Do you remember the business people from O. Henry's stories? No, not the adventurous plot where a child is kidnapped for ransom, but another one about how real business is done. Enterprising individuals, discovering that the islanders walk barefoot, immediately decided: business can be made by selling shoes. And they began to sell them, putting everything on the line in the full sense of the word: livestock was slaughtered, leather was tanned, shoes were sewn, and a ship loaded with shoes set sail from the continent to the island. Then, as you may recall, they had to order another vessel: this time with barbed wire, which had to be scattered across the island at night.
It was imperative to make the islanders wear shoes. Only this measure could save the unfortunate entrepreneurs from complete ruin. And it wouldn't have cost much to think about the local tradition of walking barefoot.
Could we find ourselves in a similar situation? Yes, in no time at all. If, of course, we do not take into account the functional-planning system for tourism development, which addresses the issues of urban planning adaptation of natural resources in a given tourist area for the development of a particular type of tourism. Undoubtedly, each region of the republic has its own characteristics, which affect both the number of facilities and their purpose, capacity, etc. Now, let's get started. Where do we begin? With the Northern subsystem. It is currently better developed than the Issyk-Kul and Southern subsystems in all respects: transport, engineering, and so on, and therefore fewer resources will be needed at the initial stage.
Northern Kyrgyzstan
Here lies the highest population density in the republic and the greatest fruits of modern human activity. The capital of Kyrgyzstan, the city of Bishkek, is located here. There are not only historical and cultural monuments and modern cities but also majestic nature, untouched mountains, which are just a stone's throw away from populated areas.
Northern Kyrgyzstan includes the Chui, Chon-Kemin, and Kichi-Kemin valleys along with the slopes of the surrounding ridges of the Kyrgyz, Zailiyskiy, and Kungoy Ala-Too.
The most extensive of all is the Chui Valley, which occupies the left bank of the Chui River in Kyrgyzstan at an altitude of 550 to 1300 meters above sea level. The climate here is continental, dry, with hot summers and moderately cold winters. Despite the fact that the Chui is quite a large river for Central Asia, its plain is low in water. Therefore, a branched network of irrigation structures has been built here, including the Big Chui Canal and smaller ones — Boroldoy and Krasnorechensky.
The Lower Ala-Archa Reservoir and the GES-5 Reservoir stretch out in the vicinity of Bishkek with their wide water surface.
The mid-mountain belt of the Kyrgyz ridge is all cut by gorges of mountain rivers that carry their waters into the valley. Among them are Kara-Balta, Ak-Suu, Sokuluk, Ala-Archa, Alamedin, Issyk-Ata, and Kegety. However, none of them, no matter how much the snow and glaciers melt, reaches the Chui River: the water is used for irrigation.
The northern slopes of the Kyrgyz Ala-Too occupy a large part of the Chui Valley. At the foot of the mountains are numerous springs — kara-suu. In the foothill area above the city of Bishkek stretches a ridge of hillocks, the highest peaks of which are Besh-Kunghey (1150 m) and Shoro-Bashat (1750 m). Between the hillocks and the mid-mountains lies the Baytik depression, which is up to six kilometers wide and 30 kilometers long. The climate of the foothills is not as continental as that of the plain: summers are cooler, and winters are milder.
In the mountains, with increasing altitude, there is a gradual decrease in air temperature, and precipitation increases. Here, waterfalls are often found, as well as small, beautiful lakes of alluvial and morainic origin, and sources of mineral waters. Even higher — there are 480 glaciers, the largest of which are located in the central part of the ridge between the headwaters of the Ala-Archa and Alamedin rivers. This is the so-called Aksai mountain knot of the Ala-Archa range.
In Northern Kyrgyzstan, you can encounter almost all types of landscapes: semi-desert, steppe, forest-meadow-steppe, alpine and subalpine, tundra, and glacial-nival. The semi-desert has been preserved in its pristine form only in small areas of the lowest sections of the Chui Valley — not higher than 1000 meters above sea level. For most of the year, it is unattractive, but in spring, during the period of rapid flowering of grasses, it attracts short-term tourists. Almost all settlements in the region, including the capital of the republic, are located in the semi-desert zone. In summer, when the air temperature rises above 30, and even 40 degrees, the residents find coolness in the micro-zones of the Lower Ala-Archa Reservoir and the GES-5 Reservoir — in these unique oases. Those who are more active work on garden plots located in the foothills or set off along mountain tourist trails.
Steppe landscapes can be found in the foothills and low mountains of the slopes of the Kyrgyz and Kungoy Ala-Too. Summers here are cooler, more precipitation falls, and snow lies for about three months in winter. The steppe foothills are extremely picturesque in spring and early summer when they are covered with a continuous carpet of field flowers. At this time, as well as in winter, this zone can be successfully used for health tourism.
The most attractive in its everlasting beauty is the meadow-steppe landscape, widespread in the mid-altitude part of the slopes of the Kyrgyz and Kungoy Ala-Too at altitudes of one and a half to three thousand meters above sea level. With all the variety of colors — from bright green to fiery red — you will be greeted in summer and autumn by a forest where firs and maples, junipers, and rowans grow alongside birches. The air here is remarkably clean, and as the body works with some load during the ascent, it is abundantly saturated with oxygen. There are many sunny days here, and even in winter, one can sunbathe among the snow caps and ice, settled on a sunny slope protected from the wind. The powerful snow cover, which lasts quite a long time, favors the development of winter tourism, and in summer, you will also find an abundance of mushrooms and berries. However, it should be noted that in summer, along the riverbeds of mountain rivers, the likelihood of mudflows is not excluded, and in winter and spring, avalanches can be expected in certain places.
Alpine and subalpine landscapes, located at altitudes of 3000—3300 meters, are characterized by harsher climatic conditions and are therefore unlikely to be suitable for mass tourism. No matter how alluring the enchanting beauty of alpine meadows may be, it will be difficult for an unprepared person to be here. Nevertheless, even unprepared individuals can ascend here for a short time, and for sports tourists, this place is a paradise.
Tundra landscapes are found only in small areas in the ridge zone of the Kyrgyz ridge at an altitude of about three and a half thousand meters on steep and dissected slopes. Above the mark of 3600 m above sea level begins the realm of eternal snows and glaciers. Here, the conditions for human habitation are extreme, but nothing can compare to this realm in terms of the exoticism of landscapes, boundless expanses, and the beauty of mountain panoramas. Alas, this place is only for high-class sports tourists and climbers.
As diverse as the landscape of Northern Kyrgyzstan is, so rich is the wildlife of this region. In the plain, you can find marmots and hares, wild ducks, and pheasants. In the valley water bodies, there is a lot of fish: carp, osman, marinka, catfish, and silver carp... In the mountains, up to the alpine belt, wolves, hares, and foxes can be found. In the forest-meadow-steppe zone, there are porcupines, roe deer, wild boars, and chukars. And higher, closer to the eternal snows, live even more exotic animals — the mountain goat, the snow leopard, the ulars, and the stone marten.
The Chui Valley has long been famous for its fertility and developed agriculture. The ancient trade route that ran through the valley from Central Asia to Eastern Turkestan, as well as favorable natural and climatic conditions, contributed to the emergence and development of large cities here in ancient times. Few of them have survived; most have vanished without a trace into the depths of the past. However, sparing the remnants of some cities, time has brought them to us as a priceless gift of history, allowing us to glimpse into the mysteries of ancient centuries. Such are the ancient settlements of Burana, Ak-Beshim, and Krasnorechensk.
Today, there are three modern cities in the Chui Valley — Bishkek, Tokmak, and Kara-Balta, a number of urban-type settlements, and dozens of villages and ails that stretch in an unbroken line along the highway.
Northern Kyrgyzstan is divided into the following tourist zones: Bishkek, Alamedin, Ala-Archa, Ak-Suu, Burana, Issyk-Ata, Kara-Balta, Kegety, Phazan, Chon-Kemin, Shamsi. The Bishkek zone is an educational and simultaneously a transport-distribution hub of the entire system. Burana is a historical and cultural zone. Phazan is a specialized zone for national hunting.
