Hiking is one of the activities for tourists visiting Kyrgyzstan and Ala-kul is on everyone’s list. Ala-kul is considered one of Kyrgyzstan’s jewels. Duet Hostel serves as a hosting point for hikers in the area and offers lots of advice and will even arrange for taxis to the national park.
However, I decided on a matshuka (mini-buses used as a public transport service in ex-Soviet countries) and had two companions whom I met at the hostel. Helena from Denmark and Laura from France. This meant we had an extra 7km hike to the national park that day.
The mud track went on through the valley, exposed to the sun you soon start to feel it. Luckily, there are clumps of trees next to the water which serve to give places to rest. Then came the first bridge, there were two to cross before the real hard work started. The trees close in around the mud-track and it starts to feel like this will be it until we reach the climb.
However, on turning a corner the trees end and the valley opens up. The gentle sound of the water as it zigzags through the flat plain, the herd of horses crossing the water to new feeding grounds. Loud neighing from the male who was unable to cross, front legs tied together. We stopped for lunch, to take in the scene.
Not much further on is the second bridge and the start of the climb. It is mainly through trees, so you are sheltered from the sun. We eventually reached 3,000m and the site of the first yurt camp. Both Helena and Laura were staying in the Yurts at 4,500 KGS (~£42) for dinner, bed and breakfast. I opted to camp and cook. A lot cheaper!
Ala-kul lake
It was a cold night and I felt it. My feet struggled to feel anything in the morning. Walking was a challenge. My sleep system failed me; it should’ve worked down to -6C with ease but at -2C in the tent I was struggling to sleep. I decided to get up early and make porridge and a coffee. It wasn’t long before Helena and Laura were also awake and they found it a cold night in the yurts as well. The yurts, unlike Song-kul, had no stove for warmth.
We were happy to get started and head up. It would take us about 4 hours to cover the last 1,200m elevation to the lake and then another hour for the last 200m. The path reaches gradients of 40%, making it closer to climbing than walking. The challenge was fun and worth it when you finally go over the top and get a view of the glacial lake. The turquoise water with the grey mountains and further round you also get the glacier in the background. Well, what is left of it. I don’t think it will have many years before it disappears.
At this point, Helena left Laura and I and headed back down joining two others going in a similar direction across Kyrgyzstan. Laura and I made the top and a plinth overlooking the lake and glacier. Beautiful as it was, it was starting to become a tough day for both of us. We still had another 11km downhill to reach the village of Altyn Arashan and the hot springs.
When we finally reached the village, I think we were the last of the day; we tried to negotiate a better rate but in the end, went with the first. 1,400 KGS (~£13). But the hot springs were included as was dinner and breakfast. The hot springs were a great way to end the day. There are a few in the area, usually attached to a guesthouse but they are worth it. Soaking the feet and muscles before another 14km the next day!
The last day isn’t much to write about. Just a mud-track walk to the road where you can either get a matshuka or arrange a taxi. But it did give me a chance to do some photography of some of the wildlife along the route.
The fighting bull of Karakol’s animal market
Before setting off for Almaty I had a chance to visit the Karakol animal market. I had another volunteer tell me about it and he described a scene where there was a lot of animal suffering. Having already visited an animal market in Kochkor I was surprised to hear it. The animal market is usually about selling animals for use and breeding and not for butchery.
Wandering around the market there were a few distressed animals, but mainly due to the proximity of so many people and other animals. Most animals just went along with the morning. However, there was one bull who did not like being sold to his new owners and decided to put up a fight. I knew bulls were strong but I had never seen their strength before. He had a rope around horns and his new owner was pulling him towards the horsebox for transport.
It took the owner about 10 minutes to travel just 10m and eventually the bull swung his head and threw the owner into the air and onto the ground where the owner made the mistake of letting go. The bull ran off barging threw other bulls and cows tied to posts. The owner and several others chased after the bull before any damage was done!
About 10 minutes later they came back this time with an extra rope tied around the bull’s leg. The idea to keep the bull from being able to use his strength by taking his balance didn’t work. If anything, the bull doubled his strength output. The fight was brought to an end by an older man tying another, more compliant, bull to the horns. The bull couldn’t fight the combined weight of the new bull and the ropes pulling at his leg and horns.
Time to get rolling again
It had been almost 4 weeks when I got cycling again. I knew it was going to hurt and my first day did. It was going to be 80km to the border. The plan was to get through the border and find somewhere to camp on the Kazakh side. However, I underestimated the state of the Kyrgyz roads and ended up on a mud-track going over a hill slowly and then onto a road under construction during the rain.
I eventually arrived at the border, my bike and I covered in mud, at 8 in the evening; two hours after the border shut! After a quick chat with the staff, they let me pitch my tent about 100m from the border. The rain held off long enough for me to get the tent up and not too covered in mud!
Clear skies the next day, I hoped everything would start to dry out. It did, until after lunch when I had to contend with torrential rain for a few hours. The plan was to cycle down to the end of the Moon Canyon and camp there. I only got halfway and the rain stopped long enough to get the tent up.
It rained all night but eventually came out with perfect sunshine for my visit to Charyn Canyon. Charyn Canyon is one of the main tourist attractions in Kazakhstan and shows with a large number of tourist buses. It was packed. I came across two other cyclists from Belgium, Joeri and Eilis, who were heading the same way. We agreed to camp together at the bottom of the canyon.
We camped at the bottom of the canyon, the authorities don’t mind, and the facilities are surprisingly good. Toilets and filtered fresh drinking water. With another storm on the way, we decided to make a quick ride to Almaty over the next few days. One nice campsite where a local wanted to join us for beers; he left once he found out we had none. The other was next to an abandoned construction site with some dogs.
It was nice to cycle with others again but it would be short-lived because they would be flying back to Poland and me to India.