We have arranged a two-day program for those who are interested in exploring this ancient city and the world famous Shipton Arch.

Dates: July 02 - 03, 2011

Cost: $255
Cost includes transportation, meals, hotel (2 nights), local guide, and entrance fees.

Itinerary
July 01: Arrive Kashgar
July 02: Shipton’s Arch
July 03: Old town / Eidgah Mosque / Sunday Bazaar & Animal Market

July 02
After breakfast in our hotel’s outdoor café we will make the couple hour drive to the base of Shipton’s Arch. This gigantic arch is known to the local people as Tushuk Tash (“Hole Rock”) and is possibly the largest natural arch in the world. To reach the arch our jeeps ramble up dry stream beds to the base of Kara Tagh, a small rocky range near Kashgar. We then venture on foot through slot canyons before getting our first view of the Arch. We make one final climb up to a small col where you can view the entire arch up close. From here you can see through the arch into another valley and off in the distance you can see the great snow peaks of the Pamirs, including Mt. Gonggar, which is near Mustagata.

Eric Shipton, a British diplomat who was also an inveterate explorer and mountaineer, became British consul in Kashgar in 1940. He roamed the narrow maze-like slot canyons of the Kara Tagh on three separate occasions before finally finding a route to the massive arch. Hence the name, Shipton's Arch.

July 03
This morning we’ll meander through the labyrinth of Kashgar’s old town and step back into time. We’ll explore narrow alleyways lined with ancient mud packed houses, woodworking shops, noodle shops, pottery shops, bakeries, and much more. We’ll see traditional craftsman making copper pots by hand and visit the markets where people come from miles around. This exotic outdoor emporium teems with vibrancy beyond comparison.

We explore the Id Kah Mosque, Kashgar’s main religious center and architectural monument. Built in 1422, the Id Kah Mosque is in the center of town and surrounded by lively open-air markets. We stop for lunch at a local Uygur restaurant that has some of the best lamb pull-noodles, shish kabob and yogurt in Kashgar.

After lunch we drive to Kashgar's famous Sunday market or Bazaar. Local's come from miles around to sell their wares, look for a good deal, and buy supplies. Everything needed to live as a farmer, or herder, or nomad is for sale here. Donkey carts clog the entrance to the live-stock market which hosts sheep, yaks, camels, and donkeys. Large groups of men stand around bargaining for the animals. The market boasts thousands of small stalls selling large swaths of colorful cloth, scarfs, wooden handicrafts, musical instruments, ornamented knives, donkey cart wheels, bicycle parts, pots & pans, fake gold teeth, yogurt ice snacks, uygur traditional hats, and much, much more.

For dinner we meet up with the rest of the team for our welcome dinner.

Kashgar old town


Abakh Khoja Tomb

Shipton's Arch with person at bottom right corner