Already before I came to Almaty, I knew that there would be plenty of hikes to do just at the city's doorstep. Doing some more research once I got there, I found a day hike that sounded pretty cool. The hike included four peaks and an altitude difference of about 1800 meters, so I knew I was in for a strenuous day. Checking the weather forecast, it seemed quite good for the day after and so I set off from my hostel early next morning. Arriving at the bus station, I took the bus number 12 to the Medeo Ice Rink and started to walk from there just a bit after 8 am. The first part was along a paved road and not very interesting until I reached the official trailhead about 30 minutes later. There the trail ventured into the woods and I knew I had to keep left to stay on the nicer side of the valley that followed later on. So as soon as the first trees were behind me, I turned left onto a steep ascending slope and before long joined the trail I would be walking on for the next hour. Coming upon another turnoff a little bit later, I knew that I could take either way so I just opted to stay on the more direct one. Well, the more direct one was probably also the more steeper one. :) But then somehow I had to gain the altitude and I might as well start with that right now. So up I went that steep slope and a couple times the trees opened up to reveal a pretty nice view back towards Almaty. When this first ascent was finally over, I came out of the woods and saw the way to go, clearly in front of me. Peak Furmanova, the first peak, could already be seen and so was the way along the ridge to my left.
Carrying on, all I did the whole time was keeping on walking upwards. Most of the time it was rather steep, sometimes also a bit gentler, but up it went without a break. Turning around every now and then, Almaty could still be seen, but slowly vanished from view. There was just too much haze around and it was already hard to tell the outlines of the city.
Coming to an old Soviet skiing lift, the slope finally leveled out for a while and about a hundred meters later, I found what I had been reading about the day before: a swing. :) Whoever built it, did it with a good sense for the view and probably no one can resist to get on there. Neither did I. :)
It was just a short break though, as I wanted to walk on as long as the weather was still that good. Peak Furmanova came closer and closer and soon I reached the junction where I started the final ascent. Like always, the final slope was the steepest and for once also included a little scramble over some boulders. Reaching the top, I actually was a little bit disappointed, as Peak Furmanova had looked way more impressive from further down below. Now standing on top of it, it felt like I was on a hill, even though I stood over 3000 meters already. :) The views were nice enough though. Almaty was gone in the haze, but to my left the Tien Shan Mountains were rising up and ahead of me I could already see the second peak of today, Peak Panorama.
As this one was much higher, I decided to take a break up there and resumed my hike after I took the mandatory pictures from Peak Furmanova. Reaching a ridge after another steep ascent, the whole Tien Shan Mountain range unfolded before me and I stood there in awe, admiring the scenery. Incredible that you can get such a view, just a few hours from a city with almost two million citizens. Walking all the way up to Peak Panorama itself, it did its name definitely justice.
Another little peak barred the view in the direction I wanted to go and so I decided to carry on after a 10 minutes break. Reaching the tiny peak soon, I could see peak number three, Peak Bashuta, ahead of me. As this one was higher again and also not too far away, I just kept on walking. It was still my goal to get as far as possible while the sun was shining and the first clouds had already appeared in the sky. Nevertheless, there also was enough time to admire the beautiful view around me.
Arriving on Peak Bashuta, I took another break and studied the way ahead of me. A steep wall was all I could see and while I soon figured out that I had to get up there, I wondered where exactly the way was going along. Well, there was no point in lingering around too long, as the clouds started to intensify. Approaching the foot of the ascent, I could make out a way far above me and a little bit later actually saw another hiker moving slowly upwards. Cool, that was good to know and even better for me, I was able to find the entry to the path at the bottom of the slope. So up it went again, sometimes with good foothold, sometimes without, but at least there was some sort of path recognizable all the time. :) Arriving on the ridge above, the other hiker took a break there and greeted me with the words: "How are you?" - "Well, right now, I'm out of breath!", was all that I could reply, wheezing away like an old steam train. :) I didn't want to bother him too much though and therefore carried on along the ridge until I found a nice spot to eat my lunch and enjoy the magnificent panorama in front of me. Mountains wherever I looked and surprisingly, for a hike that close to Almaty, I actually had met almost no people along the way.
Unfortunately during my lunch break the clouds moved in and obscured everything around me. That was a bit a pity, as I had to carry on sooner than I wished. Not wanting to be caught in the clouds, fog or a thunderstorm, I moved onwards after my lunch to the fourth and last peak, Peak Shymbulak. On that peak were some other hikers and I knew that they must have come from the pass below, as they definitely didn't came the way I took. That was a relief, as I knew now that I would make it down for sure. From the peak, the way led over stones and boulders further along the ridge and some more scrambling was unavoidable. At the end of the ridge, an arrow pointed down towards the cable car and at the same time that was the only view left that was not obscured by clouds. :) I was fine with that, as it made for an easy descent.
Down at the pass I decided to walk to Shymbulak, rather than to take the cable car and turned onto a dirt road that led from the pass. The road soon vanished in the fog and I barely could see as far as five meters. Nevertheless, I felt save all the time as I could hear the cable car next to me and as I could follow some excavator tracks in the dirt. The only hassle were all the loose stones and I slipped regularly, which together with no views at all made this part the worst of the whole day.
Reaching Shymbulak, I felt like in a different world after the loneliness in the mountains before. Many tourists were there, tons of shops and cafes could be seen, entertainment was given with a trampoline, a rope course and the possibility to hold a huge falcon while dressing as a Kazakh nomad. Instead of taking the cable car to Medeo, I thought I could use some more walking and brought the remaining five kilometers also on foot behind me. For a long time that meant walking on the main road, until a sign recommended to take the "tourist way". That trail wasn't too entertaining as well, but definitely better than walking along the main road. Coming to a dam, a nice view unfolded towards the Medeo Ice Rink and from there I could see that it was used as a Go Kart racecourse in summer. :) Descending the longest stair ever, I was soon back at Medeo and there was enough time left to celebrate today's hike and effort with a cold beer. A super cramped bus brought me back to Almaty and from there I carried on towards Shymkent and a last little adventure in Central Asia. :)
Highlight of the day: definitely the views from the three last peaks
This hike is for you if: - you're in a good shape - you always wanted to stay on four peaks in one day
- you want a panoramic view of the Tien Shan Mountains - you want to escape the crowds
This hike is not for you if: - you struggle with steep slopes - you don't like some scrambling along the way - you can't handle the 1800 meters altitude difference
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