Yaghnob Pass Descriptions
Note: To be clear, the “Upper Yaghnob“ does not exist in local terminology, nor does “Takali“ (a mountain climbers’ designation for this area). Shepherds call the upper reaches of the Yaghnob River “Gulboz.“
Yaghnob Valley Passes to Zarafshon Valley
For information on Yaghnob (trails, accommodation, transportation, etc.) Check out Archa Foundations' Yaghnob Trails Project and the Adventures of Nicole travel blog guide to Yaghnob.
If you want to see as much of the Yaghnob Valley as possible, then you need to use the Rost/Ghuzn Pass. Check out our full report here.
1. Dargh Passes: West, Central And East Dargh Passes in Russian map-maker terminology , or Kazdon, Farkou and Farzod Passes in local use.
Spelling variations: Darg, Darkh, Dargh. [Дарг, Дарх, Дарғ]
Possible to follow these itineraries in reverse? Yes.
All trekking passes with easy "H/K" ratings. No dangerous glaciers or scary river crossings. All three are just under 4000 meters, and on the Yaghnob side you lose elevation very quickly. Expect the Yaghnob side to be dry and snow-free very early in the season. For the north side, maybe as early as June should be possible (perhaps?). Certainly a sheep pass like East Dargh/Farzod Pass will have sheep using it early in the season. But we make no promises. The other two passes are not really recommended unless you like exploring steep and unpredictable slopes/gullies.
If going south to north, then these three passes skip the most interesting parts of Yaghnob valley, unless you then plan to go up the Yaghnob Valley instead of quickly going to the guesthouses in Margheb....
Reasons for doing these passes: 1. It's early or late in the season and you are worried about the higher or more difficult passes further east, 2. You have a limited amount of time, 3. You don't want to travel further up the Zafafshon Valley to reach the eastern passes, 4. You want the easiest option.
Directions from the Zarafshon side: For all three passes, drive to villages of Dargh and Kazdon. The assumption is that you will be starting your drive from Ayni, or (closer) from the Sariosiyo or Chormavze guesthouses in Veshab (link to homestays/guesthouses).
Farkou (Central Dargh) Pass is an old disused mining road. It goes over the pass and down to the Yaghnob side for a few hundred meters before disappearing. From the town of Dargh go up the Iskidargh River, then take the Munch tributary river. The Yaghnob side has no trail, so you have to move over open slopes down to the Yaghnob valley road. Avoid getting funneled down the gullies, which may be too narrow and steep.
Kazdon (West Dargh) Pass. From the village of Dargh go up the Kazdon River. A local driver with a 4-wheel drive will have no problems, or you could just walk starting in Dargh/Kazdon. It seems nice. The road goes all the way to the locally-famous Mullo Sharshara (waterfall) at about 3000 meters. From here you will move over open ground. Go around the tiny glacier and small cornice that block the low point of the pass. Kazdon Pass does not appear to be used. It's open territory with no serious obstacles on the north side, but you will need to carefully select a route over the open slopes on the Yaghnob side to avoid going down a too-narrow gully. Arrive in the Yaghnob Valley near the village of Khishortob.
Farzod (East Dargh) Pass. From the village of Dargh, go up the Iskidargh River, which eventually becomes the Gudiv River upstream. Stay on same side the entire time. There is a clear sheep trail through the pass. No real difficulties are present - the small glaciers nearby are easily avoided. For full instructions, the pass is featured in the “Trekking in Tajikistan” guidebook (Route #13, Dargh to Ziddi). The trail ends in Bidev in the Yaghnob Valley.
If the Kharkiv MTB club can push their bikes through the Farzod (East Dargh) Pass, you can probably hike it. Link to full story. The photo on the left is the north side of the pass, the photo on the right is the top of the pass.
For information on Yaghnob (trails, accommodation, transportation, etc.) Check out Archa Foundations' Yaghnob Trails Project and the Adventures of Nicole travel blog guide to Yaghnob.
2. Surkhat Pass
There are no reports available for Surkhat Pass.
Directions: From the village of Pastigov, cross the Zeravshan River and drive up the side valley, almost halfway to pass before trail starts. The trail through the pass ends in the tiny village of Tag-i Chanor in the Yaghnob Valley.
Pass Ratings: 1B (4200 meters)
Pass description: The route skirts along the edge of a glacier. Crevasses visible on the glacier. Section below glacier is rocky glacier debris, and it’s hard to see any trail. Rough ground. Clear sheep trail through pass. Glacier on south slope is to the side, out of the way of the path. Likely sheep going through here in June.
3. Ravosang Pass
Ravosang Pass (4206 meters) is a bit of a mystery. On Westra it is rated as an “H/K” trail, and some general coordinates are provided. But no reports (so its location may be off my 100 meters or so). All satellite imagery for this area is snowy and/or cloudy, so it is not possible to map a trail without visiting this area on the ground and recording a GPS track. The trail on the map ends about 1.5-2k away from the pass. The south side, however, seems clear. It is open ground over a basin than funnels into a small river that goes down to the Yaghnob River. There are clearly sheep camps at halfway down to the Yaghnob River. It’s far better to go through the neigbouring Rost Pass, which has plenty of information available.
4. Tabaspin (Golirud) Pass
The advantage of Tabaspin Pass (Aka Golirud, especially on Russian maps) is that it is the quickest route from Langar to the upper Yaghnob Valley.
Tabaspin/Golirud has a relatively easy 1A rating, but you need to go up a glacier. At some point in early summer, sheep and shepherds are going through the pass. Later in the summer, the glacier opens up its crevasses for easy sighting (hidden before that).
Our recommendation is to consider this pass to be dangerous. Avoid it as a trekker. Going with a guide who knows this pass is recommended, or only go through if you speak Tajik and a shepherd who just passed through says it's safe and the trail is clear to see. For those of you with mountaineering experience, the Shvedov group (Russian link) went through August 21 without putting on crampons and reported that they were easily able to avoid crevasses. For others, consider this: do you know enough about crevasses to be comfortable? For example, just because you see solid snow/ice does not mean there is no hidden crevasse to fall into (through a weak ice/snow bridge). For those of you that read Russian and know Russian climbing terminology, read this Russian description.
A satellite image of the crevasses right before the pass.
Satellite image of the crevasses half-way up the glacier.
Passes Connecting Gulboz (Upper Yaghnob) to Dashti Ziyorat
1. Takali Passes
For trekkers, there is a Takali and Upper Takali Pass. North Takali Pass is mountaineering only. Who is this for? Someone who just came through one of the Ti Shakh Passes and wants to get to the “Upper Yaghnob Valley” (Gulboz) as quickly as possible. Or the reverse.
Takali Pass: The 2007 Sergin expedition feel that Takali Pass (4080 meters) should be downgraded from a 1B to 1A pass. They crossed on August 10th, and there were still snowfields. They used crampons, but it looked like it’s possible to walk next to the snowfield on dry (but much slower) ground.
The western approach to the Takali Pass. Photo by the 2007 Sergin expedition.
Shepherds use this pass, and they likely have a name for it that won’t be “Takali.“
Upper Takali Pass: The 2010 Shirokov expedition gives the Upper Takali Pass (4175 meters) a 1B rating. There were still plenty of snow fields on August 20th on the west side. They used crampons until they reached the talus/rock.
The western approach to the Upper Takali Pass. Photo by the 2010 Shirokov expedition.
So, for both Takali Passes you may need crampons. But there is no glacier, and satellite imagery by September showed a completely snow free route (in one undetermined year) on Takali Pass. There are few to no trails mapped here. Move over open the wide open terrain and figure it out for yourself.
Akbali-2 Pass
Akbali-2 Pass (3960 meters) is for those trekkers coming from certain Romit passes that put them in the upper Little Barzangi or Sangdara River areas, and who are heading towards Ziyorat Pass. There is little to block your way here, aside from early summer snow that has not yet melted.
The western approach (left) and the eastern approach (right). Photo by the 2013 Kikot expedition (July 15).
3. Ziyorat Pass
Also referred to as Kumbel-1 Pass in Russian climbers’ reports. “Kumbel“ (“sandy pass”) is clearly a description taken from an Uzbek shepherd sent to work in this area. I was here in 2022 and “Ziyorat“ is definitely the local name. This pass connects Gulboz (the “upper Yaghnob”) to the Dashti Ziyorat pastures from where you can go over Ti Shakh, Jindon or Duoba-Dehmanora Pass to the upper Zarafshon Valley. This is a very easy pass. The problem is the rivers on either side. By August the snow bridges on the Gulboz side melt, and you are blocked. And in the summer the rivers on the Gulboz side block you. I was here in June, allowing for snow bridge crossings on the Dashti Ziyorat side, and on the Gulboz side a shepherd ferried me across the Little Barzangi River on his horse.