Why Kyrgyzstan? Land of Horses & Free Riders

We didn't pick Kyrgyzstan out of a hat, or with a dart and blindfold. Not only do we already know it's a great country to travel in, with friendly people, fascinating history and spectacular scenery, it's also possibly one of the world's best places to travel by horse over long distances.

Lonely Planet website readers voted Kyrgyzstan the 10^th best destination for travel in 2010, but there was no doubt about it being our number 1 choice for 2011.

Firstly, water and good grazing are plentiful. These have to be the first considerations for anyone planning to travel by horse. Amazingly, for a landlocked country, there's more water than you can poke a stick at. We'll be beside rivers, lakes and streams for almost all of our time in Kyrgyzstan.

There's also the horses themselves. They are famously hardy, sturdy-footed and strong. What we didn't know until we spent some time with them is that they also have excellent temperaments, they're smart and eerily obedient. I found myself wondering more than a few times if they were reading my mind, rather than my cues. Kyrgyz riding horses are trained to respond to voice as well as legs and reins. They can be mounted from either side and seem to have an excellent fast walking pace. Useless for the race track, they're the perfect long distance ride.

The horse is still the most common form of transport in Kyrgyzstan. That means that they are a common sight on the roads and Kyrgyz drivers know to look out for them. It also means there are plenty of superb horsemen around who can help us out if we get into trouble, and if we need equipment repaired or replaced, it's not going to be impossible to find. Feed for horses is as readily available as people food.

There are no fences in Kyrgyzstan. The full ramifications of that fact are pretty hard to grasp for people who come from countries where everything is fenced. It means we can pretty much choose our own path. Apart from military installations and border zones, there aren't “off-limits” places and we don't have to stick to a few disconnected trails. We're not going to have to deal with big towns or cities or suburbia. It's one giant playground for would-be-explorers.

And if that wasn't enough to recommend it, Kyrgyzstan is just cool. It lay at the heart of the silk road for a thousand years. Our friends don't know where it is. They don't have a lot of advertising or cell phones or signs telling you not to step on the grass. The people are diverse and you can roll back the centuries with minimal imagination.

The land of horses and free riders – that's where we want to be.