Turgen Gorge

A forested gorge 70 km east of Almaty with a string of waterfalls (Bear Falls is the easy one), trout farms and cottages, and a gravel road on up to the Assy Plateau, summer pastures at about 2,500 m where herders pitch yurts. Issyk Lake, in the next gorge west above the town of Esik, was rebuilt after a mudflow emptied it in 1963; the museum in Esik shows the Golden Man found in the Issyk kurgan in 1969. Usually a day trip from Almaty, or the first stop on the way to Charyn.

Highlights

• Bear Falls and the Kairak waterfall
• Assy Plateau summer pastures and yurts
• Issyk Lake on the way
• The Golden Man at the Esik museum
• Grilled trout from the gorge farms

Things to do

• Walk to Bear FallsMorning · 2h
• Drive up to the Assy PlateauMorning · 5h
• Issyk Lake and the Golden Man museum in EsikAfternoon · 3h

Tours & tickets

When to go

Best time: May – September