Ride through Central Afghanistan. Sep 2025.
Posted: Wed Nov 26, 2025 5:57 pm
Ride through Central Afghanistan. Sep 2025.
Finally dream came true. After months of prep, obstacles like political situation, conflicts at border etc, and finally my wrist fracture and surgery 3 months before the planned trip date We finally rode across Central Afghanistan from Kabul to Herat via Bamiyan, Band-E-Amir, Minerat-E-Jam, Herat. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Tariq, Hijrat, Bilal, Saboor and team from ATE (Afghanistan Travel Experience) for helping us out with LOI, Permits and most important the rental motorcycles. I will never forget the long WhatsApp chats and discussions with Tariq on which bike would be suitable for the ride and also what extra fitments would be needed like saddle stay, charger, spares, tools etc.
See links below:
https://www.facebook.com/AfghanistanTravelExperience
https://www.facebook.com/ATE.RIDES
https://www.facebook.com/tariq.sarfaraz
https://www.facebook.com/hijratullah.sahak.510142
Also a very big thanks to Haren Khatau for a very detailed writeup on the Central route which made our initial planning very easy. See links below for details.
https://www.facebook.com/harenkhatau
https://www.facebook.com/groups/783223123431653
http://www.facebook.com/share/p/2E2R2eD ... tid=wwXIfr
We reach Kabul on 27 Sep (Accomodation: Afghania Guest House), meet up with ATE gang and over next 2 days we prep for the ride, SIM Card, money exchange, petrol cans, checking the bikes etc. The challenge was not over yet for me. I was down with severe viral fever from Mumbai airport itself and it took me 6 whole days to recover to really enjoy the ride.
Short trailer - https://www.facebook.com/share/v/15QGrRE5tjR/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AaHYKsc81/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1CqvHNvYsh/
Bamiyan.
Still slowly recovering from my viral fever, we finally decided to start the ride and push to Bamiyan. The cleaner air there might aid my recovery. We reached late evening to Roof of Bamiyan hotel a bit away from the main town. And what a coincidence, we met Gaurav (wanderda) who was also on his ride to Afghanistan starting all the way from Almaty – Kazakhstan. We spent 3 days together relaxing, chatting about our travel stories, sightseeing to Shehar-E-Ghoghola (City of Screams) and general shopping around the bazaar with some sumptuous meals. Thanks brother, it was your positive attitude and let’s take one day at a time attitude, gave me that extra push to continue with Central Route even though my health was not 100%.
Finally one of the highlights of this trip, early morning we went to see the remains of the Buddha’s of Bamiyan which were destroyed in 2001. What a sight it was to see it live with the massive carving in the mountain face with intricate network of caves and the scenic valley and green fields. Next to come Band-E-Amir lake.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HBQFQ9QzA/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17r4WQFrD5/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1FyGwfiYca/
Band-E-Amir.
Nothing much to say about the amazingly turquoise blue lakes, Band-E-Amir, in the heart of Afghanistan. Just enjoy the amazing colors and calm of the lakes. A short ride from Bamiyan, this place is not to be missed. We walked around the lake and also did a boat ride.
Last comfortable stop before we start the actual central route which will be full offroad for 600 km till Herat, near Iran border.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19S1QDNbCx/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17NJwmzojG/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1AHsp3PEwc/
Band-E-Amir to Kirman.
Finaly we leave the comfort of Tar roads and into the unknown Central route which will be almost 700km of offroad till we reach Herat, a nice city near Iran border.
The road now turns dusty and rough with steep climbs and descent, less traffic. The views were amazing, small villages surrounded by green farms. The road now gets monotonous and you gotta stay sharp due to the sudden obstacles or ditch on the road without any road signs. If planning to ride Central route, you should plan max 100 – 150 km per day post reaching Yakawlang due to the bad road conditions.
Finally we were very tired and decided to stop for the night at a chaykhana (these are basic night accommodations in Afghanistan where you sleep in common area and they provide food too), in a small road side village Kirman. It is a good way to interact with the locals and get to know their way of life. The security guard cleaning his AK-47 with the barrel pointing at Ameya was the highlight
The night got very cold with snowfall too.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1LBqVR23pS/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1JioqfTHet/
Kirman to Chagcharan.
Finaly we leave the comfort of Tar roads and into the unknown Central route which will be almost 700km of offroad till we reach Herat, a nice city near Iran border.
The ride till Kirman previous day was tiring and long, but today we had something else in store. After a very cold night, the morning was even more chilled with super clear skies from the snowfall last night. The views were amazing with nice small villages and old forts by the road side. Just after 30 km from Lal village Ameya’s bike chain came off while on a steep incline. Then it was hectic 4 hours of I going back to Lal to get a mechanic, and once he saw the chain he claimed it was unusable due to it bending. So another 2 hours wasted where he went back to Lal to get new chain (advantage of taking a local Afghan bike for rental). Once this was sorted it was 100 km and almost 5 hours more to Chagcharan. We were tired but needed to push of due to lack of any decent accommodation.
Finally we reached and checked into a Govt hotel with a nice room. Tired but satisfied to have made it this far
Mechanic Celebration - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1G1xovVcHx/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Fcy5QgWYw/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1MkiQPqTcy/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17cphLexeD/
Chagcharan – Minerat-E-Jam.
Finally the Minerat-E-Jam day arrives. Minerat-E-Jam is a solitary tower (Minar) in the remote mountains of Central Afghanistan. There is no easy way to reach it either from Kabul or Herat. The long distance and very rough narrow road make it very difficult, to that extent very few locals have visited it. This was my dream ever since I read the Lonely Planet guide book on Afghanistan.
We had a late start post getting the permit done. No real challenge on the initial route except that it was dusty. The scenery gets wilder and traffic gets thin as we proceed. Endless green pastures with sheep grazing and small villages and rolling hills remind us of the wild remote routes in Ladakh which we did in 2007. Finally we reach the Minerat in pitch dark and struggle to find any food and accommodation. We finally got to stay with the Taliban police check-post by climbing a 15 feet almost vertical rock to reach there.
Next morning, the Minerat came into full view. We cross the Harirud river and get a closeup view of the Minerat and rest by the beautiful garden chatting with the caretakers there. Finally I am at peace and the journey continues towards Herat.
Minerat-E-Jam Reel - Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17ey2b963n/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17txaDNaip/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1JvcsqnQG4/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16q4TQ4zfb/
Minerat-E-Jam to Herat.
The 2 days from Minerat-E-Jam to Harat with night halt at Chesht-E-Sharif, were very tough with landslides (had to pull of few stunts on the bike to clear them quickly), under construction roads, very bumpy and dusty road conditions with strong headwinds and opposing sunlight from late afternoon hours. We just wanted our ride to end now. The only saving grace was a nice and comfy but basic accommodation at Chesht-E-Sharif and a sumptuous lunch of fried eggs and French fries, very unlikely to be found in this part of the world.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1A8h75Fvq2/
Afghan style river crossing - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DcS4qufQc/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1GikqdLYox/
Herat sightseeing.
I always had very positive vibes about Herat and it did not disappoint. Super luxurious Amiri Hotel with very good service, going out of the way to make our stay comfortable after 10 days on the tough central route.
Visited a nice coffee shop “Afghan Coffee”, super vibes and friendly owner, Grand Mosque and Citadel.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16pSNKneFF/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1Gqf7q3jrD/
Herat Kabul bus.
Our bikes were for off roading but not comfortable for highway riding with top speed of 80 kmh with full on vibrations, riding the 1000km of Herat Kabul highway would have been very uncomfortable. So the backup plan comes into action.
The 18 hour 1000 KM bus journey from Herat to Kabul was overall comfortable but chaotic as usual with lot of headache to get the bikes in the bus, and the bus sun-roof was kept open at night since AC was not working which made it a very cold and uncomfortable night. An experience of the quick night stops and eateries on the Kandahar highway will not be forgotten ever
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17hPFZMLa4/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1GDedVFfH2/
Panjshir Valley.
We few more days in hand before our flight to Kabul so we decided to go to Panjshir Valley. I was always amused by Ahmad Shah Masood, the commander of the valley, who successfully defended by guerrilla warfare, the region against the Soviet invasion and then Taliban until he was killed by a camera bomb in 2001.
Getting the permit in Kabul was a struggle but we managed it. We started early morning from Kabul with our guide and friend Hijrat from ATE. Due to it being a sensitive region, there were lot of check points enroute. The valley was beautiful with lot of old Government villa’s, small villages with green farms and the Panjshir river always giving company. The highlight was an amazing breakfast by a river side restaurant with nice seating arrangement. The old Russian tanks by the roadside and Top Dara Stupa in Parwan province and lastly having local Afghan ice-cream made it a long but a satisfying day.
Russian Tanks - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DJSXeWLes/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AshFbvM2X/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1ARk5wCMGL/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16MRXJf9wS/
Kabul Rest and Flight.
Last 2 days in Kabul were spent taking nice walks in morning and at night in the city lanes, trying out various foods, and some local shopping before we finally board our flights back home.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17duZXnBZL/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1C8M3CaZ18/
Finally dream came true. After months of prep, obstacles like political situation, conflicts at border etc, and finally my wrist fracture and surgery 3 months before the planned trip date We finally rode across Central Afghanistan from Kabul to Herat via Bamiyan, Band-E-Amir, Minerat-E-Jam, Herat. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Tariq, Hijrat, Bilal, Saboor and team from ATE (Afghanistan Travel Experience) for helping us out with LOI, Permits and most important the rental motorcycles. I will never forget the long WhatsApp chats and discussions with Tariq on which bike would be suitable for the ride and also what extra fitments would be needed like saddle stay, charger, spares, tools etc.
See links below:
https://www.facebook.com/AfghanistanTravelExperience
https://www.facebook.com/ATE.RIDES
https://www.facebook.com/tariq.sarfaraz
https://www.facebook.com/hijratullah.sahak.510142
Also a very big thanks to Haren Khatau for a very detailed writeup on the Central route which made our initial planning very easy. See links below for details.
https://www.facebook.com/harenkhatau
https://www.facebook.com/groups/783223123431653
http://www.facebook.com/share/p/2E2R2eD ... tid=wwXIfr
We reach Kabul on 27 Sep (Accomodation: Afghania Guest House), meet up with ATE gang and over next 2 days we prep for the ride, SIM Card, money exchange, petrol cans, checking the bikes etc. The challenge was not over yet for me. I was down with severe viral fever from Mumbai airport itself and it took me 6 whole days to recover to really enjoy the ride.
Short trailer - https://www.facebook.com/share/v/15QGrRE5tjR/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AaHYKsc81/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1CqvHNvYsh/
Bamiyan.
Still slowly recovering from my viral fever, we finally decided to start the ride and push to Bamiyan. The cleaner air there might aid my recovery. We reached late evening to Roof of Bamiyan hotel a bit away from the main town. And what a coincidence, we met Gaurav (wanderda) who was also on his ride to Afghanistan starting all the way from Almaty – Kazakhstan. We spent 3 days together relaxing, chatting about our travel stories, sightseeing to Shehar-E-Ghoghola (City of Screams) and general shopping around the bazaar with some sumptuous meals. Thanks brother, it was your positive attitude and let’s take one day at a time attitude, gave me that extra push to continue with Central Route even though my health was not 100%.
Finally one of the highlights of this trip, early morning we went to see the remains of the Buddha’s of Bamiyan which were destroyed in 2001. What a sight it was to see it live with the massive carving in the mountain face with intricate network of caves and the scenic valley and green fields. Next to come Band-E-Amir lake.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HBQFQ9QzA/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17r4WQFrD5/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1FyGwfiYca/
Band-E-Amir.
Nothing much to say about the amazingly turquoise blue lakes, Band-E-Amir, in the heart of Afghanistan. Just enjoy the amazing colors and calm of the lakes. A short ride from Bamiyan, this place is not to be missed. We walked around the lake and also did a boat ride.
Last comfortable stop before we start the actual central route which will be full offroad for 600 km till Herat, near Iran border.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19S1QDNbCx/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17NJwmzojG/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1AHsp3PEwc/
Band-E-Amir to Kirman.
Finaly we leave the comfort of Tar roads and into the unknown Central route which will be almost 700km of offroad till we reach Herat, a nice city near Iran border.
The road now turns dusty and rough with steep climbs and descent, less traffic. The views were amazing, small villages surrounded by green farms. The road now gets monotonous and you gotta stay sharp due to the sudden obstacles or ditch on the road without any road signs. If planning to ride Central route, you should plan max 100 – 150 km per day post reaching Yakawlang due to the bad road conditions.
Finally we were very tired and decided to stop for the night at a chaykhana (these are basic night accommodations in Afghanistan where you sleep in common area and they provide food too), in a small road side village Kirman. It is a good way to interact with the locals and get to know their way of life. The security guard cleaning his AK-47 with the barrel pointing at Ameya was the highlight
The night got very cold with snowfall too.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1LBqVR23pS/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1JioqfTHet/
Kirman to Chagcharan.
Finaly we leave the comfort of Tar roads and into the unknown Central route which will be almost 700km of offroad till we reach Herat, a nice city near Iran border.
The ride till Kirman previous day was tiring and long, but today we had something else in store. After a very cold night, the morning was even more chilled with super clear skies from the snowfall last night. The views were amazing with nice small villages and old forts by the road side. Just after 30 km from Lal village Ameya’s bike chain came off while on a steep incline. Then it was hectic 4 hours of I going back to Lal to get a mechanic, and once he saw the chain he claimed it was unusable due to it bending. So another 2 hours wasted where he went back to Lal to get new chain (advantage of taking a local Afghan bike for rental). Once this was sorted it was 100 km and almost 5 hours more to Chagcharan. We were tired but needed to push of due to lack of any decent accommodation.
Finally we reached and checked into a Govt hotel with a nice room. Tired but satisfied to have made it this far
Mechanic Celebration -
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1G1xovVcHx/ Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Fcy5QgWYw/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1MkiQPqTcy/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17cphLexeD/
Chagcharan – Minerat-E-Jam.
Finally the Minerat-E-Jam day arrives. Minerat-E-Jam is a solitary tower (Minar) in the remote mountains of Central Afghanistan. There is no easy way to reach it either from Kabul or Herat. The long distance and very rough narrow road make it very difficult, to that extent very few locals have visited it. This was my dream ever since I read the Lonely Planet guide book on Afghanistan.
We had a late start post getting the permit done. No real challenge on the initial route except that it was dusty. The scenery gets wilder and traffic gets thin as we proceed. Endless green pastures with sheep grazing and small villages and rolling hills remind us of the wild remote routes in Ladakh which we did in 2007. Finally we reach the Minerat in pitch dark and struggle to find any food and accommodation. We finally got to stay with the Taliban police check-post by climbing a 15 feet almost vertical rock to reach there.
Next morning, the Minerat came into full view. We cross the Harirud river and get a closeup view of the Minerat and rest by the beautiful garden chatting with the caretakers there. Finally I am at peace and the journey continues towards Herat.
Minerat-E-Jam Reel - Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17ey2b963n/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17txaDNaip/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1JvcsqnQG4/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16q4TQ4zfb/
Minerat-E-Jam to Herat.
The 2 days from Minerat-E-Jam to Harat with night halt at Chesht-E-Sharif, were very tough with landslides (had to pull of few stunts on the bike to clear them quickly), under construction roads, very bumpy and dusty road conditions with strong headwinds and opposing sunlight from late afternoon hours. We just wanted our ride to end now
. The only saving grace was a nice and comfy but basic accommodation at Chesht-E-Sharif and a sumptuous lunch of fried eggs and French fries, very unlikely to be found in this part of the world. Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1A8h75Fvq2/
Afghan style river crossing
- https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DcS4qufQc/Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1GikqdLYox/
Herat sightseeing.
I always had very positive vibes about Herat and it did not disappoint. Super luxurious Amiri Hotel with very good service, going out of the way to make our stay comfortable after 10 days on the tough central route.
Visited a nice coffee shop “Afghan Coffee”, super vibes and friendly owner, Grand Mosque and Citadel.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16pSNKneFF/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1Gqf7q3jrD/
Herat Kabul bus.
Our bikes were for off roading but not comfortable for highway riding with top speed of 80 kmh with full on vibrations, riding the 1000km of Herat Kabul highway would have been very uncomfortable. So the backup plan comes into action.
The 18 hour 1000 KM bus journey from Herat to Kabul was overall comfortable but chaotic as usual with lot of headache to get the bikes in the bus, and the bus sun-roof was kept open at night since AC was not working which made it a very cold and uncomfortable night. An experience of the quick night stops and eateries on the Kandahar highway will not be forgotten ever
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17hPFZMLa4/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1GDedVFfH2/
Panjshir Valley.
We few more days in hand before our flight to Kabul so we decided to go to Panjshir Valley. I was always amused by Ahmad Shah Masood, the commander of the valley, who successfully defended by guerrilla warfare, the region against the Soviet invasion and then Taliban until he was killed by a camera bomb in 2001.
Getting the permit in Kabul was a struggle but we managed it. We started early morning from Kabul with our guide and friend Hijrat from ATE. Due to it being a sensitive region, there were lot of check points enroute. The valley was beautiful with lot of old Government villa’s, small villages with green farms and the Panjshir river always giving company. The highlight was an amazing breakfast by a river side restaurant with nice seating arrangement. The old Russian tanks by the roadside and Top Dara Stupa in Parwan province and lastly having local Afghan ice-cream made it a long but a satisfying day.
Russian Tanks - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DJSXeWLes/
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AshFbvM2X/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1ARk5wCMGL/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16MRXJf9wS/
Kabul Rest and Flight.
Last 2 days in Kabul were spent taking nice walks in morning and at night in the city lanes, trying out various foods, and some local shopping before we finally board our flights back home.
Photos - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17duZXnBZL/
Reel - https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1C8M3CaZ18/