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Barskoon pass.

Trip from Issyk-Kul lake to Pass Barskoon.

«A lake is the landscape's most beautiful and expressive feature. It is earth's eye; looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature»

Henry David Thoreau.

Familiarization tour to Karakol and Naryn.

Barskoon pass is located at an altitude of 3754 meters above sea level in the main ridge of the Terskey Ala-Too ridge on the watershed between the Issyk-Kul basin and the Arabel valley in the Jety-Oguz district of the Issyk-Kul region.
From the northern side of the Barskoon pass, the 62-kilometer-long Barskoon River originates, which flows into the Barskoon Bay on the southern coast of Issyk-Kul Lake. From the south-eastern side of the Barskoon pass, the Arabel-Su river, 41 kilometers long, originates, which is one of the rivers of the headwaters of the Naryn River.
Around the pass there are peaks reaching a height of more than 4000 meters and glaciers. On the northeast side of the pass are nearby, nameless peaks 4520 and 4614.4 meters above sea level. On the western side of the pass are nearby, nameless peaks 4386 and 4164 meters above sea level.
The northern slope of the pass is steep and short, breaks off to the southern coast of Issyk-Kul Lake, the southern slope is low and gentle, which passes into the Arabel valley located on the syrt plateau between the southern slopes of the Terskey Ala-Too ridge and the northern slopes of the Sook ridge.
Through the Barskoon pass there is a road connecting the syrts of the Inner Tien-Shan with the Issyk-Kul valley, and a high-voltage power line. By road A 364 you can get to the Kumtor mine, the Karasai border outpost, the Uchkoshkon deposit, and through the Ashu-Suu pass you can get to the Uzengegush river valley.
600 meters southeast of the Barskoon pass, to the right of the road, there is a small lake Barskoon from which the Arabel-Su river flows. 2.4 kilometers to the southeast, at an altitude of 3779.1 meters above sea level, there is a high-mountain lake Dzhashyl-Kel Zapadnoe.
At 8 kilometers southwest of the pass is the dominant mountain Chymchyk, 4467.2 meters above sea level. The road through the Barskoon pass is open all year round.
Geographic coordinates of Barskoon Pass: N41°53'38.77" E77°41'26.28"

Author and photos
Alexander Petrov.