Gava-Sai Gorge is a right tributary of the Kara-Unkur River, located 20 kilometers northwest of the district center Bazar-Korgon. In its middle part, about five kilometers long, lies the village of Uzbek-Gava. Surrounded by picturesque nature, it has been home to Uzbeks since ancient times. Not far from the upper boundary of the village, in the forest, there is an experimental site of the national institute of nut growing. From it, a magnificent walnut forest stretches in all directions, where small lakes overgrown with sedge and reeds can be found.
The rare beauty of these forests even compels the most stoic and taciturn people to search for beautiful words and epithets to express the surrounding splendor. As proof, I would like to present a small sketch that the author wrote under the impression of what he saw in the glade of the royal forest many years ago.
The royal forest of Jalal-Abad is, without exaggeration, a magnificent paradise garden, where apples, pears, and plums seem to look right into your mouth, where the wind, like a magician, walks through the trees and calls forth a rain of nuts, where birds are bright and trusting animals, and the snow-white peaks, hanging in the air, seem to soar above the velvety slopes, admiring the reflections of the walnut groves. Streams of tightly twisted water flow under the canopy of leaves, tiny waterfalls gently converse, and drops, pierced by the sun, shine like diamonds. The bent branches of huge royal walnuts, breaking the sunlight, cast whimsical shadows. Brightly colored stones peek out. The forest carpet blooms with a variety of herbs. You cannot get enough of the beauty of the pictures that open from the gentle peaks. You will never cease to marvel at the strength of life contained in the trunks, branches of trees, and stems of grasses.
15 kilometers northeast of the village of Uzbek-Gava, at the foot of the Baubash-Ata ridge (4490 m), lies the ancient village of Arslanbob.
The village is scattered across the slope so that the streets of the village, like streams, flow down to the foot, where the main points of the village are located: the bazaar, shops, and tea house. Here, in the shade of ancient walnuts, stands the ancient tomb - the mazar of Arslanbob-Ata — a historical and architectural monument of the 16th-19th centuries. According to legends, the mazar was built in honor of the legendary gardener who planted the surrounding forests. Not far from the tomb is a shallow cave where a Stone Age settlement was discovered.
Arslan translates from Uzbek as lion. The legend says: in the spring of 328 BC, Alexander the Great held a grand hunt in these forests and personally killed a lion. Since then, the lion has been present in the name of the village and is a kind of symbol of these places. A monument depicting a lion is installed in the very center of the village of Arslanbob.
The crown jewel of the Royal Forest is a large eighty-meter waterfall located six kilometers from the village.
The small waterfall, which has long attracted pilgrims, is located at the upper boundary of the village at an altitude of 1200 meters. It cascades down from a height of 30 meters in several streams into a narrow semicircular crevice, where shrubs and travertine garlands hang from moss-covered steep rocks. The open side of the crevice faces the sun, so for most of the day, a bright rainbow sparkles at the bottom of the waterfall.
The Arslanbob Waterfalls are among the largest and most beautiful in the country.
Arslanbob Waterfall
East of Arslanbob stretches the valley of the Kyzyl-Unkur River (Red Cave), which originates on the watersheds of the Isfan-Dzhailoo ridge. The valley is very picturesque: waterfalls cascade from steep slopes against the backdrop of impressive cliffs and peaks. The main attractions of the valley are the Kyzyl-Unkur tract in the middle part of the valley and the Keng-Köl Lake, surrounded by snowy mountain peaks. The belt of nut forests here is characterized by dense thickets of beautiful sprawling trees. Where conditions are most favorable, the trees are particularly majestic. The strict spherical crowns covering two-meter trunks reach a height of 30 meters.
Kek-Art is a right tributary of the Kara-Darya, collecting waters from the southwestern slopes of the Fergana ridge. The territory has a complex relief - from highly dissected spurs of the ridge to hilly areas of the valleys. Major tributaries Urumbash, Kara-Alma, Kara-Mart, and Changet, originating on the watersheds of the Sogon-Tash and Ak-Tash mountains, form the exposure of the southwestern slopes of the Fergana ridge, extending to the right side of the Kugart River. The mass of walnut-fruit forests occupies an area of more than 150 square kilometers.
The region has enormous resources for organizing soft multi-day mountain adventure programs. Low passes open up great opportunities for organizing various types of trekking, while the rich, one might say, unique flora and fauna offer possibilities for special tours, hunting, and observing rare animals and plants.
