Almost Heaven, South-East Kazakhstan!

Todays 4x4 journey was a surreal experience that brought us both to happy, grateful tears. We could not believe that we were given the opportunity to travel with the camp team, off road through the stunning mountains and valleys, in this picturesque area of South-East Kazakhstan. Our driver played beautiful relaxing instrumental music and with windows down, and eyes fixed on the scenery, we traversed the glorious mountain ranges for 2 hours with a mix of terror and delight. We have total respect for our driver who maneuvered around sharp and often blind corners at the cliffs edges and up and down both sides of the mountains and through the valleys, staying cool and collected through it all. We arrived at camp about 12:30 and had a dip in the river while the tents were being set up and then spent the remainder of the afternoon, sitting in the shade reading and sorting through photos. One of the members of the camp crew went to a nearby town for water and other supplies and brought us back an ice cream cone. I am in love! They also set up the portable sauna for our personal enjoyment. I had fun heating up in the sauna and cooling off in the river. Just what the doctor ordered! The rest of the group did a valley trek today and returned to camp about 3:30, hot and tired but happy with their day.Read more