As many Americans were enjoying what they call a 'long' weekend of a 3-day Labor Day holiday, here we have the celebration of Eid where we get 3 days! And according to the moon, it was conveniently Sun-Tues, so basically with Fridays and Saturdays off, that's a nice 5 days off! Well, I tied in a comp day and as we don't know the exact dates of Eids, planned my trip to come back on Monday, and still have the rest of Monday and Tuesday to detox from the trip and organize. Also, the flights to/from Bishkek are only a few days a week and if it wasn't on Monday it would have been on Wed, which would have been a bit tight.
Anyhoo, why Krygystan? And... as many people have asked me, "uhh... where is Krygystan?" And I've also had to correct many times the people I've verbally told that it is not KURD-istan it's KRYGystan. Anyhoo, it brings me back to the 'ol "why not?" I'm here in Dubai, I've done most of the Stan's and Central Asia except for Kazak and Kryg. Many people that know the areas said that Kryg is cheaper, people are nicer, it's safe, and has beautiful nature. SOLD!
Anyhoo, this is Kryg, the light orange color bordering China to the east, Kazak to the north, Uzbek to the west, and Tajik to the south. Besides being most known for it's nomadic lifestyle, it is also known for its' snow leopards! Now THAT's cool! Unfortunately, the snow leopards are majorly endangered due to poachers (boooo), but are most populated there. Also, as with the other Stan's, it is along what was called the Silk Road, the ancient route between China and the Mediterranean.
When I say it was a bit of a whirlwind trip, it was logistically. The only thing I regret a bit is that I had NO idea that it was the World Nomad Games literally EXACTLY when I got there! Ugh, that would have been so so cool to see, very unique. They have participants from all over the world (60+ countries) and was in Bishkek and around. Sigh. Wish i somehow knew about that. Oh well. Then also I really saw... nothing of Bishkek. I know I've been on my "anti-city" rampage these days, more because am so severely deprived of nature here in Dubai, any time LESS in nature I feel is not a good thing.
I spoke to some other travelers, who of course had gone to the Nomad Games, and besides that, they seemed a bit like 'meh," about Bishkek. But to see at least something would have been nice, especially later when I saw there is a park called... The Oak Park!!! Sniff sniff, my old home town in IL.
Here's my itin in a nutshell:
Day 1- Take a night flight and arrive at 5am. Get picked up and take a 6 hour ride to Djety Oguz Valley. Immediately start hiking. Only after a couple of hours we stopped for lunch, thank gawd I had a hefty dinner the night before! Total walking was 4ish hours, relatively comfy.
Day 2 - Hike all day, pretty much from 9-5. This day was 1/2 day uphill, and the later 1/2 was almost straight downhill. Ouch, quad killer with that eccentric loading!
Day 3 - Hike all day, again, from about 9-5ish. This day was almost ALL uphill. And I'm talking STEEP uphill. Phew! I was beat from the day before.
Day 4 - Hike all day again, 8ish hours. This day was again 1/2 uphill and then downhill, supposedly "easier," and yes, it was a smidge less steep, but then again, the downhill wore me out!
Day 5 - 4ish hours of hiking (about 10km), had lunch on the trail. Then immediately got picked up, still hot and sweaty from hiking... and off we went for 6 hours back to Bishkek. Arrived at the hotel at 8pm and before was considering going out a bit, but then my first hot shower or any shower in 5 days beckoned, as well as a nice comfy bed to rest.. and a warm meal and not 'camp' food. Rested a bit, then at 3:30am got picked up to go to the airport for a 6am flight.
See? Not kidding! Poof!
Here is the hiking itin:
Djety Oguz Valley -> Telety Passover -> Ala Kol Lake (slept at 3000m) -> Sirota Keldlike Valley -> Altyn Arashan Valley (hot springs):
So for once don't have too much to blabber about except for how beautiful the nature was!!! It was ALL that I needed and more, really! The air soooooo fresh, the sky so clear, grass so green. Trees! Wildlife (horses, cows, sheep)! Mountains! Lakes so clean and clear! Springs you can drink from! Really, amazing! After the first 1/2 hour, totally felt my body and mind relax. Also, had the silly occurrence of having a head torch for light, replaced the battery just before I left and everything was working fine, but poof! Not so when I was there! So basically went to bed at like 8-8:30pm most of the nights and got up around 6am'ish. It seems like a lot, but you never get good sleep in tents, on the hard ground (even with a sleeping mat), and of course was freezing cold. Had a super sleeping bag, but just can't get comfortable.
Here are some pics!
Lots of pics, I know! My guides, Talant and Ermit, were super sweet young boys, 24 and 20 y/o. Strong too, carrying all that stuff! They were quiet, well-behaved, sometimes goofy, and English was conversational although not the best. So I had a lot of quiet time to myself, especially when hiking, which was fine by me, to enjoy!
Things I am thankful for:
- Thank you Mother Nature! I heart thee! Once again, clear sunny skies everyday. One day we literally JUST got to our little camping spot, and it starting raining.
- Thank you my AWESOME Solomon boots! Really, how wonderful a pair of shoes can be, I just don't know. Especially when you are spending 6-8 hours in them! I love them!
- My merino wool base layer for sleeping. Gosh, those things are just sooo amazing! So warm and comfy. Love it!
- PROBIOTICS! I NEVER travel anywhere without this (well, meaning an exotic country). The BEST thing to prevent stomach illness. Have to knock on wood that because of this I rarely have stomach issues.
- Melatonin - Best travel asset. Ever.
Things I could have done differently....
- PACK LIGHT! Ugh, am REALLY kicking myself with that one. A major lesson in life is NEVER assume things. I somehow was thinking this trek would be similar to my Mongolia one, by having camels and horses and all this fab support. So although I packed... less, OMG, I could have de-loaded A LOT! Then these poor scrawny boyz had to carry it and we ended up re-distributing things so I ended up prob with 10kg or so, but all was good! Felt strong and those waist straps and having a good backpack fit was key!
- Batteries! Even though you JUST put new batteries in your head torch, still bring a spare because it can just magically stop working (as it did for me. So strange!).
Note to Self - if I go on a trekking trip again, do NO more than 4 nights camping, 5 days total! And here is my note to self, a few reminders on packing and what is NEEDED:
- Awesome Solomon hiking shoes
- A spare pair of gym shoes (for evenings). No need for fit flops (which I brought), unless you know you will be going to a lake or swimming
- Hiking poles
- Sleeping bag and mat (or can rent if possible)
- 2 pairs of good quality hiking socks, 1 pair of socks to wear at night (prefer long for this one, like ski socks), 1 pair of gym shoe socks
- 2 pairs of hiking pants - the ones that can become shorts and/or capri's - good quality with pockets and zippers
- 1 merino wool combo of tights and top for sleeping
- 3 cool max T-shirts
- 2 long-sleeve cool-max shirts
- 1 fleece jacket
- 1 puffy down vest
- 2 sports bra's, necessary undergarments
- Sunglasses
- Sunscreen
- 2 hats - one wool warm one, and one for sun protection
- 1 long gator thing that can be used for neck or head
- 1 ear covering fleece
- 1 pair of gloves
- Lip balm with SPF
- 1 roll toilet paper
- Anti-bacterial gel
- 4-5 x granola/protein bars, nuts for snacks
- Toiletries: Face wipes, baby wipes, toothbrush and paste, hair brush
- Garbage bags, zip lock bags - good to keep things dry and or protect your things!
- Eye patch, ear plugs
- MELATONIN! Best thing EVER! Especially as was going to bed around 8:30pm, which technically is 6:30pm Dubai time. Ha! Needed that to fall asleep!
- Swim suit - ONLY if know will be going to hot springs or something (which we were)
- Duct tape - I usually wrap some around something. Surprisingly, this can come in handy for a lot of things (tears in bags, tents, etc).
- Hand lotion (small) - always forget how the crisp mountain air dries the skin!
- Bandaides, Compeed (for blisters)
- Medicine/1st Aid - Antibacterial ointment, ibuprofen, erecyfucyl (spelling, it's this French product that is an anti-biotic for stomach issues), immodium, advil, alcohol wipes
- Entertainment - although a bit of weight, a 'real' book. I think ipad and all that jazz is okay, but the battery dies quickly in the cold and it's straining on the eyes with the head torch (if it works of course!). Suduko. A journal.
Hmm... well, hopefully jot down as I remember, but those are the TOP things that I can remember.
Overall, a super experience! I feel the need to do these things to un-spoil myself from Dubai life and get "grounded" with nature (I am an earth sign, Taurus, after all!)... and to have a tech-free, no commotion, simple life. We woke up when we felt like it, went to bed when it was dark, and took our time (well, I did) trekking and just enjoying the beauty of the surroundings. When I see how the locals live, sooo simple, it really makes me think that the more we have the more we want and we are never satisfied. Those young boys were just so simple, not spoiled with all this "stuff" that is just poisoning our minds and bodies. I DO hope I made an influence on them as they put waaaaaaaaaaay too much sugar in their teas and drinks and also salt everything. NO need! This trip was also just what I needed health wise. Had a bit of a back issue recently and from Day 1, probably hour 1, felt 100% and this progressed to 110% by the end. Hiking and working those gluteal muscles and just MOVING all day is so good for the body! As with every trip, when I get back am just happy that I am back safe and sound, had no health issues, and that I enjoyed it! I really did!
Now onto enjoying some Eid days off! Woo hoo! Mostly doing boring things like catching up on admin stuff, organizing, etc.
Nature doesn't need people. People need nature.
