Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
sive setting and part-timbered older mud-
brick architecture. Just beyond the top of
the smaller, more accessible Twin¨Water-
fall (Vodapad; admission 10som) , a footpath
leaves behind the melee of souvenir stalls
and crosses the stream. It zig-zags up for 15
minutes cutting through a brief taster of the
walnut grove then emerging onto an upper
bank with glorious views over the Babash-
Ata peaks. You can distantly make out the
narrow 80m ribbon of the Long¨Waterfall
(Bolshoy Vodapad; admission 10som) , which is
probably more satisfying than the two-hour
walk to get there (locals go by 4WD) and
15-minute scree scramble to the base.
Turbaza¨ HOLIDAY CAMP
( % 528 40; Rahim Palvan 83) If you're not tired
of people-watching, there's more fun to be
had at the Turbaza , a decrepit yet still ac-
tive Soviet-era holiday camp replete with
punch-machines, an awfully grimy open-air
swimming pool and a ragged disco pavilion
where city kids strut to I'm Sexy and I know
it , watched aghast by heavily veiled local
women. Well worth the 20-minute walk,
straight up from CBT.
2 ¨Activities
CBT (p288) can arrange mountaineering,
skiing and mountain-biking activities, as
well as harvesting walnuts, often at very
short notice. They are very professional but
do tend to press clients to engage a cook as
well as a guide. Such cooks produce lunches
every bit as good as CBT claims, but even
so, for one-day treks there's no need to be
pressured into taking one if you are satisfied
with simply carrying a picnic. Tents/mats/
sleeping bags (per night 200/150/70som) are
available for hire but it's best to bring your
own gear in case CBT run short.
For a full day hike, explore the walnut
forest en route to the shrine of Ibn Abbas,
or the Dashman walnut forest via Gumhana
village and Jaradar.
Mountain¨Biking¨ CYCLINg
(bike-rental/guide per day 600/800som) Half a
dozen bikes are available from CBT, which
suggests three satellite-mapped loop-routes.
Skiing¨ WINTER SPORTS
(ski-rental/sledge-rental/guide/cook per day
300/50/900/700som; h Jan & Feb) In winter
CBT organises alpine touring ski trips into
various high jailoos or even just around the
village according to your requirements and
skill levels. Limited supplies of skis/snow-
shoes and boots are available for hire.
Mountaineering¨ CLIMBINg
(mountaineering-guide/cook/porter per day plus
meals 1200/1000/600som; h summer) Reach-
ing the top of Babashata peak (4427m,
four days round-trip) is somewhere between
trekking and mountaineering, and although
you don't need to be an expert climber you
should have some mountain experience.
CBT organises guides.
Nut¨Harvest¨ AgRICULTURAL ACTIVITY
( h mid-Sep) From mid-September the town
undergoes a mass exodus when locals move
into the forest and go nuts. Each year 1500
tonnes of walnuts (and 5000 tonnes of ap-
ples, pistachios and cherry plums) are har-
vested in the Arslanbob Valley, and by all
accounts gathering nuts is fun. Tradition
dictates that during the harvest each family
kill a sheep and share the meat with their
neighbours. The fire-lit autumn nights are a
time to sing songs, retell stories and eat way
too much greasy mutton.
Trekking
CBT (p288) can arrange trekking options
from a half-day stroll to a 10-day slog to
Saimaluu Tash (with pick-up to Kazarman).
A popular three- to four-day horse-trek
encompasses the four Köl Mazar 'holy'
mountain lakes. Instead of retracing your
steps you can continue over the Kerets Pass
and east along the Kerets Valley, with the
Nurbuu-Tau Mountains to the north, until
you swing south down the Kyzyl¨Ünkür
(Red Cavern) Valley southeast of Arslanbob.
That valley offers its own network of hiking
and fishing routes. You could drive as far
as tiny Kön-Köl, then hike northeast over
the Kymysh Bel Pass (3754m) to the fish-
stocked Kara-Suu Lake. From here you can
head down the Kara-Suu Valley to join the
main Bishkek-Osh road at Kök Bel, between
Kara-Köl and Toktogul, or return on a loop
back to Kyzyl Ünkür via Kön-Köl Pass, either
way making an intrepid week of trekking.
4 ¨Sleeping
There are 18 CBT-affiliated¨ homestays
( % 077-745 0266, 077-334 2476; arslanbob_2003@
rambler.ru; per night incl breakfast 350-400som,
lunch/dinner 100som) scattered very widely
around the village. These are hard to find with-
out help and some are as much as 5km from
the central square/bazaar. The best tactic
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