Butakovsky waterfalls – Medeu high-altitude skating rink – Chimbulak Ski Resort

Route length: 25-35 km (50-70 km round trip)

Travel time to the location: 1 hour

Walking time to the waterfall: 1-1.5 hours

Seasonality: all year round

Best time to travel: all year round

Walking duration: 1 day.

Butakovsky waterfalls is an affordable and beautiful place located in the Zailiisky Alatau. It is located in the Butakovsky gorge and is one of the most famous and visited natural sites in Almaty. The height of the waterfall is about 15 meters.

What to expect?

Trekking trail to the waterfalls, along an interesting canyon.

Then we will go up to the famous high-altitude skating rink “Medeo”, located at an altitude of 1691.2 meters above sea level. It was founded in 1972. The ice surface covers 10,5 thousand square meters, which allows to hold competitions in speed skating, hockey and figure skating.

The thickness of the ice cover on the rink is 2.3 meters and consists of more than 20 items of construction materials. Reinforced concrete plates are embedded in the ice surface, where 170 km of cooling pipes are distributed. The system of artificial ice freezing has no analogues in the world and allows to maintain the ice surface of the rink for 8 months.

You can climb the dam, it leads to the famous staircase consisting of 842 steps.

The Medeu anti-settlement dam is located at an altitude of 1733 meters above sea level. It was built to protect the city from mudslides forming on the peaks of the Western Tien Shan.

The dam has 3 stepwise height levels. A special water reservoir allows to hold about 6 million cubic meters of water.

The final point will be a visit to the Ski resort “Chimbulak” located at an altitude of 2260 m above sea level.

Cable cars coming from the Medeo rink will  bring us to the top.

You will have the opportunity to see the most beautiful gorge from a bird’s eye view!

Aerial Cableway will take you from a height of 1692 m above sea level to the Talgar pass (3163 m), the height difference will be 1472 m!

Hashtags / keywords to search for:

#Shymbulak #Medeo

Butakovsky waterfalls, Medeo high-altitude skating rink, Chimbulak ski resort

Turgen Canyon. Waterfalls- Bear waterfalls and Kairaksky waterfall (trails)

Route length: 94 km (188 km round trip)

Travel time to the location: 2 hours

Travel time to the waterfall: 30-40 minutes (Bear), 2.5 hours (Kairak)

Seasonality: all year round

Best time to travel: May to October

Walking duration: 1 day.

Ile-Alatau National Park, Turgen Canyon, 90 km from Almaty.

Turgen Canyon is famous for its beauty and waterfalls, there are seven of them.

The most accessible waterfall is the Bear waterfalls, the trail goes through a picturesque canyon and its length is about 1.5 km. The height of the fall of the stream is 30 meters, this is a favorite place of tourists.

The most beautiful waterfall is considered to be the Kairak waterfalls, located on the Bozgul river, a right tributary of the Turgen river. The unpaved trail to the Kairak waterfall is quite good. It goes through the forest and takes about 3-5 hours (8 km long). There is an observation deck leading to the waterfalls, the view is spectacular, you will get fascinated by the sea of cold spray and the noise of falling water. The waterfall bursts out of the rock, cutting its way. That’s how it got its name –  Kayrak  means “whetstone” in Kazakh language.

The Kairak waterfalls is higher than the Bear waterfalls (the height of the waterfall is 55 m, with rapids – 74 m, the height of the main stream fall is about 40 m).

Hashtags / keywords to search for:

#garintrip_Кайрак

Turgen Canyon, Bear waterfalls, Kairak waterfalls

Turgen Canyon (the Bear waterfalls – Assy Plateau (Observatory)

Route length: 110 km (220 km round trip)

Travel time to the location: 2.5 hours

Travel time to the waterfall: 30-40 minutes

Seasonality: all year round

Best time to travel: May to October

Walking duration: 1 day.

Ile-Alatau National Park, Turgen Canyon, about 90 km from Almaty.

Turgen Canyon is famous for its beauty and waterfalls.  There are seven of them. The most accessible waterfall is the Bear waterfalls, the trail goes through a picturesque canyon and its length is about 1.5 km. The height of the fall of the stream is 30 meters, this is a favorite place of tourists.

The Assy plateau is a breathtaking valley in between two mountains, more than 40 km long and 15 km wide, located at an altitude of 2700 m above sea level. Here is the Assy-Turgen Observatory, the only Observatory in Kazakhstan with an ideal astronomical climate.

Hashtags / keywords to search for:

#garintrip_Ассы #assy #plateauassy

Assy plateau, Assy-Turgen Observatory, Turgen Canyon, Bear waterfalls

The state Museum and National Park “Issyk” — Issyk lake

Route length: 66 km (132 km round trip)

Travel time to the location: 2 hours

Seasonality: from April 1 to November 30.

Best time to travel: May to October

Walking duration: 1 day.

Why to choose this tour?

This tour is not only for history lovers.

The program includes a visit to the state Museum and National Park  “Issyk” in the open air. You will see ancient burial mounds (4-5 BC), as well as the Issyk mound, where the Saka warrior or Golden man, one of the symbols of Kazakhstan, was found.

We will finish the trail visiting the lake Issyk- a picturesque, high-altitude lake surrounded by extremely beautiful nature. The lake is located at an altitude of 1760 meters above sea level, about 70 km to the East from Almaty. This place is a historical gem. In 1963, a Nature disaster took many lives here. “Black dragon” a giant mudflow of rocks and mud, within four hours wiped the lake from the face of the earth.

Currently, the lake has been restored, but not completely –  about 2/3 of its former size. There is a monument in the form of a cross placed on the lake in memory of the victims.

Hashtags / keywords to search for:

#garintrip_ОзероИссык

Issyk lake the Issyk lake the Issyk Golden man, a warrior of Issyk Saka

Big Almaty lake – The Tien Shan Astronomical Observatory (city Panorama)

Route length: 50 km (100 km round trip)

Travel time to the location: 1.5 hours

Seasonality: all year round

Best time to travel: May to October

Walking duration: 1 day

Why should I visit this place?

BAL is one of the most accessible tourist places and trails in 15 km from the city, located in the picturesque Almarasan Canyon;

BAL is sometimes called the pearl of the Tien Shan mountains, it is worth seeing;

Along the way, you will see the upper Almaty high-pressure hydroelectric power station operating since 1953, the Tien Shan astronomical Observatory, old research centers, telescopes, and mountain peaks up to 6000 m high.

We will take a hike tour to the pass-3400 meters above the sea level, from which where the panorama of the city opens.

Hashtags / keywords to search for:

#garintrip_БАО # BAL #ofbigalmatylake

Big Almaty lake, BAL

Three-day

Assy plateau-Kolsay lake (first lake and second) –Kaindy lake.

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Charyn canyon – Kolsay lake – Kaindy lake.

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Two-day

Lake Kolsay and Kaindy.

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Altyn-Emel National Park.

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Canyons: Charyn (Valley of castles), Temerlik, Bestamak, Clay.

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Assy plateau-Bartogay reservoir- Charyn Canyon.

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Lake Tuzkol — Komershy canyon.

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One-day

Big Almaty lake – The Tien Shan Astronomical Observatory (city Panorama).

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The state Museum and National Park “Issyk” — Issyk lake.

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Turgen Canyon (the Bear waterfalls – Assy Plateau (Observatory).

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Turgen Canyon. Waterfalls- Bear waterfalls and Kairaksky waterfall (trails).

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Butakovsky waterfalls – Medeu high-altitude skating rink – Chimbulak Ski Resort.

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Charyn canyon.

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Assy plateau-Red rocks-Bartogay reservoir.

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