After a lovely night in a guesthouse in Karakol, we boarded an army truck to drive up to the Altyn Arashan Valley. The trucks had to “walk” over many rocky sections and it reminded us of our land cruiser travelling days.
This trip required us to change vehicles to get over an ice patch
and finally…
Our guest house for the night was nestled in the valley. There were hot springs nearby so after lunch we used the hot springs and walked up the valley. Horses, cows, sheep and even what were later identified as marmots were seen. The snow capped mountains and green valleys were beautiful. It reminded us of walking in alpine valleys and hills in Switzerland.
The night was spent in this setting and at 6.15 am Ian and I decided instead of the first army truck, to walk down. In the crisp early morning it was beautiful and we stopped to take photos and enjoy the early morning!
After returning to our cars in Karakol, we drove to Bishkek around Issykkul Lake.
The scenery changed from the green hills to desert like landforms once more. The Lake drive was beautiful and were reached Bishkek in the evening.
Silk Road by MG 
What spectacular scenery!
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