Russian motor online portal car.ru has listed the Pamir highway among the world’s most beautiful highways.
The portal has listed the Pamir Highway, the Dalton Highway in Alaska (the United States), the Verdon Gorge in France, the Transfagarasan Highway (Romania's most spectacular and best known road) and the Chuya Highway (the most picturesque road in Russia) among the top five world’s most beautiful highways.
The Pamir Highway, known more formally as the M41, runs 1,252 kilometers from the southern Kyrgyzstan city of Osh, through the Pamir Mountains – known as the “Roof of the World” – and along the border of Afghanistan until it ends in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan.
Originally a northern segment of the Silk Road trading route, the Pamir Highway has been in use for almost 2,000 years. In fact, Marco Polo journeyed along this route on his way to China in the 13th Century.
Zorkul Lake, Karakul Lake, Wakhan Valley and Khorog, the capital of the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO), attract tourists.
One of remarkable sights in the Wakhan Valley is the Yamchun Fort. Built by traders atop a cliff overlooking the Wakhan Valley, the Yamchun Fort is a Silk Road fortress that dates from the 3rd Century. Located about 180 kilometers southeast of Khorog, it is one of several fortifications in the area built to enable control of the trading routes from China westward to Iran and southward to India.
Structures like this serve to underscore the role of the ancient Pamir Highway, whose significance was powered by trade.
