Transhumance, Kyrgyzstan

Our Kyrgyzstan expedition takes us to the far southern reaches of the country near the border with China, a remote region that is not yet on the main tourist trail. Riding between small villages, through sweeping valleys and mountain passes, we arrive at a landscape that feels like the edge of the world. Deep valleys are carved between nearly vertical hillsides peppered with yaks, snow-capped peaks tower over us even when we are at 10,500 ft/3,200 m, and we stay at a cozy family-run yurt camp.

The Transhumance, a bi-annual livestock move, is one of the main features of the expedition and it gives a real look into Kyrgyz culture. We don’t sugarcoat because part of the magic of the trip is truly living in a different landscape with a different mentality, where time and schedules don’t make sense beside the rhythm of livestock and the weather of the mountains.

We experience the magic of Köl Suu, an alpine lake that is filled with surreal turquoise waters after wet and cold years. After dry and warm years, it is empty and we can ride among the sheer lake walls for miles, sometimes spotting tracks of the elusive bears and wolves that roam the mountains. We finish our trip visiting eagle hunters. Although we return to more populated areas, the experience is all the more rich for the contrast of modernity with the centuries-old tradition of raising and training eagles.

This trip will open you to Kyrgyz culture and allow you to traverse a breathtaking and humbling landscape aboard stocky and incredibly strong Kyrgyz mountain ponies. This is a trip for those with a hunger for adventure and the unexpected, grit, and a sense of humor!