The majestic mountains of the Tien-Shan, incredibly beautiful lakes, boisterous mountain rivers, glaciers, yurts, and kymyz: all of these things contribute to what makes Kyrgyzstan such a remarkably beautiful and fascinating country.
The tour that I went on focused on exploring some of Kyrgyzstan’s stark, fearsome, and fascinating mountains: The Tien-Shan “Celestial” Mountains. The Tien-Shan mountain system has more than 30 peaks that are over 6,000 meters high. These mountains are some of the highest in the world. The length of the Tien-Shan Range is 2,500 km from east to west. While we were in the Central Tien-Shan, we traveled as high as 4,200 meters.
Weather in this area can change at the drop of a hat; in the morning the sun might be shining, by lunchtime there’ll be rain storms interspersed with hail, and then then sun will come out again in the evening. It is absolutely impossible to predict the weather here because of the effect Lake Issyk-Kul has on the local weather.
Here’s one of Kyrgyzstan’s mysterious mountain lakes. Mountains surround the whole lake like the pinnacles of a crown.
Ala-Kol or "Motley Lake" is located in the Central Tien-Shan. This alpine lake is incredibly deep.
The depth of this lake is about 70 meters, maybe a little more, and it is located at an altitude of 3,532 meters above sea level. The water in the lake is extremely cold. Even in mid-summer the wind is bone-chilling and howls loudly.
The glaciers of the Tien-Shan are impressive. Their faces have many deep indentations, cracks and rivers running down them.
Tumultuous rivers of glacier water rage and rush down with great speed, connecting here and there, traveling under the ice and develop into a full-fledged mountain river somewhere at the bottom of the glacier.
Jigit Peak
As far as local cuisine goes, food here is really interesting and unique.
Kymyz, kurut, airan, manty and other dishes are really good. There were so many dishes; we wanted to try everything.
Here is Kyrgyzstan’s most famous lake - Issyk-Kul – a special and incredibly beautiful lake. A long time ago it was considered an enchanted and sacred place, so no one dared to swim or even fish here.
According to legend, the appearance of this beautiful lake is associated with a lovely girl who gave her life for her beloved.
Lake Issyk-Kul is the largest lake in Kyrgyzstan. It’s one of the 25 largest lakes in the world by area and is the 7th deepest. It’s also the second largest mountain lake in the world after Lake Titicaca. Issyk-Kul is definitely a very cool lake.
Interesting fact: Issyk-Kul is fed by more than 80 mountain rivers whose waters are murky, but the water in the lake itself is crystal clear. Here we are on the southern shore of the lake. We set up our tents and ate some of the most delicious watermelon I’ve ever had.
One interesting thing about this area is that there’s a lot of water here and it rains often, but despite an abundance of water, there’s still parched desert around.
We were awestruck by the steppe and desert landscapes. We know where we’re going again the next time we visit.
That’s Kyrgyzstan- Lots of mountains with water, sand, and snow covering the surface of the earth. It’s a place we’ll want to visit again and again
Author: Yarejka
http://adventure-guild.livejournal.com/
