We woke up just before 5 AM in the morning as it was getting light. We broke up our camp quickly and started a short ride of 40km or so towards the Uzbek border.

We reached the border very early and could not get in the Kazach side yet. We had to wait for the starshi or older in rank. So we talked a bit to the locals, discussing the roads in Uzbekistan, changing dollars to som, where to find bezine. The latter was a real problem, especially in the Qaraqalpakstan area of Uzbekistan. So we were warned.

After a while a jeep turned in with an officer inside. This must have been the starshi guy. Indeed after five minutes the gate was opened and we could enter. Checking out of Kazachstan was easy. We had to do the usual stuff like exporting the bike, and showing our passports to get the exit stamps. We also witnessed the morning salute as all soldiers were present to great the starshi commander.

Now we had to ride a few meters further until the Uzbek post. There were many people waiting. Among them was a Russian man from Volgograd named Gena. He was so friendly to offer us some water as we were already through our supplies. Gena was heading for Tajikistan to do hiking in the mountains. He told us this border crossing was not his first time and last he had to wait 2 days to get in!

Indeed the process of getting into Uzbekistan is not an easy one. There are many small offices and you have to find out yourself where to go first. Passport check, bike import, custom declaration form, goods inspection. It took us a few hours but eventually we were the first ones of the day to get in Uzbekistan, lucky us. Once the gate had opened, the Uzbek women started running to us to change hard currency for the local som.

The first time you see the som is quite impressive as it is quite a pile of money. At our time the exchange rate was about 270.000 som for 100 dollar.

Our next goal was to see old harbour of Moynaq. This was still a long drive. First we needed to get to Qonghirat and then to Moynaq. On my GPS I could still see the E40 road marked. The road is asphalt here with some big potholes. We saw some shepherds under the way and switched to offroad now and them to chase the camels and horses 🙂

Around 11 am it became really hot and we tried to find some shade. In the desert this is not easy! We relaxed for half an hour and pushed on until we reached the small village of Jasliq. There was a roadside cafe here which had airco. Wow it felt great to cool down here and we had some soup and bread here.

The man of the cafe told us that one week ago there was a russian rally team who passed here also. I told him we were heading for Moynaq. He then said there is a shortcut. Instead of following the E40 to Qonghirat and go from there, there is a turnoff about 1km further to the left, and then there is about 120km offroad to do until Moynaq.

I discussed briefly with Larisa what to do. It was around 1pm by now so we still had plenty of time before it would get dark. We decided to buy enough supplies of water and go for the offroad option. We said goodbye to the man and started looking for the track.

We easily found it about 800m further down the road. We turned left and followed a jeep track in the desert. I switched my GPS to compass navigation and set as a destination Moynaq to make sure we were heading the right way. The track was not on the GPS. It was quite a nice track, we saw horses and camels under the way, but not a human being for the first 50km. In the middle of nowhere there was a small settlement of about 100 people called Komsomolsk na Ustyurte. Just before that there some kind of oil factory. We stopped in town and the locals came out to check my bike.

As we were in the desert and not 100% sure how to proceed we asked the locals for direction and they pointed us where to go. We also asked for a small shop. This must have been a mistake, as we could not find the shop but some strange men. We got out of the town as I had a strange feeling about everything, and started riding the track again. We were riding in the Aral desert where once the Aral sea was. The compass needle was not pointing to Moynaq anymore but more to a northern direction where now is what’s left of the Aral sea. I was not sure if we were going in the right direction…

I had a quick look at the benzine gauge and saw that our range was not enormous anymore. We could ride for another 180km or so.

All of a sudden a russian ural bike passed us at high speed. I could not believe my eyes. In fact it were 2 guys on the bike, and when I looked better the guy on the back was holding a rifle. He carried a lot of bullets and a big knife. My heart started to beat faster a this point, and I started to sweat even more in the desert. I was thinking to myself this is not OK. I stopped my bike, I had to stop anyway as I was riding without gloves at that time and I could feel the sun was burning my hands. The ural bike saw that we stopped and he turned around.

In the front was a guy with blue eyes, and blond hair. He was not uzbek. He started talking to us but I had really no idea what the intentions were. After a while 2 other bikes pulled out of nowhere. They were 2 sidecars with 3 more men with guns on them.

My lips and throat got dry and for the first time on the trip I was really getting uncomfortable. The blonde guy asked us to follow him, he would show us the way to Moynaq. As I did not have many options here I followed him. But he was always asking to ride next to him, meaning there was a gun pointed at us. So I slowed down, after which he slowed down. I accelerated and so he did. I could not shake these guys. They were riding like bats out of hell.

My compass needle was not pointing in the right direction but towards the Aral Sea. After a while we all reached a cliff and the blonde guy rode down, the other 2 bikes were behind me. I also rode down, but it was very steep and we almost fell over. In the slope he stopped, and wanted to talk further. This was the perfect place for an ambush.

My heart was really beating fast now. The other guys pulled up as well and stopped for a smoke. I felt this was a key point. He started asking questions about my bike and wanted to know everything about it, and what every button served for.

Then he started talking to Larisa. I don’t know if this was good or not, but he was also Ukrainian and the mood started to feel less heated. Nevertheless after the stop we had to follow again for another 30km or so. It were the worst kms of the ride for me…

By now we had reached a bigger track and the compass needle was pointing to Moynaq. All of a sudden a big truck appeared. The guys hid the guns and I waited for the truck to come closer. When the kamaz came close, I stuck close to it, and after a while I opened the gas. It was still offroad and a rough track. But now I was riding like a maniac. I kept looking behing to see if they were not following. Because of doing that, and also going too fast, one time we hit a real deep hole which made the bike jump, luckily we didn’t crash… I slowed down now and kept pushing until we reached the first village.

The name of the town was Uchsay. There were people here so we stopped to check on the bike and make all the luggage fixed again. The extra jerrycan we were carrying had become loose by now, and the bags almost had fallen off.

A woman came to us and asked if everything was fine. She was very kind and offered us a place to stay at here place. After our Aral desert adventure we gladly accepted. Her man opened the gate, so we parked the bike safely inside. We got a big room offered. We washed ourselves and got many many food offered.

First tea with sweets, biscuits and bread came. Then another dish; and another. We were treated like kings. The uzbek hospitality was stunning and I will never forget it. I went outside to check on the bike again, and watched the sky. I had never seen so much stars. The sky was really amazing and I kept staring at it for 10 minutes or so.

We were both exhausted and went to bed. I kept asking myself about the guys on the bikes, they were probably just hunters…