Long Distance Hiking in Kyrgyzstan

Long Distance Thru Hikes in Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan is best for shorter treks, from day hikes to week-long treks. The internet is full of guides and trip reports for those hikes. They include of couple of my reports, including for Peak Karakol, Song Kol Lake and the Saymaluu-Tash Petroglyphs Hike.

For longer distance trails and thru hikes, there are some new routes being pioneered. None of these are actual single continuous trails, but rather routes stuck together from road walks, trails, livestock tracks and off-trail open terrain. None can considered well-travelled routes.

Kyrgyz Nomad Trail

First up is the Kyrgyz Nomad Trail, a west-east route across Kyrgyzstan. It’s in a “beta“ phase and much of the practical information is yet to be provided (such as food resupplies, accommodation, border zone permits, etc. ) You need to submit your email and contact info the get the preliminary GPS track. You can see a very route outline map here.

Kyrgyzstan Traverse

Next is the north-to-south route hiked by Jérémy Bigé that started in northern Kyrgyzstan and ended in western Tajikistan. You can see the route and download a GPX or KLM file here. He has simply named the route “Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan Traverse on Foot.“ You can see his trip report with practical information here in French, which you can easily translate online. Direct link to English translation here.

Alay Traverse

This is an ongoing project of mine. The Alay Traverse does not attempt to cross the country, but rather it is confined to one mountain range: the Alay Range of southern Kyrgyzstan. I have completed the low route in 2025 and I am working of finishing the more challenging high route. Info at this link.

Other routes

Someone is working on stitching together a route that comes from either Tajikistan or China and continues on to Kazakhstan. It seems to mix in mountaineering, so it may not be strictly a hiking route. I’ll post a link if the person behind that ever makes an announcement.

The challenges of Kyrgyzstan

The wet cold northern regions of Kyrgyzstan have a short season. I personally would want to be done with all high passes there before the end of August. And you probably can’t start until sometime in July after the snow in the passes melts.

Resupplying is problematic, with your only food choices in many isolated places being small village shops that don’t have very healthy food. You may also need to do long food carries to get between resupply points. And recharging batteries will be a challenge in these areas. You would probably need a very large external battery pack to play it safe.

River crossings can be rough and dangerous. The later in the summer, the better (for rivers that are fed by snow melt). For Glacier-fed rivers, it won’t be until very late summer or early fall when these crossings become safe. You will need to aim for bridge crossings for these rivers.

Total lack of tourist infrastructure and information will be the reality in most parts of the country (inclduing transportation, accommodation, trip report form other tourists, etc.).

Language will be a challenge. Many of the older generation of men in rural areas can speak some Russian, but less so the farther you get into the mountains. Women and the younger generation in most rural areas will only speak Kyrgyz.

Friendliness varies. I found the local people in the Alay Range to be very friendly and always offering help. But in some northern and eastern regions I’ve encountered occasional rudeness and people didn’t seem interested in offering any assistance. It can alternate between rude/dismissive and friendly/helpful in the same village in the same hour. In some cases this may be because the people don’t speak Russian or English and they know a conversation in Kyrgyz will get nowhere. Your experience may vary. For example, Jérémy Bigé (above) had good luck in an area where I had bad luck with local people.

Two months is your time limit in the country. There is no more visa-run (an out-and-back-in trip to get another two months). The government ended this in 2024/2025.

Border zone permits can be a pain - time consuming and vague with unclear boundaries and rules. My route and Jérémy Bigé’s route both avoid border zones.

Gear replacement is a challenge. You can only reliably get a new sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent, backpack or trekking poles in the capital city Bishkek.