Having seen the dry river bed in Esfahan, and being used to seeing a healthy flow of water previously, I decided that I wanted to go and find the Zayandeh Rud however far upstream it may be. I didn’t include river hunting on my “would like to do” list before our holiday but it became a priority for me and I was determined to find it. When I discussed this with the family, it appeared to be a great idea not only because we would be satisfying my mission to track down the river, but also we would be heading North West out of Esfahan into cooler climes. This was welcomed by both Feri and Will and therefore I had no resistance to my on-the-spot decision made at the Khaju Bridge two days before.

Feri duly contacted our trusty chauffeur, Rahmon, who was, as always, up for an adventure, and at…