Tours in the Karatau mountains.

"Mountain peaks
They sleep in the darkness of the night;
Quiet valley
Full of fresh haze;
The road is not dusting
Sheets do not tremble..."

M. Yu. Lermontov.

Natural sights of South Kazakhstan.

Between the Karakuz mountains in the northeast and the ridge of the Karaadyr and Ortaaiyr mountains in the southeast in the central part of the Karatau ridge is the highest point of Mount Bessaz with a height of 2176 meters.
Mount Bessaz is located in the Sozak district of the Turkestan region in the territory of the Karatau Natural Park. The mountain does not have a characteristic peak, it is the highest part of the ridge, which stretches from the southeast to northwest.
Bessaz in translation from Kazakh means “five sources of moisture” (there are a lot of springs around). Mount Bessaz is located in the northwest of the Kelinshektau massif. The Karatau mountain range is the northwestern spur of the Western Tien-Shan in southern Kazakhstan.
It extends from the Talas Alatau and gradually decreases, passes into the Syras-Chui plain. The length of the Karatau ridge is 420 kilometers. The Karatau Range is divided into East or Small Karatau and South-West Karatau.
Eastern Karatau has a weakly wavy, apex surface composed of Proterozoic shales and sandstones. Southwestern Karatau is cut by numerous valleys and is divided into a number of massifs composed of limestones, sandstones, conglomerates of carbon and volcanogenic rocks of the Devonian.
From the southeastern slopes of Mount Bessaz, small streams begin, which are full-flowing in the spring, in summer most of them do not reach the Sholakkurgan-Sozak automobile road. The most southeastern creek Sarymsakty, which originates from springs and underground filtering channels at an altitude of 1250 meters above sea level.
The next stream is Raysozen, which originates on the southeastern side of the nameless mountain with a height of 1588 meters above sea level. Then follows the streams Karabaibulak, Itmuryn, Enkylak, Almaly, Maybulak and Akshyshoksay.
On the southern side of the mountain, hydrography is represented by streams - Bayaldyr, Tuyetas, Ozen, Baytay, Zhyngylshek, Biresek and Koshkarata. The northwestern part of the mountain is represented by three streams - Toktybai. Mardansay and Ulken Karakuz.

Authority and photo
Alexander Petrov.