Hello, today I would like to tell you about my return visit to the Chukuraksu and Terekli waterfalls.
I spent almost the whole summer at home, having got out only to Boysun for blitz-ascent of the three-thousander Sanjar. And now it's time to get backpack out of the basement again and try to squeeze my obese body into hiking pants. Having somehow buttoned up my pants, at the appointed time I arrived at the meeting point. This time the departure was scheduled quite late and therefore it was not possible to photograph the sunrise. It's a pity...
Leaving the dusty city, we headed towards the mountains. I have already walked this route last year, though not with "Mysterious Uzbekistan", but with their competitors. This time I decided to go with "Mysterious Uzbekistan" and compare. Looking ahead, I will say that there was not much difference in the service, except that the border posts passed faster than a year ago :). Another thing is that it was more fun to walk with a familiar guide.
As last time, we arrived at the border post, where we were met by a fully equipped border guard (who could not be photographed) and unloaded from a comfortable Mercedes. After about ten minutes, UAZ arrived. If last time we drove side by side on the floor of the car, then in the current cars there were benches. But they made the ride even more uncomfortable. No matter how hard I tried to put my hands on the walls, I still beat off my seat. Then for a couple of days I could only sit on soft chairs :).
In addition, this time the program was somewhat different - Chukuraksu was the first in the list of waterfalls. I think the reason was the great popularity of this route. In the announcements of travel agencies, I saw that 2-3 groups are recruited there every week. And only there were more than 20 of us. Apparently, so that we do not crowd and do not interfere with each other, it was decided to swap locations.
We quite briskly climbed to the waterfall and began to take pictures. The whole group was fresh and adventurous. Therefore, we did not linger for a long time at the "Bride Veil" and after taking a couple of selfies, we headed back.
Having appreciated the merits of YouTube, I decided to dilute the photos in my posts with small video clips. This way the atmosphere and beauty of the place is better conveyed.
Going down to the cars, we went to the next obligatory part of the trip - a dilapidated cable-stayed bridge hanging over the stormy waters of Pskem.
This time the water in Chatkal was noticeably less and the current was calmer, but I would not dare to dive there anyway.
Part of the team crossed the flimsy swinging bridge to the other side and went to take pictures on the rocks. I risked only reaching the middle of the bridge, took a couple of photos and came back. By the way, this is progress for me. I've been here twice already and did not risk climbing the bridge. Painfully, it swayed strongly and sagged under my weight. And then the wind blew out and thin (albeit metal, but damn thin) cables vibrated.
And so, when everyone tickled their nerves to their fullest, we loaded back into the cars and drove on.
We got to the Kyrgyz border post. This time, the verification of documents was much faster. It's a pity, I would like to stretch out a little. If usually the Kyrgyz border guards are on duty in sneakers, T-shirts and with AK-47, then this time they were dressed in uniform properly. It is a pity that Kyrgyz border guards cannot be photographed either.
Well, then began an hour of painful shaking on potholes in clouds of dust.
When we got to the next Uzbek border post, I was a little glad that we could stretch our bones a little. But no, as soon as I got out, the guide drove everyone back and we went on.
At the starting point of our hike, there was a pandemonium. On this day, at least three groups decided to walk to the waterfalls and the area was packed with cars. By the way, do you see GAZ-66 and ZIL trucks? It turns out they carry people in the bodies of these old men. Here, there is no need to talk about of a minimum of comfort. I complained about our UZA - but compared to this mode of transportation, UAZs are the height of comfort.
Anyhow, we arrived, unloaded, had a little snack and hit the road. There was noticeably less water, so it was not difficult to wade.
Last year, this path seemed to me quite long and relatively difficult. However, this time I did not have time to look back, as we crossed the thickets of reeds and went out to the ford.
Crossed the river ...
The water, by the way, was pleasantly cold on my feet.
... And we ended up at the Terekli waterfall. Only 20-30 minutes passed. Here's the whole trip. There were a lot of people here, but there was not enough water ... Somehow, the hike ended quickly, I was even slightly disappointed. While the people were taking pictures by the water, I lay on the karemat and gnawed on an apple. At some point it dawned on me that the local Terekli-Say River and the Caucasian Terek River have common roots. Indeed, some experts believe that the hydronym Terek has Türkic roots and in the Hunno-Bulgar dialect (or language, I don’t know how correctly) “Terek” means “river”. However, in the Turkic languages "terek" is translated as "poplar", which, in principle, is not devoid of meaning. There are indeed a lot of poplars along the Terekli-say.
Well, an apple is an interesting fruit! It is useful for digestion and develops cognitive functions, as it turned out. I think Sir Isaac Newton would agree with me :).
We lied on the rocks, took pictures and headed back. At the gathering place, we put ourselves in order and loaded the long-suffering bodies into the cars. I remember the whole trip with a terrible shaking. I think for the third time I will not go along this route :).
This trip took place in early September. A week later there was a very dusty hike along Yuzuruk. Also today early morning I returned from two-days trip in Boysun. But more on that in the next posts!
!pinmapple 41.478048 lat 70.191831 long Familiar trails or a trip to the Terekli and Chukuraksu waterfalls, Tashkent region, Uzbekistan d3scr