#17 - Mapping The Unmapped | Tajikistan | Pamir Trail Pioneer
Off Grid16 Okt 2025

#17 - Mapping The Unmapped | Tajikistan | Pamir Trail Pioneer

Jan Bakker is an expedition leader, co-author of Trekking in Tajikistan, and pioneer of the Pamir Trail, a long-distance trekking route that connects remote mountain communities.


In this conversation, we talk about:


  • How a boy from flat Netherlands fell in love with mountains

  • First mountain at 16 in Mallorca

  • Why Tajikistan captured his imagination

  • Designing 1300 km Pamir Trail in Tajikistan

  • How to map a long distance hiking route

  • Choosing routes from satellite and shepherd paths

  • Working with local communities along the trail

  • Real world dangers including glacial rivers and rockfall

  • What to do when rescue is days away

  • Politics on the ground and border permits

  • Being a white tourist in Afghanistan

  • Myths versus reality on the Afghan border

  • Ethics of opening remote valleys to tourism

  • How a trail creates local jobs and homestays

  • Why he kept government at arms length

  • Funding phase two for homestays and guides

  • Family life in Uganda while building trails

  • First multi day trek with his kids

  • Cultural differences in time and priorities

  • What comes next after the Pamir Trail


You can find Jan's book, Trekking in Tajikistan, here:

https://shorturl.at/9cMiL


Jan is the Founder of:

pamirtrail.org

packraftafrica.com.


You can find Jan Bakker here:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://shorturl.at/KLapD

Instagram - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/summitsofafrica/?hl=en⁠

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