From barren steppe and deserts, to slicing canyons, to turquoise lakes encompassed by carpets of evergreens, traversing the terrain in southeast Kazakhstan can feel like rolling from the American Southwest to the Pacific Northwest in a matter of moments. Yes, there is SO much to do in and around Almaty for nature lovers. However, since we’re limited on time, we chose to do a (VERY LONG) tour of three iconic sites, which are all growing in popularity with tourists…Charyn Canyon National Park, Kolsai Lake & Kaindy Lake.
The ~700 kilometer tour, which we booked through Kazakhstan Guided Tours, began at the upbeat hour of 5:00 and finalized way past our bed time at 11 p.m. This might be a record in a tour day length for us, and our 40-something bodies certainly are feeling it the day after. Unsurprisingly, we were the oldest (wisest) and only couple on the trip in a mini van consisting of a wide breadth of Millennials from Filipino to Italian to Polish to Indian to our Colombian friend, Jonathan. It cost $55/each, an incredible value for this length of tour, which included an authentic Kazakh feast for lunch, and an English-speaking guide.
P.s. a couple important things to note if you book. 1. Take plenty of extra water and snacks. You don’t eat from 12:30-9:30 pm which didn’t work well for us. 2. Our credit cards unfortunately did not work for payment. It seems the machine may require a debit card with a PIN. 3. Tips are appreciated.
Charyn and Other Canyons
We arrived to Charyn Canyon, about 200k from Almaty, at about 9:30 when the sun was already evolving the land into a veritable oven. Charyn Canyon is often called Kazakhstan’s Grand Canyon, stretching 154 km (95 miles) along the Charyn River. It is located about the same distance from the Chinese border, and also quite close to the Kyrgyz border.
The area, as well as the toasty, dry temperatures immediately reminded us of the scenery near Greg’s parents’ home in Las Vegas.
The creatures were quite similar as well, other than this bizarre wonder, which of course we didn’t see, but it’s now on my hit list considering it reminds me of a Wuzzle…a mix between a grumpy cat and a monkey…my two favorites. Apparently, Palla’s Cat is native to the grasslands and rocky steppes of Central Asia and is actually more shy than aggressive. It has thick, long fur, which is the densest of any wild cat, to surviving freezing temperatures.
Unfortunately because of our action-packed tour day, we only had the opportunity to walk about 30 minutes along the perimeter of the canyon, but there are multiple opportunities to hike down into it. However, August is probably not the time of year to be doing that anyways.
Naturally, with most places like this, pictures don’t really do it justice, even the panoramic variety.
Our first yurt! Near Charyn Canyon. There will be many more these to come!
Moving on, we drove to another part of the canyon which was accessorized with an oasis of vibrant greens and blues. Why is it about these three most powerful colors of nature joining together than makes such a poetic statement? This is also where I decided to bomb Jonathan’s photo.
It’s always fun when we actually have a photographer and can get some fun candids, rather than the tedious selfie variety.
The final canyon stop was at the “Black Canyon” further down the road, where it was recommended not to climb over the barrier. I’m really glad they put that there! I was about to do so!
My goodness…this terrain is seriously barren.
Our Kazakh Feast
We arrived to the village of Saty for a traditionally cooked meal with way more food than the 15 of us could ever possibly consume. Greg and I somehow managed to be forced to the head of the table, which made us feel like it was our wedding day.
A wedding feast complete with Chak-Chak, cheese coated in a condensed milk-like sauce and dropped with poppyseeds. Another unusual sweet on the table had the consistent and a similar flavor to the honey graham crackered crust we often have alongside cheesecake. Both were quite tasty!
Unfortunately, we had to eat more than desserts for lunch. Other than the tea spread, which all these desserts were meant for, we were also served a rich and creamy chicken (?) broth soup with vegetables, and a massive pile of stewed chicken, potatoes and carrots. It was actually quite comical to hear the symphony of audible sighs of relief around the table (including my own) when the main course came out and it wasn’t horse…or mutton…which are common dishes in the Stans.
In fact, Kazakhstan’s National Dish is Beshbarmak which literally means “Five Fingers” because it is traditionally eaten with your hands, made of horse, pasta, broth and garnish.
Back to our dish…there was something notably less appetizing and more girthy about this ‘chicken’ which made us wonder if it was actually a rooster. Regardless, there were plenty of options on the table for people who didn’t want to eat the mother clucker.
Needless to say, the Stans already seem like a place for an open-minded palate.
Kolsai Lake
Next we arrived at the sparkling blue-green gem of Kolsai Lake, which felt quite similar to Washington or British Columbia in Canada to us.
We were able to walk around the perimeter for a bit, and there were also other bonus activities we could take part in, like archery. Here, archery is not just a modern recreational and competitive sport, but a living link to their nomadic past.
Also, a link to their past, according to Chat, training falcons and golden eagles from a young age to hunt foxes, hares and even wolves has been part of Kazakh culture and history for centuries.
Unfortunately, today they are more commonly used for festival demonstrations or tourist photo ops. While many handlers care for their birds well, there’s understandable controversy around using them just for photo ops—especially if the bird is kept tethered for long hours without exercise. Although we (I) kind of wanted to dress up in the fun cultural clothing, we really didn’t want to support this other side.
The Kazakh flag fluttering in the pleasantly cooler breeze over Kolsai Lake may be the most attractive world flag we’ve come in contact with. Our guide told us the blue background represents the vast open steppe skies and the notion of freedom, peace and unity. The golden sun in the middle represents life, warmth and abundance. And the steppe eagle represents power and the future, with a nod to their nomadic eagle-hunting past.
After a walk, several of us decided to pop a squat on the dock to drop our feet into the glacially crisp waters of the lake. Yep, this FEELS like Canada too!
While we were perched here, this delightful young Kazakh medical student named Runa with nearly perfect English boldly came and introduced herself to me. We chatted for nearly 15 minutes; she was absolutely thrilled to hear an American had come to her country and wanted to hear everything we had learned so far and about our lives. What a delight to chat with her and now we’re Instagram friends!
Kaindy Lake
Next we drove to the entry point of Kaindy Lake where we climbed aboard a 40-year old 4×4 VW-resembling van for a rough and tumble expedition to the lake. Kaindy Lake is famous for the submerged spruce forest rising eerily from its teal waters.
Despite the bone quaking, Jonathan hilariously managed to grab a siesta while we, along with new Italian friend Marcello, amusedly bounced and witnessed him nearby. Wow…Colombians really DO know how to tranquillo.
We then arrived to a parking lot where we given three options to get to the lake…1. Take a van to within 500 meters of it for about $1; 2. Walk 30 minutes each way up, then down some semi-steep terrain or 3. Take a guided horseback ride 25 minutes for $13. We were shocked to be the only one in our group to walk, and were glad with our decision not only because we saved money and butt fatigue, but when we saw how they were running the horses up the hill to the lake to fetch more riders.
Kaindy Lake is unlike any we’ve ever seen. It was created in 1911 after a powerful earthquake triggered a landslide which blocked a gorge and flooded it. The water drowned a spruce tree forest, causing the tops of the trunks to still stick out above the surface while underwater the branches are preserved in nearly-perfect condition.
So fascinating. Pretending to get some zen, despite the crowds around.
On the hike back, we really got to appreciate the scenery. Unfortunately, we had to use the same trail as the horses so the trail was decorated in you know what.
From this point, it would be a long way back to Almaty…nearly 5 hours. What a day!
