Charyn Canyon, Kazakhstan

We picked up our 4x4 hire car on the outskirts of Almaty and made our way to the first stop of our road trip, the Charyn Canyon. Not only would this be our mode of transport but also our home for the next 4 days as it came with a roof tent. This was super convenient and very easy to set up as it meant we could bring quite a lot of kit with us and it simply folded out on top of our 4x4.

The canyon is about a 2.5 hour drive from Almaty and gave us our first glimpse of Kazakhstan’a beautiful scenery. We got to the entrance to the site and found a good place to position our car for the night. When we arrived at about 5pm there was still a few people there as it is a popular day trip from Almaty. We put our boots on and headed towards the canyon, deciding to stay at the top and look down at it rather than hike to the bottom and walk through it, as this was our plan for the next day. In the low evening sunlight we were given spectacular views of the canyon and the surrounding valleys. By the time we got back everyone else had left and we had the whole place to ourselves. We assembled our new home and put the stove on to make some delicious local instant noodles. The only other person we spoke to was one of the park rangers. A cheeky elderly man who tried to say we had to pay him to camp there. We knew this was not the case as this was included in our park entry fee. He was asking in Russian (we speak zero Russian) and giggling at the same time so it was only a half hearted attempt. We finished our noodles and for an early night as we wanted to be up for sunrise.

We woke up to a chilly morning but any feeling of discomfort was blown away when we opened our tent and saw the sun rising over the canyon. It was simply beautiful and mother nature at its best. Whilst Liv started putting breakfast together Rory ran to the top of the canyon to get some early morning drone shots. After breakfast we hiked down to the canyon and started our walk through where at the end you meet the fast flowing river. It was still only 7am and we had the whole place to ourselves. It’s hard to put in to words how stunning it is. We stopped occasional to fly the drone and take photos but we were mainly just walking and taking it all in. The canyon is a red and golden brown colour and is nicknamed the “Valley of Castles”. After 1 hour or so we came to the river where we spent a bit of time waking up and down stream, still being the only people there. Walking back up the canyon you get a different view and it’s a slow very gradual climb which you start to feel in your legs! By 9am it was already roasting hot so we recommend visiting first thing the morning or just before sunset. The whole walk through the canyon and back took us about 2.5 hours but this also allows for plenty of time to take photos and exploring the river.