Mountains of Kyrgyzstan: description, history and interesting facts

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:48

The mountains of Kyrgyzstan are mighty giants who are trying to become higher than the sky, cutting white clouds with ice tops. Tours to these places are very popular among fans of extreme recreation who come here from many countries. On the territory of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan there are two mountain ranges: Tien Shan and Pamir, which are considered the highest in Asia.

History of the mountains of Kyrgyzstan

Mountains in this area are mentioned in ancient writings and notes of travelers who visited this region with expeditions, all the information about which over several centuries has acquired many legends.

One of the first research surveys was carried out by the expedition of P. Semenov in 1856, who made a description and detailed study of the area, for which he received an honorary addition to the surname Semenov-Tienshansky from the Russian Tsar. He first drew a diagram of the ridges, explored Lake Issyk-Kul, discovered the Khan-Tengri pyramid and reached the glaciers in the Tengri-Tag group.

To answer the question of which mountainsin Kyrgyzstan, you need to see them with your own eyes. The mountain ranges here have an alpine relief, which is characterized by numerous mountain ridges and high sharp peaks, more even areas of ancient origin, usually inclined to one side due to folding, are less common.

There are many glaciers and talus in the highlands, all mountains over 3500 m high are rocks frozen to a depth of 30-100 m, the peaks are covered with snow, the snow line runs at an altitude of up to 3800-4200 m, some areas are considered dangerous from -for snow avalanches.

Tien Shan Mountains

In Chinese, they are called "Heavenly Mountains", which stretch in the west-east direction and consist of 88 ridges. The Tien Shan Range is the mountains of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, it is rightfully considered the longest in Asia (2800 km). In its center are the highest mountains: Pobeda Peak (7440 m) and Khan-Tengri Peak (almost 7000 m), there are also 40 more peaks with a height of more than 6 thousand m.

Most of the ridge is located on the territory of Kyrgyzstan and is divided into 6 zones of the alpine type. The republic consists of 92% mountains, the ridges divide it into northern and southern parts, connected by a highway between the cities of Bishkek and Osh. The average length of the ranges is 100-300 km, and the width reaches 40 km. Almost all climatic zones are represented, from taiga and rocky tundra to alpine meadows, where pastures are located in the southern part of the mountains.

The mountain ranges of Kyrgyzstan are constantly used by climbers and nature lovers forclimbing mountain peaks, horse riding, rafting on mountain rivers, starting from the time of the Soviet Union. Even then, the beauty of this region, despite the great distance from civilization and the high difficulty of climbing routes, became popular with all tourists and climbers.

Valleys and lakes

There are many high- altitude valleys in the Tien Shan, which are used for fertile pastures, because. covered with grass. At the foot of the ridges, high-mountain depressions lay in stripes, which turned into lakes and swamps, the most famous of which is Issyk-Kul.

According to researchers, the Tien Shan mountains were covered during the epoch of glaciation by very powerful glaciers, the remains of which are found in the form of ramparts, moraines, cirques and lakes. All the rivers of Kyrgyzstan originate from these places.

The mountains of Kyrgyzstan are especially beautiful in spring in May, when all the valleys are covered with flowers: yellow and red tulips, edelweiss, etc. Flowers in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan look unusual against the backdrop of snow-capped mountains.

Lake Issyk-Kul - the pearl of the Tien Shan, occupying a deep depression (702 m) between mountain ranges, is the third deepest body of water in the CIS.

Pamir Mountains

Another array of high mountains in Kyrgyzstan, represented only by its northern part, is the Pamir. The most famous ranges here are: Zaalai and Turkestan, the average height is 5.5 thousand meters, and the highest peak of the Pamirs is Lenin Peak (7134 m).

Pamir - the greatest mountain system in the world,located on the territory of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and China. It has a continental climate, less humid compared to the Tien Shan and more sunny. The Zaalai Range has a length of 200 km on the territory of Kyrgyzstan and continues in China for another 50 km, it has sharp peaks, deciduous shrubs even grow in the valleys. The highest peak of the Zaalai Range is Sat Peak (5900 m).

Mountains in Kyrgyzstan: names of peaks and descriptions

The highest mountain peaks in Kyrgyzstan regularly visited by climbers:

Pobeda Peak - the northernmost of the 7-thousander mountains, was first discovered in 1938, has a height of 7439 m, is located on the border with China in the Kokshaal-Too ridge near Issyk-Kul lake. Climbers call it the most formidable and inaccessible, because. only highly qualified athletes with good training can conquer it. The difficulty of climbing it is determined by the harsh climate, sharp gusts of the north wind, the steepness of the slopes, combined with severe cold. This peak was first noticed visually by the conquerors of the Khan-Tengri peak in 1936, who, 2 years later, under the leadership of L. Gutman, assembled an expedition to explore the open peak and were able to conquer it

Khan-Tengri Peak, which means “Lord of the Sky” in Turkic, does not reach the height of 7,000 meters, only 5 m, but is ranked among them in terms of complexity. When climbing this peak, climbers adhere to an interesting ritual: each newly arrived group digs up a capsule laid by the previous one with information aboutclimber (surname, date), then writes his own and digs in again. The locals gave the peak another name, "Kan-Too" ("Bloody Mountain"), for the large number of accidents that occur with daredevils climbing it. The peak is also famous for its scenic views

Lenin Peak is the most visited in the Pamirs, because climbing it is quite simple and does not have strict he alth requirements for climbers. As a rule, all tourists get to the base camp by car from the city of Osh

Mountain peaks that are slightly lower than seven-thousanders in height:

• Peaks Chapaev (6370 m), Przhevalsky (6450 m), Marble Wall (6400 m) and Shater (6700 m) are located in the central part of the Tien Shan.
• Peaks Karakol (5216m), Nansen (5697m), Pyramid (5621m) and others

Glaciers in the mountainous regions of Kyrgyzstan

There are many glaciers in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan:

• The Korzhenevsky glacier is located in a valley on the northern slope of the Zaalai Range, 21.5 km long.
• Lenin Glacier - a mountain type in a basin in the northern part of the same ridge, 13.5 km long, lies at the foot of Lenin Peak.
• Mushketov Glacier - belongs to a tree type, located in the center of the Tien Shan, on the northern slope of Sarydzhaz, length 20.5 km and others.

Mountain passes

To get from one valley to another, you need to use mountain passes, there are several of them in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan:

• Bedel - located in the Tien Shan mountains, passes through the Koksha altau ridgeon the border between China and Kyrgyzstan, height 4284 m, for many years it was part of the Great Silk Road and was the famous caravan road.
• Kyzyl-Art - a highway located on the Pamir Highway, passes through the border between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, the height is 4280 m, in the northern part the rise is gentle and picturesque, in the south - steeper descends into the valley of the river. Markans.
• Taldyk - the pass connects the valley of the river from the north. Gulchi and Alayskub - a valley in the south, located in the Alai Range, height 3615 m. A highway was laid through it, along which you can get to Osh, on the other hand - the village of Sary-Tash.

The sacred mountain of Suleiman

The city of Osh is considered the southern capital of Kyrgyzstan. In 2009, the city was replenished with another attraction - the sacred mountain of Suleiman-Too (the throne of Suleiman), which was recognized as a World Heritage Site.

Its history dates back more than one century, and all this time it has been famous as a place of sacred significance, which is also confirmed by petroglyphs on the mountain. Muslims still believe that this sanctuary has a magical meaning, giving those who come here with a request, prosperity, he alth, offspring and everything that the pilgrims ask for.

Mount Suleiman in the city of Osh in Kyrgyzstan has a length of almost 1 km and a height of 1110 m. Tourists and pilgrims can follow the paths to the mountain (for a small fee) and admire the neighboring peaks and views of the city below.

There are cult places on Suleiman-Too, each with its own meaning:

• Sirat Bridge - according to legend, it is the road to the afterlife, which only a person without sins can pass through.
• Ene-Beshik - a hole 2 m wide, which affects the fertility of the female half of humanity.
• Tamchy-Tamar - a manhole that goes 8 m deep, helping to cure infertility and eye diseases.
• Kol-Tash - a hole made of karst rocks, treats diseases in the joints.
• Bel-Tash - a slab 3 m long, a gutter runs in the middle, to cure back diseases you need to drive along it at least 3 times, which is successfully done by children and the elderly.
• Bash-Tash - a hole next to the path, according to popular belief, cures headaches.

At the top of Suleiman-Too there is a chapel "Babur's House", built in the 15th century and restored by local residents in 1989, a museum with local exhibits was built inside the mountain.

What attracts tourists to the mountains

Kyrgyzstan is a country in Central Asia that attracts tourists with its fabulous and beautiful mountains, rich history, unusual culture and interesting traditions. It is considered a mountain paradise for climbers, rock climbers and travel lovers: there are many peaks that climbers strive to conquer in order to receive the title of "Snow Leopard", skiers can train here in winter and summer, hikers and lovers of extreme recreation can go hiking and down rivers.

The mountains of Kyrgyzstan are the land of glaciers and snow-covered fields and peaks, turbulent rivers, blue lakes, many charmingalpine meadows with bright colors and fragrant herbs, a variety of plants and animals.