Mineral Springs of Shilbeli contain the least mineralized naturally carbonated water in Kyrgyzstan. They are located in the basin of the Karakuldja River, 80 km directly east of the city of Uzgen, on the right bank of the Shilbeli stream valley, which is a left tributary of the middle course of the Surtaš River. The absolute elevation of the area where the Shilbeli springs are located is close to 3200 m. There are two groups of springs at a distance of 350 m from each other; in terms of carbon dioxide content and salt content, as well as in the ratio of macrocomponents, the water is the same in both cases: it is 99% fresh and bicarbonate equivalent, naturally magnesium-calcium with a mineralization that drops to 0.4 g/l. The carbon dioxide content in it reaches 2.4 g/l, so a hand dipped into the spring is covered with a solid "coat" of gas bubbles within a minute. However, you cannot keep your hand in the water for long — the temperature of even the highly carbonated streams rarely exceeds 10°C, and such water is not very suitable for bathing, even if it is carbonated.
The approach to the Shilbeli springs is not easy — the path often gets lost in the scree along the foot of the slope, and you have to cross the stream multiple times and navigate around or over snow drifts, which can still be several meters thick even at the end of August.
