spots to choose from in the grassy meadows here under Pike Engles, so choose your favorite.

For those planning to spend more time exploring the area around the Pike Engles Meadow, there are a few easy(ish) summits to take on here, including 5,794 meter Churlenisa, 5,837 meter Danilaytisa, and 6,075 meter Moskovskoy Pravda.

Pik Engles Meadow Trek: Day 2

The trek on day two is pretty easy and all downhill. From camp, you’ll follow the same route back, all the way out of the Kishtidjarob River Valley.

Roughly 130 meters after bending the last obvious turn out of Kishtidjarob River Valley, you will want to follow a path that veers from the irrigation canal. It instantly turns to the north for 100 meters before taking a sharp turn straight south. 

The path is mostly obvious on the way down and about 700 meters after that sharp bend south you’ll begin running into petroglyphs carved into exposed rocks and boulders strewn on either side of the trail.

The trail essentially stays along the countless petroglyphs down to the village of Langar. There are over 6,000 petroglyphs scattered around uphill of Langar that date back to the stone age- though you’ll find plenty of new-age graffiti added on the rocks.

Langar Petroglyphs, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
Langar Petroglyphs

Trek start and end information: Please note that it is entirely possible to start and end the trek from either Zong or Langar to make the Pike Engles Meadow hike an out-and-back, or can be easily reversed, starting in Langar and ending in Zong. Note that the approach from Zong is gentler, while the approach from Langar is steeper.

Note: The GPX file shows a slightly longer distance- this is because I continued to Hisor at the end of the trek after Langar.

Wanna take on the legendary Pamir Highway? Check out this travel guide and this itinerary

Davlatkhon Homestay, Hisor, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
Dinner at Davlatkhon Homestay in Hisor

Where to Stay

Langar

There are several homestay options in Langar for those that plan to start or end the Pik Engles trek from here. Try Yodgor Homestay (+992501835305), Nigina Homestay (+992938483720), Homestay Mulloniyoz (+992501160683), or Behruz Guesthouse (+992935825732). Expect 200-250 TJS per night, including dinner and breakfast. 

Hisor

I opted to stay in Hisor, making the short walk from Langar to Hisor in the end. Davlatkhon’s Homestay (+9929351488119) is the best option in the village, offering rooms including dinner and breakfast for 220 TJS. 

The family makes great soups and main dishes, and Davlatkhon can help sort a shared taxi for onwards travel for you- he made some calls and found a shared taxi headed back to Khorog, departing the following morning. The taxi even collected me from the homestay in the morning. 

Pik Engles Meadow Trek, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan

Other Treks in Peak Engles Meadows

Peak Moskovskoy Pravda

What I didn’t know when I did the Pik Engles Meadow trek (not until my return to Tajikistan only a few weeks later) is that from the meadow, you can make a summit up Pik Moskovskoy Pravda just due east.

It’s a 6,075 meter peak, requiring no technical skills (don’t worry, I have plans to return to bag this one). 

Summiting Pik Moskovskoy Pravda is possible to complete in a day from Pik Engles Meadow- plan to set up your basecamp in the meadow, spend the night and wake up super early to the summit and come back down to camp on day two, and pack up and trek back to Zong, Langar, or Hisor on day three. 

Other nearby peaks to consider summiting before taking on Moskovskoy Pravda in this area are 5,794 meter Churlenisa and 5,837 meter Danilaytisa.

In July 2023, I managed to make the summit up Moskovskoy Pravda. I haven’t had a chance to type up details on doing it but for the time being feel free to email me for further instructions until I get the trail notes up on here!

Pik Engles Glacier

If doing the Pik Engles trek later in the summer or the early fall when the valley has had a chance to dry up a bit, it’s usually possible to trek out to the snout of Pik Engles Glacier.

Langar, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan
Langar

Things to do in Langar

Shah Kambari Aftab Shrine

The name Shah Kambari Aftab translates out to ‘Master of the Sun’ is dedicated to the bringer of Ismailism to Langar, though given the name of the shrine, it’s likely this site predates the arrival of Islam and is an ancient Zoroastrian fire or sun temple.

Langar Museum

The museum is dedicated to the Shah Kambari Aftab Shrine but also general Pamiri and Wakhi life and history. 

Langar Petroglyphs

As mentioned in the hiking section, there are about 6,000 petroglyphs scattered on the hillside above Langar Village. The closest cluster of them are marked on Maps.me as well as Gaia GPS but continue along the hiking trail that leads to the Pike Engles Meadows from Langar and you’ll be rewarded with hundreds of petroglyphs found just off the trail.

Vishimqala, Silk Fortress, Abrashim Qala, Zong, Tajik Wakhan, Tajikistan, Silk FOtress Zong,
Abrashim Qala, Zong

Things to do in Zong

Abrashim Qala

Abrashim Qala is also known as the Vishim Qala (Vishim Qala translates out to Silk Fortress), the castle sits above the village of Zong and dates back to the middle ages. The castle would have served to protect traders and inhabitants of this section of the Wakhan Valley from marauders.

It’s possible to visit Abrashim Qala for those starting or ending in Zong who don’t mind a roughly 1.5 kilometer detour (each way), though you can just as easily appreciate the fortress from the main Wakhan Valley Road. 

Hisor, Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan

Things to do in Hisor

The two main sites in Hisor village are the Sufi Shrine to Oston i Nur Mohammed and the Ruins of Zangibar Fortress.

The Zangibar Fortress is smaller, though similar to nearby Abrashim Qala, served as a defensive fortification from invaders. It is believed to have been built by Kafirs (non-believers, therefore, dating back to pre-Islamic times) and due to the lack of pottery found, is thought to have been inhabited only a short while. 

What to Pack for Pik Engles Meadow

Have any questions about the Pik Engles Meadow Hike?

Ask in the comments section below. 

More posts from Tajikistan:

2 thoughts on “Trekking to Pik Engles Meadow in Tajikistan’s Wakhan Valley”

  1. Alica

    Hello,
    could you please give us some details on reaching the Peak Moskovsky Pravda?
    we plan to hike to the meadow tomorrow, still havent decided from where and how to get there from Khorog.
    Thanks 🙂

    Reply
    1. Nicole

      Hi Alicia, sorry about the late reply! I was out in the Fanns guiding without any internet. Hope you had a successful summit. The short details are to follow the animal tracks up the green grassy hill behind the main camping area
      For Pik Engles meadows marked on most maps. Continue upward toward the ridge past a couple shepherd camps. Then essentially follow the ridge to Moskovsky Pravda. When I did it crampons and an ice ax were definitely needed.

      Reply

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