Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I and Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
1517 km
Riding-time estimate
26 h 11
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
1517 km from Tyul’kubas to Tyul’kubas, about 26 h 11 of riding. The stops in between: Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S, Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B, Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part and back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,700 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It crosses from Kazakhstan into Kyrgyzstan - carry ID and check the toll rules. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I
In the far south of Kazakhstan, east of the city of Shymkent, the Western Tien Shan mountains rise abruptly from the steppe in a wall of snow-capped peaks, deep gorges and forests of juniper, walnut and wild fruit trees. The Sairam-Ugam National Park protects a large part of these mountains, and it is one of the components of the Western Tien Shan World Heritage site, listed by UNESCO in 2016 together with areas in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I is where the day begins. Next is Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S.
2. Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S
The Western Tien Shan comes down to meet the steppe here, in the far south of Kazakhstan, and the Sairam-Ugam National Park protects a big piece of that collision. Snowy ridges rise above deep valleys with rushing rivers, forests of juniper, birch and wild fruit trees, and high meadows full of flowers in early summer. The park is part of the Western Tien Shan World Heritage Site, shared with Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan and listed in 2016, a region known as one of the places where many fruit trees, including wild apples, walnuts and apricots, have their origins. The wildlife includes snow leopards, ibex, bears and the endemic Menzbier's marmot.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S comes up about 198 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B.
3. Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B
In the south of Kazakhstan, where the western spurs of the Tien Shan rise from the steppe, the Sairam-Ugam National Park protects a landscape of high mountains, deep valleys, juniper forests and alpine meadows. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Western Tien Shan, shared between Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, recognised for its exceptional biodiversity, including wild relatives of fruit trees such as apples, pears and walnuts, which are believed to be the ancestors of many cultivated varieties.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 390 km into the recorded legs you reach Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B. Next is Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part.
4. Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part
Far up the Chatkal valley in western Kyrgyzstan, where the river runs between the Chatkal and Sandalash ranges of the Western Tien Shan, lies the Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve. It protects mountain steppe, juniper woodland, walnut and apple groves and rocky high country, and it is part of the transnational World Heritage Site of the Western Tien Shan, inscribed in 2016 and shared with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The reserve was created in particular to protect Menzbier's marmot, a small marmot found only in this part of Central Asia.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B sits at 1013 km, about halfway. Next is back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S.
6. back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S comes up about 1314 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I closes the day.
Leg by leg
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I to Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I → Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S is 198 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S to Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S → Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B is 193 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B to Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part
Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B → Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part is 366 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part to back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B
Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part → back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B is 366 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B to back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S
back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B → back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S is 193 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S to Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I
back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S → Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I is 198 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.