MARKUS HAUSER'S MAPS
Far and away the best map of the Pamirs is Markus Hauser's "The Pamirs - a tourist map of
Gorno-Badakhshan, Tajikistan, and background information on the region", 1:500 000,
funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and distributed
by Gecko Maps, Arne Rohweder GmbH, Switzerland; tel +41 44 980 6121, fax +41 44 980 6122;
e-mail:
info@geckomaps.com; website:
http://www.geckomaps.com.
This map also includes trekking routes and, on the back, interesting notes
on the Pamirs. A new edition was published in July 2011.
The map will also be available from end of July at the following outlets
(but for the time being be sure to get a copy from Gecko before leaving):
Dushanbe:
Modigliani Art Salon / 4a Chekhov (Nissor Muhammed)
Hotel "Tajikistan" (Souvenir shop)
Hotel Serena
Souvenir shop "The Silk Route"
SDC Office
"Bactria" Centre
Khorog:
Lal Inn Guesthouse
Hotel Serena
Tourist Information / PECTA
Murghab:
Ibrahim Guesthouse
'Yak-House' handicraft shop
In July 2008, SDC also funded the publication of authoritative maps of Northern Tajikistan (Sughd
District) and Southern Tajikistan (Khatlon and Direct Rule Districts).
These maps, which are on the same scale as the map of the Pamirs,
provide complete coverage of the country and, like the Pamirs map,
include concise historical, economic, social and cultural information on
these regions. The author of the maps is again Markus Hauser from Orell Füssli Kartographie
AG (Zurich) and they can be bought from Gecko Maps (see above).
For more information on Markus Hauser's maps (in German) see
here.
Gecko Maps also publishes Markus Hauser's 1:100,000 map "Lenin Peak", of
which a second edition was also published in July 2011.
RUSSIAN MILITARY MAPS
Detailed Russian military maps (1:100,000 and 1:200,000) can be obtained
from GEO in Almaty, ulitsa Satpaeva 30v (between Manas and Auezova) - NB it's
off the map in the Lonely Planet book. Telephone 245-34-35.
Until 2006,
they could also be downloaded free from the website of the library of the University of Berkeley.
Now the only place to find them (together with other relevant maps in
various resolutions) is on
http://en.poehali.org.
When accessed in April 2011, it was not possible to copy a link to the Tajikistan section of the poehali site.
Access to the Tajikistan maps is complicated - follow carefully the instructions below.
By clicking the above link you will arrive on the main poehali map page. If you do not read Russian, select English at the
bottom left-hand corner of the page. Then request a list of maps by toggling the "Show"
window in the upper left-hand section of the page: a list of countries appears on
the right-hand side - move cursor down and click on Tajikistan. Go down the list again -
under Tajikistan you are now offered four regions: Gorno-Badakhshan, Khatlon, Leninabad
and Tadzhikistan Territories; select one, then 100k. Under "Display" select 50 - the first group of
50 maps appears. Make your selection and then click "Download" - you will be asked to enter
an optical code - then choose between .gif or .map format. N.B. The full list comprises
several hundred and place names are in Cyrillic.
See below for an overview of the different
sections of the 1: 100 000 maps - the section numbers will help you make your selection on
the poehali site: for example, section 96 (covering Khorog) corresponds to the poehali map 100k--j42-096.
UZBEK DEFENCE MAP
The 1:1,450,000 map published in 1992 by the Cartographic Centre of the Uzbek Ministry of
Defence offers a good overview and gives most place names and accurate contours -
N.B. it requires knowledge of Cyrillic characters. In 2003, the 1992 map was replaced with
a more garishly coloured version published by the Tajik government mapping service:
the new version is almost identical but adds population figures and surface area by district;
place names are in larger print, a few more place names are given and generic terms
(e.g. mountain range, peak) have been rendered in Tajik. In 2006 it was on sale
at the bookshop near the Presidential Palace on Rudaki street in Dushanbe).
PILOT CHARTS AND OTHER MAPS
The 1:500,000 Tactical Pilot Charts available in
the west (Stanfords in London) also give an overall idea, but despite
their being a satellite map they are actually disappointingly
inaccurate, and, due to the scale, also lack detail. There is
also the limited-extent 1:200,000 map Pamir - Trans Alai Mountains,
published by West Col Productions and available at
Stanfords in London.
A list of map resources can be found on the GeoIdee website
here, in particular the
"Back-country Skiing Maps Tajikistan".
A WORD OF WARNING
If you have any of these maps, be sure to keep them away from the
prying eyes of the Tajik Border Forces or "KGB" who will be happy to
relieve you of them.
LINKS
Links to websites with fairly good overview maps are given below. The
following maps may also be useful.
|
 |
Central Asia (Click
to enlarge).
©
Aga Khan Development Network
Tajikistan
©
Aga Khan Development Network
Gorno-Badakhshan
(with kind permission from
Markus Hauser)
Gorno-Badakhshan with
recommended itineraries
©
Aga Khan Development Network
Search the web using the terms Tajikistan and map, e.g.
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/tajikistan.html
http://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/map/profile/tajikist.pdf
http://www.lonelyplanet.com
For historical maps, see
http://www.angelfire.com/sd/tajikistanupdate/historicalmaps.htm
and
http://www.aclib.tj/cd3/index_eng.html
In 2002 under a mandate of SDC's special programme for the International
Year of Mountains (IYM2002), the Pamir Strategy Project of the University of Bern prepared
a Geographic Information System for Gorno-Badakhshan. To make the versatile database
available to organizations and interested users, the Centre for Development and Environment
(CDE) of the University of Bern has now developed an internet based interface (see also Section "References, Books and Links").
This WebGIS is designed for the visualization, query and download of spatial information.
It can be directly accessed at
http://www.pamir-gis.info or through CDE's home
page
http://www.cde.unibe.ch.
All text and
photographs (c) Robert Middleton 2002
Web master Romanyuk
Mikhail
