How to experience the unique cultures of Xinjiang, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in 70 days (Stop 14 Bokonbayevo) 

Bokonbayevo/Issyk-Kul Lake. Visited 12 -13 July 2024.

After 2 nights in Bishkek, I rode a public shuttle eastward for 5 hours to Bokonbayevo, almost touching Issyk–Kul Lake.

Bokonbayevo is a small town; even the head statue of Lenin is unusually small and situated inconspicuously at the corner of a junction. The snowcaps on the mountain range rise above all the mountains to glow on a sunny day, trying to grab attention. 

The following day, I took a taxi 7 km away to Wild Beach of Issyk-Kul Lake, the world’s second-largest mountain lake. I walked for hours along Wild Beach to Kadzhi Say Beach. The sun was out and beaming but at 1600 meters altitude, it felt like the breeze was blowing like air-conditioners.

The beach was of natural red coarse sand, swimming in clear, calm water. It brought back the memory of South Beach on the Red Sea in Jordan. The lake was still left natural, untampered, and undeveloped. The crowd was sparse, except for local picnickers and yurts. I wandered along the shore and saw some girls dipped in the water while others sat fully clad, content to watch the mesmerizing water from the beach. Some were in the water fully covered and in hijabs, while others just dipped in with tights. No bikini were sighted. The landscape confounded – surrounding the lakes, some mountains were parched brown, some were lush green with vegetation, while others were snowcapped, like cool heads in sunny summer.

It was a wonderful moment of solitude, the perfect spot for a loner. 

To go to the next Stop, click the link below:

How to experience the unique cultures of Xinjiang, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in 70 days (Stop 15 Karakol)

To start from Stop 1, click the link below:

How to experience the unique cultures of Xinjiang, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in 70 days (Stop 1 Urumqi)

The Stops on this Trip:

China Urumqi > Turpan > Kuerle > Kuqa > Kashgar > Kuqa > Nalati (via Duku Scenic Drive) > Kuerdening > Yining > Sailimu Lake > Yining > Urumqi > Buerjin > Kanas Lake > Hemu > China Urumqi > Kyrgyzstan Bishkek > Bokonbayevo (Issyk kul Lake) > Karakol > Kyrgyzstan Bishkek > Uzbekistan Tashkent > Tajikistan > Khujand > Panjakent (and Haft Kul/The Seven Lakes) > Iskanderkul > Dushanbe > China Urumqi > Hami > Dunhuang > Jiayuguan > Zhangye > Lanzhou > Xian

The route map: