Aksai Glacier

Ak-Sai Glacier

The glacier is located 40 km from Bishkek in the picturesque Ala-Archa gorge at an altitude of 3500 meters above sea level, within the Ala-Archa National Park.

This gorge is the largest of all the gorges of the Kyrgyz Ala-Too range (part of the Tien Shan mountain system), with a length of over 35 km. The 5 km long Ak-Sai Glacier is the most beautiful of the largest glaciers in the range: Golubina, Top-Karagay, Tuyuk, Adygene, and Ala-Archa.

The glacier and the waterfall of the same name, Ak-Sai, are the most visited attractions of the park. The Ak-Sai Glacier has a huge icefall in its middle section. There are about 50 glaciers in this area. The Ak-Sai spur (Ak-Sai horseshoe) closes the glacial zone of this locality. At its ridge are the highest points of the Kyrgyz Ala-Too range: Uchitel (4527 m), Baichchek (4515 m), Korona massif (4860 m), Box (4240 m), Free Korea Peak (4740 m), Baiylan-Bashi (4700 m), Simagin (4400 m), Teke-Tor (4441 m), Ak-Too (4620 m), and the highest, Semenova-Tian-Shanskogo (4875 m).

For the convenience of climbing the aforementioned peaks and the Ak-Sai Glacier, there are 4 base camps at the foot of the glacier. The most famous of them is the Ratsek hut, from where climbers and travelers make their excursions to these peaks. Hikes in these directions are so popular that there are about 80 established routes. The gorge is home to numerous panoramic points offering magnificent views of the mountains and the surrounding areas.