Iran - Andrew Burke [168]
Incoming minibuses from Borujerd (IR6000, two hours) and Dorud (IR5000, 1¾ hours) might drop you at Basij Sq, but departing they use a terminal 1.5km further northeast up Shimsherabad (Daneshju) St. Scarily fast savaris take barely half the time.
Getting Around
Handy shuttle-taxi routes (IR1000) run along Shari’ati St (Shimsherabad–Shaqayeq) and between Basij and 22 Bahman Sqs (Shimsherabad–Kyo) with two diversions northbound due to the one-way system. More centrally, a northbound route runs up Imam Khomeini St to Sabz Sq then up Kashani St to Takht Sq, returning by wiggling through traffic jams around the back of the bazaar.
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AROUND KHORRAMABAD
Dorud & Lake Gahar
0665 / pop 103,000
Dominated by a huge, satanic cement factory, Dorud is useful as a launching point for hiking to beautiful, mountain-ringed Lake Gahar, famed for its succulent qizil arla fish. The trailhead is Haft Cheshmeh, a lonely refuge hut, car park and drinking-water spring 23km from Dorud. In midsummer guides and ponies are usually available here. The trek skirts 4070m Mt Oshturan taking around four hours out, less back. Bring your own food and tent. Even if you don’t hike, great views justify the car journey as far as Darb-e-Astaneh, a mud-house village 18km from Dorud.
Friendly but easy-to-miss, the basic Mosaferkhaneh-e Baharestan ( 422-2919; Shari’ati St; s IR60,000) is upstairs opposite Dorud’s cinema.
The porticoed Mehmansara Shahrdari ( 422 0020; Beheshti Blvd; tw/tr IR170,000/250,000, summer IR200,000/300,000) has spacious, very comfortable rooms and a decent restaurant featuring great photos of local beauty spots. It’s in a park off Dorud’s main through-street 1.5km west of the train station, 2.5km east of the bus terminal where minibuses and scorchingly fast savaris run to Khorramabad and Borujerd. Esfahan-bound buses pick up passengers around midnight from taavoni offices on Beheshti Blvd. Incoming trains are met at the station by savaris for both Khorramabad and Borujerd.
THE DORUD-ANDIMESHK RAILWAY
This super-scenic railway trundles through beautiful, remote and virtually roadless valleys skirting Lorestan’s pointy peaks and passing through dozens of tunnels. Most trains run in the evenings but there’s a day service departing Andimeshk at 5.30am, returning from Dorud at 2pm. It’s timetabled to take 5¼ hours but often takes nearer seven. Often overcrowded to the point of sheer mayhem, the journey is a cultural experience but also a test of endurance.
Bisheh Waterfalls
The tiny village of Bisheh (Bishehpuran) hides one of Iran’s prettiest waterfalls. It cascades in 30m chutes off a tree-topped gully then trickles in rivulets into the river below. In summer many local tourists make the scenic day trip from Dorud (train only) or Khorramabad (new road, no public transport). By autumn only their litter remains and you’ll have the village to yourself, the entire population of children following you Pied Piper-style. The best waterfall views are from across the river using a new footbridge at the northern edge of the village. From Dorud the day train takes about half an hour to Bisheh with fabulous glimpses of ziggurat-shaped Mt Parvis en route. You’ll have an ample 4½ hours in Bisheh before the 7pm Tehran-bound train arrives to take you back to Dorud.
Sepid Dasht
The railway does a switchback at Sepid Dasht, the biggest village en route. Sepid Dasht itself isn’t architecturally attractive but its mountain backdrop is spectacularly spiky. Rare savaris bump their way to Khorramabad on a scenic road that passes close to the Gerit Falls.
Talezang
Of anywhere along the line, isolated Talezang is the most tempting hop-off point for trekking into the mountain wilderness. This place is six stops south of Bisheh, three hours north of Andimeshk. One hiking