Tourist routes in Kazakhstan.

“Everything in excess is opposed to nature” 

Hippocrates.

Excursions to the natural attractions of Kazakhstan.

The Karkaraly oasis is of special interest to trekkers and moun-taineers. There are six official trek-king routes and a great deal of other popular, but no less interesting, routes (lasting from one day and upwards). Those who love to climb the rocks instead of walking around them can be recommended the Komsomolskiy Peak, the Shankoz Mountain and many other peaks which can be used for training.
But as the practice shows, most of the hikes in the Karkaraly Mountains often combine trekking and moun-taineering of reasonable complexity (by request, of course). The Komsomolskiy Peak (1403 meters) is located in the south part of the mountain massif.
It was called Komsomolskiy in 1936 when 100 Komsomol members from Karkara-linsk climbed the peak and raised the Red Flag upon it. The western moun-tain side, composed of steep rocks of yellow tints, is rather interesting. It is called Zhirensakal (Red Beard).
Climbing the Komsomolskiy Peak (1-2 category of complexity), which towers some 400 - 500 meters above the locality, is relatively easy but requires caution. The Shankoz Mountain (1360 meters) is the second highest peak in the Karkaraly Mountains.
It is situated in the northwestern part of the massif. The Bezymyanniy (Nameless) Peak (1332 meters), which is also called Medved (Bear), Ak-Ayu ('white bear' from Kazakh) or Bugyly, is situated 1.5 km from Lake Shaitankol.
There are three small lakes near the top of the mountain.The Pionerov Peak (northeast of lake Pashennoye) and the Semi Bratyev Range (or Semibratka in the spoken language) with its highest peak Koktyube (1254 meters) enjoy popularity as well.
One of the most popular trekking routes, which has been used by tourists for many years, takes 5 days. It enables tourists to see the most interesting places of the massif. The route begins from the Karkara-linskaya tourist center (turbaza).
On the first day the passage to the Komissarovka village (10 km) is undertaken, during the second day tourists reach the foothills of the Komsomolskiy Peak (10 km), and the next day they climb the peak. The forth day includes the passage to Lake Pashennoye (7-8 km), the fifth one  the passage to Lake Shaitankol (about 6 km) and farther via Lake Bassein along the Karkaralinka River to the town of Karkaralinsk (about 12 km).

Authority:
Advertising booklet of Karkaraly National Park, 2003.

Photos
Alexander Petrov.