From Karakol, we continue by bike. We have plenty of plans, such as passing the Ala Too range by another high pass to Naryn … but we have less than 10 days left, and the weather conditions are far from perfect with heavy thunderstorms in the mountains; two Italian cyclists tell us that they come down from Ala Too where the road is almost inexistent now. Finally, we follow the south shore of Issyk Kul which has no heavy touristic infrastructure as on the Northside of the lake, rather abandoned hotels and cottage villages at some places, as a testimony of “better times” when there was still active mining industry here, and people came from everywhere in USSR for spending holidays at Issyk Kul. But it is “alive”, there are villages and small beaches almost all the way.
The road quality is variable, sometimes just perfect but often rather mediocre slowing us down even more … we tried to optimize the weight, nevertheless we carry along walking shoes for the trek, and crampons and ice axes that we have not really used – except for fighting against the brushwood and flattening campgrounds.

Day 1: 30km and a 250m climb to Jeti Ögüz kurortu
We leave Karakol in almost hot and sunny weather, on a much busier road than we expected. At Jeti Ögüz, we decide to climb up the valley to see the famous red sandstone rocks. The road is rather bad but quiet, but as we progress, the sky up there in the mountains gets darker and blacker, and we end up in a heavy rain. We find shelter and a cup of tea in the truck of a beekeeper, Giorgia, a former officer at Kyrgyz KGB who tells us everything he knows about France – which is more than we know about Kyrgyzstan; then we try a yurt guesthouse that is totally flooded but where we are invited for a meal. We finally spend the night in the “kurortu” in a real house to which we are led by a group of kids.

Day 2: 55km mainly downhill to Jenish
The morning is still grey and almost rainy and we leave late after having waited in vain for better views and perhaps an opportunity to continue upwards, the valley is told to be beautiful further up. But down at Issyk Kul the sky looks brighter. We still haven’t seen the lake shore and we try to hurry up to reach the lake at Jenish where we take the first opportunity to drive down to the beach. We find what seems to be a popular place for local families, there is a guardian collecting the parking fee --- not for bikes --- and selling cold drinks. In the evening, we are the only ones staying, and it becomes a quiet place.

Day 3: 66km of flat terrain to Ak Arsha (Kaji Sai)
This day the weather is nice over the lake but it is still dark in the mountains. It is pleasant cycling here, always very close to the water. At lunch, we stop close to Tamga in a tchaikhana at the beach, and at another beach for swimming. Then, there is one other village (Tosor), and then suddenly nothing anymore, even the traffic almost stops. In this landscape made from red sandstone, the damage of the rain of the last days is still well visible. At sunset, we cross a memorial of the famous Kyrgyz writer Chinghiz Aitmatov ; it is run-down, even destroyed, but probably still worth a small visit, but we must hurry to find water, and there are still a few km to go until the next village.

Day 4: 65km with a 500m climb over the Keskek Bel pass to Shor Bulak The beach at Ak Archa wakes up early. Already before sunrise, the first joggers and swimmers arrive, and the little village has several kafesi and small shops selling beach equipment. A few km further, at Ton, we leave the coast until the evening. First we climb on a plateau where is situated Bokonbaev, the only place since Karakol that one could call a city; it has a city center with a bazar and plenty of small restaurants. Beyond Bokonbaev, the valley starts to gently climb, and finally we reach the Keskek Bel pass followed by a wonderful, long descent, just a few meters uphill, back to the lake. Approaching the lake, we get the sun back. The landscape is extremely dry above the road and almost swampy and full of mosquitos from the road down to the lake shore; and it is time to camp. The beach of Shor Bulak is a nice place once the mosquitos sleep. The locals seem to know about this, they come for a swim in the night.

Day 5: 80km of almost flat terrain to Kotchkor (first part)
The most beautiful morning on the lake shore! Finally we see the snow covered mountains on the north and south side of the lake, but this is our last day at Issyk Kul, after a halt on another less mosquito-infested beach, we leave the lake at Ottuk by the end of the morning ….