Kyrgyzstan - From Issyk-Kul to Karakol
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Issyk-Kul is a another spectacular high-altitude lake in eastern Kyrgyzstan, nestled in the Tian Shan mountains. Its name means “Warm Lake”, because despite sitting about 1,607 metres above sea level and being surrounded by snow-capped peaks, it rarely freezes due to its slight salinity.
Some highlights:
It is the largest lake in Kyrgyzstan and one of the deepest lakes in the world, reaching a maximum depth of about 668 metres.
The lake is approximately 182 km (113 miles) long and covers an area of about 6,236 km².
Issyk-Kul was an important stop along the Silk Road, and underwater archaeological discoveries have revealed the remains of ancient settlements beneath its waters.
It was just a 20km drive from Kochkor to the western side of the lake. We were going to drive along the south shore and visit the various attractions along the route, but we decided to park up early on and have a day doing jobs and enjoying the view. We parked up on a grassy site by the lake. There were lots of Kyrgyz visitors pulling up for picnics and a swim. Colin ventured into the water in the morning, but had to wade a long way out for it to be deep enough to swim.
The following morning we continued along the road heading East. We had been warned the road was in a bad state, but it was in the process of being resurfaced.
We turned off the main road to drive through Aksay Canyon, also known as The Canyon of The Forgotten Rivers. As we were heading to the start of the canyon we came across an Eagle hunting demonstration and pulled up to watch it.
The track down the canyon was wonderful. It goes through an old riverbed and there were colourful lavender plants all along the way. The track finishes at the lake where there were some perfect places to park up. We regretted we were here too early in the day.
Back on the main road we were treated to some more bone rattling conditions.
The scenery was lovely though. We pulled over at an abandoned yurt complex that had some colourful murals. We had read that the north side of the lake is more touristy, but there were some large tourist complexes on this side. The lake is the premier destination for Kyrgyz tourists in the summer with its beaches and cooler air.
Further along the road we turned off again to visit the Fairy Tale (Skazka) Canyon. It is famous for its striking red and orange sandstone formations, sculpted by wind and rain over millions of years into shapes that resemble dragons, castles, animals and mythical creatures - we spotted some other distinctive shapes…..
The steep gravel paths were quite slippery so seeing someone in a wedding dress was a bit of an eye- opener.
After leaving here we continued just a short distance on to a gorgeous peninsular with perfect park up spots on the sheltered bay of crystal clear water. It was a training place for rowers and a very popular camping spot but had plenty of space for everyone. We spent the following day here as well, enjoying the views, meeting fellow overlanders and having a refreshing swim in the lake.
When we left the lakeside spot we tried to visit some ancient petroglyphs that shouldn’t have been far off the main route, but even with directions from locals and Google maps telling us we were just metres away we were darned if we could find them.
We gave up looking and continued on to Baskoon Waterfalls which are situated about 30km from the main road in a green alpine valley with glacial rivers running through.
We just did the short hike to the lower waterfall, which while nice wasn’t spectacular, but it was entertaining watching the local tourists posing for photos. There are two monuments here for Yuri Gagarin who visited after becoming the first human in space.
We were now headed to Karakol. The road really was horrible on this section.
Karakol, which is situated on the eastern end of Issyk-Kul, is the main town in the area and a jumping off point for hiking, horse treks and winter sports.
We parked up at the Riverside Hostel that had a good parking area for overland vehicles and provided showers, a washing machine and breakfast. It was walking distance to some nice restaurants by the river that specialised in trout. We had some delicious smoked trout and a trout salad on our first night.
Our main reason to come to Karakol was to visit the Sunday morning cattle market. It starts at around 5am, so we made sure we got there at 7.30 when it was still in full flow. We were glad we had read to avoid wearing open toe sandals. The noise and smells were something to behold. There were sections for cows, horses, and sheep and goats. It was fascinating watching the dealings going on around us. Colin was hoping to trade me in for a few fat bottomed sheep, but luckily he got no takers.
We went for breakfast at the modern Lighthouse Cafe afterwards. Then we called in at the Dungan Mosque that was just over the road. It is a beautiful wooden mosque built without nails in a distinctive Chinese style.
We spent the rest of the day planning our journey back into Kazakhstan and in the evening went to a cafe bar near the river for a cold beer and dinner. The houses near our hostel were attractive blue buildings, a legacy of the late 1800's when the town was a rich trading hub.
Colin had arranged to get Lolly serviced in Almaty in Kazakhstan, but he had heard that they wouldn’t be able to fit us in until the following Friday. I would have liked to have a few more days in Kyrgyzstan, but Colin was feeling very anxious about driving Lolly with so many engine warning issues ongoing. He found there was a garage in Karakol which may be able to run some diagnostics on Lolly. We took her there on the Monday morning. Initially it didn’t look like they would be able to help, but they managed to contact someone remotely who managed to write a software programme for them to use on an Iveco. After a bit of faffing around they said they had cleared the faults which was a great relief. We paid up (not cheap) and set off towards the border crossing into Kazakstan. Just 10 minutes into our journey the anti-pollution cleaning light was back on. Our shoulders slumped and we had to turn round and head back to the garage. They said the dignostics showed the issue was cleared, but couldn’t explain why the warning lights were still going. Eventually, without pushing to be fair, they refunded Colin the money. We would now have to wait to see if the Iveco dealer in Almaty could solve the problem.
We left Karakol heading for the border, but realised we were cutting it fine to cross before it closed for the evening, so we found a nice spot next to a river just off the road about 20km before the border. We were joined by a Kazakh car who set up a tent later in the evening. We offered them a cup of coffee in the morning. They were a mother (Olga) and adult son (Alex) with his black cat (Blackie). They live in Almaty and Alex was driving his mother for a week in Kyrgyzstan - they reminded us of how super friendly the Kazakh people are.
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