Big Almaty Lake: recreation, address, photo

If you are a fan of extreme leisure, hiking, you get pleasure from the unknown, then go to the Big Almaty Lake. Once you get to it, you will already experience such emotions that you will remember them for a long time. The fact is that part of the way will have to be passed on foot, since not all cars are able to overcome steep climbs. Therefore, you must be physically hardy to decide on such a route. But the species opening from above are worth it.

What is this lake?

It was formed as a result of the long-term action of the glacier, which gradually leaves here. He retreated, left a heap of various detrital material - the so-called moraine: the earth, stones, gravel. Over time, melt water gradually filled the hollow, which formed after the glacier. In the last century, in the sixties, a whole cascade of hydroelectric power stations was built in this gorge, and, accordingly, water fence structures were installed here.

In 1977, these places were attacked by the countryside, and in the early eighties a natural dam was strengthened, and its height was increased by eight to ten meters. The possibility of destruction, thus, was eliminated. Since that time, the Big Almaty Lake has always been pleased with our views. And from its shores a real enchanting panorama of mountains with peaks shining from the snow opens.

Description of the lake

2 511 meters above sea level - at this altitude is located this lake. Its length is about 1,600 meters, the width reaches one kilometer, and the depth in some places reaches 35 meters. In summer, the temperature of the water sometimes rises to 10-12 degrees, which, given the height, is not surprising. The Big Almaty Lake is located closer to the city of Almaty than other mountain reservoirs. It is located at a distance of only 28.5 kilometers south of the capital.

The lake is part of the Ile-Alatau National Park. The coastline is three kilometers away, there is a very large volume of water mass: 14,000,000 m ³ . In February and August, every year up to 20 meters the recorded value of the water level fluctuates. The lake is considered to be very popular, ideal for recreation. There are plenty of places to stay over here, and there is no point in mentioning the beauty of nature once again. There is only one difficulty - the road, but it is passable.

We visit the Big Almaty Lake: how to get to this paradise?

Lead to this beautiful place is not bad, mostly dirt road. If you want, you can reach the destination by car in half an hour from the microdistrict "Orbita", the former capital of Kazakhstan . But the best memory will remain if you dare and decide to walk on foot. In this case, you need to get to a little above the ring road on Navoi Street and Al-Farabi Avenue, to the bus stop No. 93 and No. 28.

If you are going on a hike during the weekend, it is advisable to get out of the house early, or you'll have to "storm" the vehicle, since many more people want to rest in the open air than can take one unit of public transport. Especially because the flights for some reason are not enough. In the event that you were lucky and managed to get on the bus, you need to get to the final flight number 28 or to the stopping point "Second Hydroelectric Station" - numbers 93. Further on foot along the road you will have to go somewhere about 15 kilometers. Far from it, of course, but it's worth it.

What you can see if you go higher

The beauty of the reservoir we are discussing will wait a little longer, and we'll see that in these places can still please the look. So, in front of us is the Big Almaty Lake. How to get to it, we have already learned, at least, examined in detail one of the options. If you walk north from the dam, you will see a magnificent view: at an altitude of 4 317 meters - the peak of the Soviets, located in the southeast. In the event that you go along the river valley up to the south, at an altitude of 4 110 meters there will be the Ozerny peak. If you move from the reservoir to the south-west, climbing to 3 954 meters, you will find wooded slopes of the famous Tourist peak.

Even from the city you can see the pyramid, located west of the Tourist. It is 3,681 meters high, it is the crest of the summit of Greater Almaty. There is the power to go higher - rise to 2,700 meters. Once over the bowl of the blue lake , you will enter a glacial valley, very ancient, where the settlement of the observatory with domes is located, very spectacular in appearance. And above, next to the Zhasylkezene Pass, climbing to 3,300 meters, you will see a space station that studies various light rays.

Most of the way - by car, then - by foot

Although it is believed that you can get to the lake by car, but still most travelers do not want to lose all opportunities to get maximum impressions from walking around these marvelous places. Basically, tourists pass a part of the way by car or book a bus tour. Most often, however, they agree with the taxi drivers. A trip to the lake takes the whole day. Do not try to speed up the road, it will be eight or ten hours. In general, by car we reach the already known ring of Navoi, and from this place we move to the mountains.

We will tell in more detail how to drive to the Big Almaty Lake. Before you, soon after the beginning of the recovery will be an ecological post, located in front of the fork in Almaarasan and the lake itself. The fare is paid, the cost is 350 tenge per person, which is approximately 106 Russian rubles. Before reaching the water supply pipe of the city somewhere one kilometer, it is best to get out of the car and continue the journey on foot.

Continuation of travel

Now you can uncover the camera and shoot all the beauty around you. And there are many of them here. When there are two hundred meters left before the beginning of the pipe, you will meet another barrier. If you continue your journey by car, you will have to shell out for 3 000 tenge (this corresponds to approximately one thousand rubles). This is the beginning of your hiking road to the Big Almaty Lake, which is not easy, to be honest. It is possible (and this method is the easiest) to go through the pipe. In this way you will have to cross only three kilometers to the lake. But the pipe is often freshly painted or slippery. In this case, you need to go along the road - about eight kilometers up.

So let's go. A steep climb is overcome in 30 minutes, then the terrain is more shallow. You can go and enjoy the climbing, the beauty around, the pine fresh air. For a while, you stop looking, and sooner or later a miracle happens - you approach the long-awaited lake, the water of which has the color of sapphire. Along the way, here for recreation you can make a small picnic, refresh yourself, gather with forces, relax under the firs, explore the nearby hills and make a photo session.

What attracts tourists to the lake?

Rising to the pond, immediately notice the wild, unapproachable beauty of these places. There is no, fortunately, no rafts, no cafes, no beaches. You can see except, of course, the lake, only the trees and rocks and let the wind feel. Therefore, it is advisable to bring a thermos with tea, a rug, a scarf and a sweater. What it is necessary to organize, having risen on the Big Almaty lake? Rest, which you will certainly need after a very long recovery. To do this, you need all the catechumens a little higher a list of items.

And travelers always take food with them. If you climb here two times - in winter and summer, you can see how the lake changed: from turquoise-blue it became light green. In addition, in winter it sometimes freezes. The view from here at this time of the year is not less fascinating than in the summer. No wonder some tourists prefer to visit the pond in January, and not in July.

Recreation places

Going to the Big Almaty Lake, few people think about a lodging for the night, about a further trip. Usually everything ends with the contemplation of the surrounding beauty, the water body itself. Some people, despite the cold and windy climate, stay here for the night. There are people who spend in these places more than one day. Some of them equip the night on the shore, are in tents, some move further - approximately two kilometers away is the astronomical Tien-Shan Observatory.

In it you can see the sky, the stars. Very close to the hotel there is a hotel in which you can stop to observe the sky through the telescope at nightfall. You can agree with the administration and that you have an excursion around the observatory. Yes, there is also a dining room.

Summary

Those who come here only once in their lives, try to visit more interesting places. Arriving at the right address (Karasai District, Kazakhstan), they inspect all the natural beauties. To begin with, travelers explore the Big Almaty Lake as much as possible. The photos taken here after the trip still remind us of the pristine beauty of nature and surprise the people who were not on the lake yet.

And what kind of view opens from here! The most beautiful mountain landscape is the Prohodnoe gorge, the Big Almaty peak and the Tourist peak. Both are climbing. Having visited these high places, you can find yourself in the largest city of Kazakhstan in just one and a half hour with all its goods and entertainment.