Example of a Subaru Justy; photo courtesy Quadmachine on Wikipedia
Josh and I have been in talks over the last week about adding the Pamir Highway to our route. The M41 Pamir Highway is the main pass through the Pamir Mountains of Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan and the edge of China. An ancient silk road route, the M41 is often claimed to be the second highest international highway in the world.
We would likely join the highway starting from Dushanbe, Tajikistan, skirt the edge of Afghanistan, and then head north to Osh, Kyrgyzstan.
Also, we’ve had some interest from Josh’s mother, Cheryl, in adding to the team somewhere between when Kevin and Isaac will be in the car. Josh is thinking to have her in the car for the Pamir highway. We had originally discussed having just the two of us in the car for this section due to the increased danger of the area and the road. If we are dismissing this plan, we may consider Lori for this section as well, as she has also expressed interest in this section and generally staying in the car past Uzbekistan. She’s eager to add more time in the car since she will be giving up her job to take part in the rally.
We’ve been spending some time this week holding out hope for the perfect Subaru Justy to pop up on craigslist, that we can ultimately ship over to Europe. It’s available in a 1.0L motor, and can easily be found with 4wd and manual. It’s definitely not a large car, but that’s all part of the fun, right? There’s a few on craigslist right now, but some are pretty far away (they are really popular in Oregon for some reason). Expect an update as soon as we have a lead on a car.
Cover image credit to bikepacking.com