Almaty means place of apples, or near enough, and the apples are not just a name. Wild apple forests, the ancestors of many of the world's cultivated varieties, still grow on the slopes of the Tian Shan mountains above the city, and botanists believe the fruit began its long journey to the world's orchards somewhere in this region. For most of the twentieth century Almaty was the capital of Kazakhstan, until the government moved to Astana in 1997, and it remains the country's biggest and most relaxed city, with wide tree-lined avenues, Soviet blocks and a skyline of snow peaks to the south.
The mountains are the heart of the place. The Trans-Ili Alatau range rises directly behind the city, and within half an hour you can be at the Medeu skating rink, high in a valley at about 1,700 metres, and from there ride a cable car up to Shymbulak ski resort. In the city, the Zenkov Cathedral, a wooden Orthodox church built in 1907 without a single nail, survived the great earthquake of 1911 that destroyed many stone buildings, and it stands in Panfilov Park as a quiet landmark. The Green Bazaar sells dried fruit, horse meat sausage, honey and fermented mare's milk.
For riders, Almaty is the starting point for the eastern run toward Charyn Canyon and the Kolsai lakes. The road east leaves the city through suburbs and then crosses open steppe, with the snowy Tian Shan on the right and wide flat country on the left, and it is fast and straight in places, with rough sections and sudden potholes. The canyon, about two hundred kilometres from the city, is a gorge of red sandstone sculpted into towers and walls, often called the Valley of Castles. The Kolsai lakes lie in a green valley higher in the mountains, reached by a winding road that is rough in spots and often wet. Weather in the high country changes quickly, with cold rain and even snow in summer.
Fuel stations and workshops are plentiful in the city and along the main road, though stations thin out in the mountains. Foreign riders should check entry rules, documents and insurance in advance. Traffic in the city is heavy, with aggressive driving, and the mornings and evenings are slow. Spring and early autumn are the best times for the ride, and the evenings in the city, with outdoor cafés full of people, are warm and lively.