Day 46. Saturday July 9.

  Malybai to Kergen Bush Camp 29.

Distance:  117 km

Cumulative Distance: 5089 km

Time: 6 hrs 57 min

Speed:  16.9 km/hr

Feet Climbed today: 5610

Cumulative Climb: 102,732  ft 

AHR (Average Heart Rate) 109 bpm

Punctures so far: 2.     

Altitude tonight: 5994 ft.

Our last full day in Kazakhstan but also a special day being Richard and Maria’s wedding anniversary. Enjoy the celebration. Today I cycled for ye.

Two more markers today - I have just passed the 5000 km mark and exceeded the 100,000 feet climbed. Two milestones.

Out of camp this morning facing into the rising sun again as we search for a break in the mountains and approach Kyrgyzstan. For 14 km continued along the same road as yesterday and then swung right to join the highway, the A6. It was busier but the road conditions were the same.

This led us to the Kokpek Gorge, a continuous rise of 6% for 13 km as it twisted and turned between high sides. At this hour of the morning ther was a considerable difference in temperature between the shaded and sunny parts.

This climb ended at the small village of Kokpek and then continued on a plateau for another 20 km. The day was warming up and Mike, Charlie and William broke for a snack at one of the colourful bus-stops, a remnant of the Soviet days. We have had these since entering Russia and Frieder has taken a special shine to them, stopping to photograph any one of a new design.

When not climbing, the road stretched off into the distance and made its way through high flat steppe with no cultivation to be seen although small villages and clusters of houses could be spotted at the end of tracks off the highway.

The second short 4 km climb came just before lunch and was topped by a spectacular monument. Couldn't make out what it commemorated or signified.

The fabulous descent from there brought us down to Charyn Canyon, a spectacular location for the lunch stop. All cars carrying tourists stopped off here also and went for a short stroll to various viewing points.

It took a while to make our way from the bridge over the Charyn river back up to level ground. Then another flat 26 km of road to bring us to our third and final climb of the day. This was a long 14 km one with the same gradient and curvature as Climb 1 but temperature was much higher. Thus perspiration running into the eyes was an issue and I had to don a headband under the helmet to stem the flow. 

It finally crested at 104 km and from there it was a pleasant spin all the way to camp in Kegen, a frontier town of Kazakhstan with the mountains of Kyrgyzstan in the background. We are at much higher altitude (almost 6000 feet) so it should be cooler tonight. Also no internet coverage, so this post is a day behind.

So now it's goodbye to Kazakhstan, a country that might be called a different name in the near future. President Naserbaev is in favour of calling it ’Kazakh Yeli” i.e the country of the Kazakhs, in order to attract more foreign investment. The present name associates it with other Stan countries whereas Mongolia (in the same neighbourhood) attracts much more. He says he will let the people decide.

Tomorrow into the last of this 5 country adventure. Hope the border crossing is a quick affair. We will meet it just 28 km after leaving camp.

Thank God for the health and thank God for the energy.