Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - I and The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
1379 km
Riding-time estimate
23 h 47
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.
1379 km from Tyul’kubas to Tyul’kubas, about 23 h 47 of riding. On the way it passes Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S, Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B, Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part and The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,700 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It crosses Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan - carry ID and check vignette or toll rules. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
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 136 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 269 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
Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part, about halfway. Next is The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve.
5. The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve
East of Tashkent, the Western Tian Shan rises in a series of ridges, and the Chatkal range is one of the most accessible of them, its snowy peaks visible from the capital on a clear day. The Chatkal State Biosphere Reserve protects a part of this landscape, with forests of juniper, walnut, maple and wild fruit trees, and alpine meadows above, home to Tian Shan brown bears, snow leopards, ibex, wild boar and many birds of prey. The Western Tian Shan, shared by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, is on the UNESCO list.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part comes up about 855 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B.
7. back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 1107 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B. Next is back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S.
8. back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - S
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 1379 km.
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 136 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 133 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 252 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part to The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve
Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part → The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve is 167 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve to back through Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part
The Chatkal State Biosphere Nature Reserve → back through Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part is 167 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part to back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B
back through Besh-Aral State Nature Reserve - main part → back through Sairam-Ugam State National Nature Park - B is 252 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 133 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 136 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.