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  • A boiled goat is being prepared for the guests, during a wedding ceremony.<br />
The Kyrgyz settlement of Ech Keli, above Chaqmaqtin lake, Er Ali Boi's camp.<br />
<br />
Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    MM8120_120127_04418.jpg
  • Deep in the Pamir mountains, a nomad brings his herd of yaks back to camp after a heavy snowfall in one of High Asia's remotest region.  The sunset light is blue and orange.
    2_IMG_1980.jpg
  • The yarz or juniper tree can grow in altitudes up to 3800m. The inhalation of the smoke of burning juniper branches was once used to help shamans reach the world of "fairies". The tree still holds a special place in the heart of the Pamiri people..From Zan Kuk to Zardibar ("yellow door"). ..Trekking back down from the Little Pamir, with yak caravan, over the frozen Wakhan river.Trekking down and along the Wakhan river, the only way to exit the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0768_MM8120_120...jpg
  • All of the Khan's wordly goods. Moving with the Khan (chief) family from the Qyzyl Qorum camp to the summer camp of Kara Jylga, on the south side of the wide Little Pamir plateau...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0594_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The Khan family has just emptied out their winter mud house. They are on their yearly migration to the southern part of the Plateau where they will stay in yurts for several months...At the Qyzyl Qorum camp, the Khan's (chief) winter camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0578_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Kyrgyz girls slide large plastic jerry cans back to their family's camp after hacking a hole in the frozen river to fetch water. Men handle herding and trading; much of the hard labor of daily life falls to the women...
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0289_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A Kyrgyz caravan progressing over the plain of Mirzo Murad, before reaching the Little Pamir plateau. They are coming down to Sarhad village to trade, a 5 days journey...Trekking up the Wakhan frozen river, the only way up to reach the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0263_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Two Kyrgyz women returning home after watching over the yak herd..In and around Ech Keli, Er Ali Boi's camp, one of the richest Kyrgyz in the Little Pamir...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_177.jpg
  • Details of shore of frozen Chakmaktin (meaning Flint Stone) Lake..In and around Ech Keli, Er Ali Boi's camp, one of the richest Kyrgyz in the Little Pamir...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_186_IMG_2163.jpg
  • Chinor, daughter of Abdul Walli..In and around the campment of Kyzyl Qorum, campment of the former deceased Khan, Abdul Rashid Khan...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_159_IMG_1712.jpg
  • A young Kyrgyz girl falls asleep on the floor, exhausted..Camp of Manara (Sufi camp), near the borders with China and Tajikistan...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_115_2_IMG_1105.jpg
  • The winter mud house of the late Haji Abdul Rashid Khan, who died here in December 2009. He had led his people for 30 years at the time of his death. He was the last khan, not just among the Afghan Kyrgyz, but among any group of Kyrgyz, or Turkic-speakers, anywhere. His son recently took over the title of Khan. But being young and inexperienced, he has so far failed to rally his community...Kyzyl Qorum, campment of the former deceased Khan, Abdul Rashid Khan..Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_102_2_IMG_0710.jpg
  • Led by Kyrgyz men, a caravan of Bactrian camels carrying goods for the next camp..From Ech Keli to Kyzyl Qorum..Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_063_2_IMG_0322.jpg
  • The view around Kabul, capital of Afghanistan...Flight with Kodiak plane from Kabul to Kret village (Wakhan Corridor), over the Panshir valley.
    98_Afghanistan_Wakhan_003_IMG_2903.jpg
  • Butter is highly prized and kept inside the stomach of a sheep. Daily life at the Khan (chief) summer camp of Kara Jylga.<br />
<br />
Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    MM8120_120625_02202.jpg
  • Our team, throwing equipment over a river..Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0765_MM8120_120...jpg
  • 97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0744_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Aziz's daughter gets angry at her brother for not wanting to help her bring the water back to camp. Khan's summer camp of Kara Jylga...Daily life at the Khan (chief) summer camp of Kara Jylga...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0632_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Nomads by necessity, the Kyrgyz move seasonally across Afghanistan's Pamir, a high altitude plateau stuck between China, Tajikistan and Pakistan, where the world's highest mountain ranges converge..Today, the Khan's family is leaving for their summer camp. Everything they own needs to be tied to the back of yaks, including a dozen teapots, a cast-iron stove, a car battery, two solar panels, a yurt, and 43 blankets...Moving with the Khan (chief) family from the Qyzyl Qorum camp to the summer camp of Kara Jylga, on the south side of the wide Little Pamir plateau...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0586_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Father and son bringing their herd home..At the Kyrgyz settlement of Bozoi Gumbaz, before Chaqmaqtin lake, Amon Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0546_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Names of Russian soldiers inscribed on a rock, near the old Russian base from 1980...Around the shrines of Bozoi Gumbaz. at the entrance to the Little Pamir Plateau, beside the Waghjir river, one of the claimed source of the Oxus river...Trekking up and along the Wakhan river, the only way to reach the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0536_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Girls comparing their jewelry in a yurt. At the camp of Tash Seri (Mustafa Qol's camp)...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0400_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Tella Bu (deceased Khan's youngest daughter) has epileptic seizures since 1 year. Kyrgyz think these are the work of Djinns, the local supernatural creatures..At the Qyzyl Qorum camp. It is the camp of the now deceased Khan (Abdul Rashid Khan, died in December 2009), and headed by the self proclaimed young Haji Roshan Khan (his son). Opium addicted Haji Roshan was never officially stated Khan and is therefore not accepted as leader by the entire Kyrgyz community. Near the Afghan-China border...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0427_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The best man takes a picture of the bride. After a two-day horse journey, Ikhbal will soon arrive at her husband's camp, near the China border, escorted by the groom's best man. The majority of women have never been more than a few miles from where they were born. This is Ikhbal's biggest journey..With Ikhbal, the recently married woman  moving for the first time to her husband's camp..
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0365_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A young Kyrgyz boy named Kher-u Din is getting a haircut. His mother is washing his hair. His head will then be shaved to "cure" a persistent headache...The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0302_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Caravan of Shoh Wali, a Wakhi business man from Khadud, Wakhan. Going up to the Kyrgyz to sell his goods (cloth, candies, cigarettes, batteries etc). .Between Zan Kuk and Langar shepherd places...Trekking up the Wakhan frozen river, the only way up to reach the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0257_MM8120_120...jpg
  • An Muslim Ismaili shrine full of colorful flags, near Baba Tangi village. Driving up from Ishkashim town to Sarhad village, the end of the road in the Wakhan corridor, Afghanistan.
    96_Afghanistan_Wakhan_0060_MM8120_12...jpg
  • The famed singer Mir Maftoon (translates from Farsi to "King of Charms") who has played worldwide, performs at a local wedding. People dance. In the border town of Ishkashim, on the Tajikistan - Afghanistan border. Hindukush mountains.
    97_Afghanistan_Wakhan_036_0045_MM812...jpg
  • A yak caravan entering the Pamir plateau. Near Bozoi Gumbaz..Trekking to the Little Pamir with yak caravan over the frozen Wakhan river.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_028.jpg
  • Matthieu Paley's pictures, gifted over the years, framed inside the Khan's house..Kyzyl Qorum, campment of the former deceased Khan, Abdul Rashid Khan...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_151_IMG_1775.jpg
  • Haircuts of a Kyrgyz woman...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_143_IMG_1611.jpg
  • Ikhbal (hiding under the white veil) and sister Irasia arriving at Tash Seri camp (Mustafa Qol's camp) and being welcomed with "Borsot" (fried dough), yoghurt and tea by the local women of Tash Seri.<br />
With Ikhbal, the recently married woman  moving for the first time to her husband's camp. She just exchanged the red veil of the unmarried girl for the white veil signifying that she is now a married woman.<br />
<br />
Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    MM8120_120131_06180.jpg
  • Daily life at the Khan (chief) summer camp of Kara Jylga. Yak milk. <br />
<br />
Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    MM8120_120625_02195.jpg
  • Six-year old Susaï is fetching water near camp in a spring claimed as one of the sources of the Oxus, also known as Amu Darya, Central Asia's largest river.  Its waters define most of Afghanistan's borders with other nations to the north..
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0717_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A Kyrgyz woman brings a calf back, while the mother yak follows..Summer camp of Muqur, Er Ali Boi's place...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0693_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Tella Bu, youngest daughter of the late Khan, and her sisters are fetching water at the Aksu river, nearby their autumn camp. Daily life at the Khan (chief) autumn camp (called Teramo Jai - place of Autumn), beside the Aksu river...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0645_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The son of Abdul Walli is fixing the center piece on the yurt, during the yearly migration to teh summer camp..Daily life at the Khan (chief) summer camp of Kara Jylga...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0620_MM8120_120...jpg
  • With horse and yak caravan, fighting the wind. Between Ech Keli and Burgut Yor camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0468_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A lone Bactrian camel in a snow storm and extreme winds. ..Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0461_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Haji Roshan Khan smoking opium in his mud house, under of his daughter. A poster of Afghanistan's President Karzai hangs on the wall...At the Qyzyl Qorum camp. It is the camp of the now deceased Khan (Abdul Rashid Khan, died in December 2009), and headed by the self proclaimed young Haji Roshan Khan (his son). Opium addicted Haji Roshan was never officially stated Khan and is therefore not accepted as leader by the entire Kyrgyz community. Near the Afghan-China border...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0424_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Ikhbal, wife of deceased Abdul Rashid Khan, smoking a cigarette..Inside Mustafa Qol's house..At the camp of Tash Seri (Mustafa Qol's camp)...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0409_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Hiding under her brand new white veil, the newly wed Ikhbal (left) arrives with her bride's maid (irasia) near her husband's camp in Tash Sere. The women bow to express humility as they are being greeted by the other women of the camp..With Ikhbal, the recently married woman  moving for the first time to her husband's camp..She just exchanged the red veil of the unmarried girl for the white veil signifying that she is now a married woman...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0390_MM8120_120...jpg
  • With Ikhbal, 15, a recently married Kyrgyz woman  moving for the first time to her husband's camp..Arriving in Andemin. Going on horse back from Ech Keli to Andemin camp. .She just exchanged the red veil of the unmarried girl for the white veil signifying that she is now a married woman...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0367_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Khaltcha and Abdul Muttalib smoke opium several times a day - like approximately 20% of the Kyrgyz. ?We started smoking when we lost our first child? says Abdul, ?Every year, one of our children would die? - often from diseases easily treatable elsewhere. Only one, a son, survived to age five. Then he, too, passed away. ?We lost 11 children, we are unlucky?. In the Pamir, it is not unusual for parents to lose six or seven children. Most Kyrgyz are extremely unsentimental about death and dying and accept it as an unavoidable part of life. In 2007, Alex Duncan, a British doctor, collected data in the Afghan Pamir and established that child-under-five mortality there was 520 deaths per 1,000 live births (52% mortality), the world's highest rate. Main reasons to this are the intense isolation, the high altitude environment and no access to doctors or health clinics...
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0317_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A young Kyrgyz girl leading a yak and its calf back to camp..In and around Ech Keli, Er Ali Boi's camp, one of the richest Kyrgyz in the Little Pamir...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_174_2_IMG_2014.jpg
  • An old Kyrgyz man prays in his home. Kyrgyz are Sunni muslim but, because of the remoteness of their homeland, do not have access to Mosque...In and around the campment of Kyzyl Qorum, campment of the former deceased Khan, Abdul Rashid Khan..Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_081_2_IMG_0603.jpg
  • Overview of Er Ali Boi's summer camp. The borders of Tajikistan and China are at the far end of the plateau. The borders are sealed and guarded..Summer camp of Muqur, Er Ali Boi's place...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0730_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Abdul Rahman praying in his yurt. There are no Mosques in the Pamir. Afghan Kyrgyz are Sunni Muslims...Summer camp of Muqur, Er Ali Boi's place...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0726_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Bibi Zohra is 15 years old. On her wedding night, she is kept hidden away from the gaze of the people coming into the celebration yurt. Marrying a man twice her age, she is soon expected to become pregnant. She faces a risky future. The mortality rate among Kyrgyz women during childbirth is unmercifully high, estimated at 30% - almost 500 times greater than in the developed world...Wedding celebration at Kitshiq Aq Jyrga...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0758_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Kyrgyz men fight in a game of Buzkashi, a competition akin to polo?except a headless goat carcass takes the place of the ball. .Buzkachi is almost exclusively played during weddings..Probably one of the great pleasures in the life of a Kyrgyz man, Buzkashi is Afghanistan's national sport. The Kyrgyz call it ulak tartysh, or ?goat grabbing.?.At the wedding celebration
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0746_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A hired Wakhi man, coming from the lower valleys, does the arduous job of sheering the sheep owned by Er Ali Boi, a wealthy Kyrgyz man. He is paid 1 sheep/month..Summer camp of Muqur, Er Ali Boi's place...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0705_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A young boy plays while the family cloth are drying, laid out on the summer grass...The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0558_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Two young Afghan Kyrgyz play in the grass in spring...The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0557_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Setting up the yurt of the Khan, the tribal leader, during yearly summer migration. Afghan Kyrgyz are semi-nomadic people...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0606_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The Khan's wife and daughter waiting while the yurt is being built..Moving with the Khan (chief) family from the Qyzyl Qorum camp to the summer camp of Kara Jylga, on the south side of the wide Little Pamir plateau...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0604_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Writer Mike Finkel jumps over a river. The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0568_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The interior of a yurt with a man drinking tea..Blankets filled with yak and sheep wool pile up against the inside wall of the yurt to insulate it from the constant winds. The floor carpet - bartered against 2 sheep - was acquired by Toorsoon in the lower valleys of Pakistan, a 10 days round trip leading over a 5000m pass. The wooden poles - over hundred years old - are handed over, generation after generation...
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0542_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The mighty Pamir mountains, the frozen Chaqmaqtin Lake and a herd of yaks...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0469_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Our expedition team starting the way back down in a snow storm and extreme winds. Malang and Mir Ali with our donkey between Qyzyl Qorum and Ech Keli (Er Ali Boi's camp)...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0459_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Arab found a dead migratory bird in the fodder. Arab and Afzal, two young sons of the deceased Khan, are leaving the Qyzyl Qorum camp with Bactrian camels to load up on "Wuch", the winter fodder for the animals. They fetch it at the autumn camp, an hour walk away...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0436_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Playing with a Bactrain camel. Arab and Afzal, two young sons of the deceased Khan, are leaving the Qyzyl Qorum camp with Bactrian camels to load up on "Wuch", the winter fodder for the animals. They fetch it at the autumn camp, an hour walk away...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0434_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Crossing a pass during the 5 day winter journey out of the Pamir plateau, down to the lower valley..Up and over the Shower pass..Between Zang Kuk and  Zard-e Bar shepherd house..Going back down to Sarhad village with a yak caravan led by 2 Wakhi traders: Shur Ali and Roz Ali...Trekking down the Wakhan frozen river, the only way down to leave the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0500_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Taking a rare break in their day, women gossip at the Khan's camp. The origin of the word Kyrgyz is believed by scholars and Kyrgyz alike to derive from two words - kyrk (forty) kyz (maidens) - a reference to the mythical progenitors of the Kyrgyz people..At the Qyzyl Qorum camp. It is the camp of the now deceased Khan (Abdul Rashid Khan, died in December 2009), and headed by the self proclaimed young Haji Roshan Khan (his son). Opium addicted Haji Roshan was never officially stated Khan and is therefore not accepted as leader by the entire Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0431_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Having tea and sitting around the winter home of Sher Ali. At the Andemin camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0384_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Still crying, Ikhbal is dressed with a white Burqa to leave her childhood house forever and move to her husband's camp for the first time, a 2 days horse journey, her longest trip ever..The Kyrgyz settlement of Ech Keli, above Chaqmaqtin lake, Er Ali Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0363_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Still crying, Ikhbal, 15,  is getting ready to leave her childhood house forever and move to her husband's camp for the first time, a 2 days horse journey, her longest trip ever..The Kyrgyz settlement of Ech Keli, above Chaqmaqtin lake, Er Ali Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0362_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Kher-u Din sliding on the frozen ice sheet of one of the claimed source of the Oxus. The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0286_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Wakhi men having diner of salty tea and bread, in a winter shepherd house. Chirog don.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0266_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A Snow leopard track..Snow leopards are rare in the Pamir Plateau, but more present in the lower valleys...Trekking up the Wakhan frozen river, the only way up to reach the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0252_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The small Kyrgyz caravan of Abdul Hameed and Ismail making its way down from the Pamir plateau to the lower valleys, to barter their animals for flour etc. They are loading their animals to continue their 6 days journey...At the Wakhi shepherd hut of Sap. .Trekking up the Wakhan frozen river, the only way up to reach the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0248_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A Wakhi family. They apply Henna on their feet and fingers to protect from the cold. Driving up from Ishkashim town to Sarhad village, the end of the road in the Wakhan corridor.
    97_Afghanistan_Wakhan_036_0048_MM812...jpg
  • The red veil of an unmarried Kyrgyz girl..Campment of Tash Seri...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_148.jpg
  • A winter Wakhi shepherd, Yak milking. In Zardibar. .Trekking back down from the Little Pamir, with yak caravan, over the frozen Wakhan river.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_233_IMG_3247.jpg
  • Ibex horns, gifts of hunters to bring good luck, adorn the mazar of Khoja Big Ali in Langar..Offerings of fabrics adorn a mazar in the Wakhan near Langar. Wakhis attach a lot of importance to such shrines - the burial place of a saint - mixing pre-islamic rites to their Ismaili belief..Trekking back down from the Little Pamir, with yak caravan, over the frozen Wakhan river.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_219_IMG_2891.jpg
  • Shepherd follows the yak herd returning to camp..Ech Keli, Er Ali Boi's camp, one of the richest Kyrgyz in the Little Pamir...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_173_2_IMG_1998.jpg
  • A caravan in a snow storm..From Kyzyl Qorum to Ech Keli...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_168_IMG_1900.jpg
  • Ustad Ghulam, a Kyrgyz head of camp, on his way between 2 camps after a snow storm..From Kyzyl Qorum to Ech Keli...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_166_IMG_1877.jpg
  • Haircuts on young Kyrgyz girls. Sary Tash campement....Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_144_IMG_1617.jpg
  • Ooroon Boi goes looking for Marco Polo sheep, an endangered species...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_106_IMG_0919.jpg
  • Mustafa Qul and Er Ali Boi, two respected Kyrgyz leader, riding their horses across the Pamir plateau..From Ech Keli to Kyzyl Qorum..Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_065_2_IMG_0371.jpg
  • Night exposure, Langar. With Djamshed Pamiri. .Sarhad village, the end of the road in the Wakhan Corridor.
    98_Afghanistan_Wakhan_025_IMG_3489.jpg
  • Night shot, Langar. With Djamshed Pamiri and a yak caravan at rest...In and around Sarhad village, the end of the road in the Wakhan Corridor.
    98_Afghanistan_Wakhan_021_IMG_3472.jpg
  • Karl Marx Peak rises to 6,723 m (22,057 ft) in the Shakhdara Range in Pamir Mountains, in the south-west of Tajikistan's Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province (eastern part of Ishkashim district), just north of the Panj River and the Afghanistan border...Flight with Kodiak plane from Kabul to Kret village (Wakhan Corridor), over the Panshir valley.
    98_Afghanistan_Wakhan_007_IMG_3056.jpg
  • The view over Kabul, capital of Afghanistan...Flight with Kodiak plane from Kabul to Kret village (Wakhan Corridor), over the Panshir valley.
    98_Afghanistan_Wakhan_001_IMG_2864.jpg
  • Yurt at night..Summer camp of Muqur, Er Ali Boi's place...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0724_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A yak, weighing about 700 Kg is caught before being sheared.  It is impossible to overestimate the importance of livestock to the Kyrgyz. Not only do they provide for most of the Kyrgyz's subsistence needs and serve as the medium of trade that allows the Kyrgyz to procure all the other goods they require, but livestock are also one of the main determinants of social status. In the Afghan Pamir, livestock equals wealth and is more valuable than money..Summer camp of Muqur, Er Ali Boi's place...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0697_MM8120_120...jpg
  • The sheep and goat herd lit by flashlight. Evening at Nemat Ulla and Woolook Bu's yurt..Daily life at the Khan (chief) summer camp of Kara Jylga...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0631_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Aziz's horse sleep...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains (average 4200 meters) , where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0624_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A young boy with a dog..At Burgut Yor (Eagle's Nest) camp (Apendi Boi's camp)...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0477_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Two Wakhi caravan leaders Shur Ali and Roz Ali, guiding animals..With horse and yak caravan, on the way back. Between Ech Keli and Burgut Yor camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0471_MM8120_120...jpg
  • On the Pamir plateau, at 4200m, a horseman is swept off his feet by the constant wind called "Bad-e Wakhan", which blows East most of the year, on the Afghan Pamir plateau..In camp of Ech Keli (er Ali Boi's camp)...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0467_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Above place named Langar..Going back down to Sarhad village with a yak caravan led by 2 Wakhi traders: Shur Ali and Roz Ali...Trekking down the Wakhan frozen river, the only way down to leave the high altitude Little Pamir plateau, home of the Afghan Kyrgyz community.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0493_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Arab and Afzal, two young sons of the deceased Khan, are leaving the Qyzyl Qorum camp with Bactrian camels to load up on "Wuch", the winter fodder for the animals. They fetch it at the autumn camp, an hour walk away...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0433_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A boiled goat is being prepared for the guests, during a wedding ceremony..The Kyrgyz settlement of Ech Keli, above Chaqmaqtin lake, Er Ali Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0338_MM8120_120...jpg
  • Passing a Kyrgyz cemetery on horseback..Going on horse back with yak caravan from Tchelap camp to Ech Keli camp (camp of Er Ali Boi)...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0327_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A young Kyrgyz boy named Ker-u Din is playing while his mum sewing..The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0312_MM8120_120...jpg
  • House of Abdul Muttalib (worked with Rahman Qul as shepherd), opium addict. Him and his wife have lost 11 kids, who all died before they age of 5. Infant mortality rate is one of the highest one in the world..The Kyrgyz settlement of Tchelab, near Chaqmaqtin lake, Haji Bootoo Boi's camp...Trekking through the high altitude plateau of the Little Pamir mountains, where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    97_Afghanistan_Pamir_0291_MM8120_120...jpg
  • A Kyrgyz caravan on its way to the lower valley, between the camps of Ech Keli and Burgut Yor...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_196_IMG_2354.jpg
  • Portrait of Er Ali Boi..In and around Ech Keli, Er Ali Boi's camp, one of the richest Kyrgyz in the Little Pamir...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_193_IMG_2306.jpg
  • Ustad Ghulam, a Kyrgyz head of camp, on his way between 2 camps after a snow storm..From Kyzyl Qorum to Ech Keli...Trekking with yak caravan through the Little Pamir where the Afghan Kyrgyz community live all year, on the borders of China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.
    98_Afghanistan_Pamir_165_IMG_1864.jpg
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