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UZBEKISTAN
Harmony with Nature
Responsibility for the Future
eco.gov.uz

Ecotourism
Uzbekistan is not only famous for
the architectural monuments
included in the UNESCO Cultural
Heritage List, not only for the
ancient cities, but also for the
amazing ora and fauna,
picturesque mountains, caves,
deserts and crystal-clear lakes,
rivers and waterfalls.
What do travel companies most often offer when organizing
ecotours? For example, it can be desert safari tours, trips to glaciers,
tours to unique mountain zones, trips to nature reserves and national
parks.
The tourism opportunities of our country are very diverse and rich:
these are Ugam-Chatkal National Park, and the tugai forests in the
Amu Darya River Delta, the Kitab Nature Reserve, recently opened for
tourists, testifying to the appearance of life on our planet, the region of
the “ecological catastrophe” near the Aral Sea, steppe areas and the
Kyzylkum desert, Nurata mountains and Aydarkul Lake, and many
other wonders bof our nature.

Sangardak
Waterfall
Sangardak Waterfall is located on the territory of Sariosiyo district,
30 km away from the city of Denau and 205 km from the city of Termez.
Sariosiyo district is famous for its subtropical intracontinental climate,
which creates its own unique microclimate in this area. The adyrs and
hills located everywhere are covered with bright greenery in these
places. The Hissar ridge stretches through the territory of the district,
mountain rivers ow from it: Surkhandarya, Tupalandarya, Obizarang
and other watercourses.
Here, in the most picturesque places, you can see a wide variety of
ora and fauna. The mountainous area is inhabited by gazelles,
wolves, foxes, hares, snow leopards and even brown bears; juniper,
pistachio, almonds, walnuts, apple trees, and barberry are common in
the wild rosehip and other plants. In a hollow between two mountain
ranges there is a village of miners "Khandiza", whose inhabitants were
engaged in coal mining. Only 30 km away from it there is a beautiful

waterfall. There are quite a few legends and tales about this natural
attraction among the locals. As rumor has it, ancient Greeks, Arabs,
and rulers from all over Transoxiana came here to admire this waterfall.
The sound of the waterfall is already heard from afar, when you just
pass through the Sangardak gorge. And when you reach it, you see all
the greatness and beauty of the nature of these places. This waterfall
has an amazing feature. It is believed that it is not formed from a
mountain river, but comes from caves, from karst rivers. Flowing water
falls from a 20-meter height in a beautiful cascade over rocks and
aquatic plants.
Waterfalls have always been a place of attraction, they were
considered a miracle of nature, as a gift from above to mere mortals,
so there is a ziyoratgoh near Sangardak – a shrine with its own legend.
Sangardak Waterfall still attracts thousands of people to enjoy the
beauty of the powerful stream and the indescribable charm of the
entire Sariosiyo district.

Valley of Demons -
wonders of nature
In the Samarkand region, just 30 km from the city, there is one
mysterious valley - "Shaitan Zhiga" or "Devil's Helmet". This is a very
magical place. There are huge boulders, granite blocks of bizarre
shapes.

Strange stones are scattered around the valley, have fantastic
shapes that resemble either the faces of demons, or the features of
pagan deities, or the gures of wild animals. In the dark stones, you can
really see a tiger, a huge frog, a bear and even a bird of prey.
Stone blocks are rather sculptures, looking at which it is hard to
believe that nature herself tried to create them. Everyone can
interpret some sculptures in their own way, in them you can see a giant
with a severed head, gigantic heads of giants pressing against each
other, a giant skull of a head, melted castles, frozen labyrinths, petried
warriors and much more.
Many tourists notice an unpleasant atmosphere in this place, the
boulders seem quite inhospitable and frightening. There are no trees
and shrubs here, locals prefer to bypass the plateau side. In the spring,
springs break out from under the stones, and shepherds bring livestock
here to fast.
No one knows exactly where this name came from. According to
local legend, in pagan times, sacricial rites were held here, as well as
during the meeting of Light and Darkness, earthly heroes fought their
battles, tearing rocks and mountains out of the ground, and throwing
them at each other. So the mountains were destroyed, and their
fragments took such incredible shapes.

Chimgan
and Gulkam
Narrows
The Chimgan Mountains are a
fantastic place where nature
proves its strength and perfection.
There is nothing useless and
disordered in these places,
everything is in its place: majestic
c a n y o n s , s t e e p c l i f f s , s w i f t
mountain rivers making their way
through harsh rocks.
Chimgan has become one of the main natural attractions of
Uzbekistan, it is famous for its rich vegetation, birch and walnut groves,
extreme passes, waterfalls and lakes, narrow gorges. The most
beautiful place of Chimgan is the cascades of ridges on Gulkam.
There, thanks to numerous channels and sayas, the Gulkamsai River
was formed, and it, in turn, formed an amazing relief – gorges.
Everyone can see the Gulkam gorge, but it's worth remembering that
mountains are mountains, and such a hike should be accompanied
by an experienced instructor who knows a lot about safety.

Cave drawings
and "stones of
purication" in natural
landmark of Kuruksai
There are many unique places on our planet that have combined
the unimaginable beauty of nature and traces of primitive people. The
Kuruksai tract is a truly mysterious place. A remote corner of our planet,
as if hiding from prying eyes, is located in the Kashkadarya region, near
the village of Dzhizmonsoy.
In addition, to the indescribable beauty of mountains, green
vegetation and unusual shapes of stones, here you can nd eagles
soaring high in the sky, sources, and also rocks with ancient stone age
drawings. The images on the Siypantosh rock (as the locals called it)
show hunting scenes of ancient people, wild horses, wolves, kulans,
foxes, camels and even handprints. There are drawings from a later
period that clearly show how ancient people hunted with bows and
tamed dogs.

Where to go to forget about everything
- to the Arnasai lakes
There are so many amazing places in Uzbekistan where untouched
nature has been preserved, almost in its original form. Few people
know about such wonderful places and few people have been there.
One of these regions is the Aidar-Arnasai drainless lake system.
Aydar-Arnasay lakes are located on the territory of the Jizzakh and
Navoi regions of Uzbekistan and are included in the List of Ramsar
Convention wetlands. Looking at the incredibly breathtaking views of
these places, it is hard to believe that it is actually located in the middle
of the desert, on the Arnasai lowland: between the Hungry Steppe and
the Kyzylkum desert. The Aydar-Arnasay system includes lakes
Aydarkul, Tuzkan and East Arnasay lakes. The total area of the lakes is
four thousand square kilometers.
The East Arnasay lakes are located southwest of the Chardarya
reservoir in the Jizzakh region. Until the 50s of the last century, there
were no East Arnasay lakes, there was a dried-up salt lake, which only
appeared in the lowlands in spring and disappeared again with the
onset of hot weather.

Amir Temur's Cave:
in search of the Unknown
Speleology lovers and adventurers know that caves are the most
mysterious. Therefore, researchers are always faced with a difcult
task, feasible only for daredevils. This is what happens with the study of
the Cave of Amir Timur. They say that treasures are hidden at the very
depth of such a cave.
Going to the cave is not a sight for the faint of heart and not for the
claustrophobic. After all, to conquer it, you will have to go deeper and
further into the bowels, and in some places you will even need to
crawl. However, this does not stop most people, because already at
the very entrance to the cave, inexplicable magnetism and attraction
will be waiting for you. It is difcult to explain what attracts such a cave,
either a thirst for curiosity, or the strongest energy of Amir Timur himself.
According to legend, it was here that the novice commander,
having gathered his army, decided to make a stop for the winter to
gather his strength and go to conquer Kesh (Shakhrisabz), and then
Samarkand. In fact, it was from this cave that Amir Timur's career
began.

Gathering not only his strength, but also his thoughts, the young
Tamerlane already knew exactly what he wanted and how to achieve
it. Indeed, the cave is literally imbued with such a spirit. It does not take
away strength, as it often happens in the mountains, but on the
contrary, it adds incredible courage and self-condence.
The cave of Amir Timur is located in the Kashkadarya region, in the
tract "Kalla-i-Shiron", which means "Lion Fortress". Getting to the cave is
a difcult quest: numerous obstacles will be waiting for you at every
step. This is a vertical two-hundred-meter gorge, which can only be
descended by a narrow path, and an unceasing powerful stream of a
mountain river.

Ecocenter
Jeyran
The unique reserve was established in 1977 and has the status of a
protected natural area. To date, the area of the reserve is 16.5
thousand hectares, the animals are kept in semi-enclosures.
Today, the ecocenter has all the conditions for keeping animals. The
creation of the center allowed to increase the number of not only
goitered gazelles, but also many other rare mammals, birds, sh,
insects and reptiles. In the nursery you can see long-spined
hedgehogs, kulans, Przhevalsky horses, Bukhara mountain sheep,
markhor goats, pink pelicans, herons, swans, eagles, falcons, gray
monitor lizards and many other animals of the desert zone of
Uzbekistan.
There are lakes on the territory of the reserve, which are replenished
by the Amu-Bukhara canal, so the animals have drinking water. To
date, the territory of the Ecocenter is rapidly ennobled. Soon
additional tourist routes will be opened here, which will provide an
opportunity to observe rare animals. Watching Przhevalsky's horses, a
subspecies of a wild horse that lives in Central Asia, will bring special
pleasure. Such horses are very rare and there are only about two
thousand individuals left in the world.

Aydarkul –
a pristine beauty oasis
A worthy place in the list of water tourism routes is occupied by the
drainless lake Aydarkul, located in the endless desert of Kyzylkum.
Because of the beautiful color of the water and its impressive size, the
picturesque lake is often called the "turquoise sea in the sand". No
more than two thousand people live on the banks of Aydarkul, so the
nature around the lake remains wild and untouched.
The shores of the lake extend from Nurata district of Navoi region to
Farish and Mirzachul districts of Jizzakh region.
There are no undercurrents on the lake and the salt content in the
water is not high enough, which has a benecial effect on the
development of ora and fauna in the area. There is a huge number of
sh such as walleye, carp, asp, chukhon, bream, which is favorable for
the development of the shing season and a successful catch.
Over the surface of the lake, you can often see soaring pink pelicans,
graceful swans, and white herons. Here also found shelter birds listed in
the Red book - curly pelican, small cormorant, red-throated kazarka,
piskulka, white-eyed dipper, steppe harrier, white-tailed eagle, black
vulture.

In addition to the wide variety of ora and fauna of the lake,
Aydarkul is considered one of the best places to relax. Many kilometers
of beaches with surprisingly soft and clean sand, pristine cleanliness of
coastal thickets, as well as the peace and quiet of the coastal zone will
leave a lot of positive impressions and unforgettable sensations.
Fans of active recreation and local history are happy to take part in
ethnographic excursions to yurt camps on the banks of Aydarkul.

Sentob
Sentob ecotourism route and recreation area is located in Nurata
district of the Navoi region. Here you can walk through the foothills, as
well as visit the Aydarkul lake.
On the territory of the area three guest houses are located. Their
owners receive guests with great cordiality.

Baysuntau
On the south-western spur of the
Gissar range, in the Surkhandarya
region, there is the world-famous
Baysuntau range, which attracts
adventurers with its huge caves,
d e e p c a n y o n s a n d A l p i n e
meadows. By the way, the huge
fossilized dinosaur tracks were
found here and the notorious
Teshik-Tash cave, where the burial of a Neanderthal girl was
discovered in the last century, is located there. After crossing the hot
steppes of Baysuntau, you nd yourself in the fantastic, magical
settlements, the names of which are so full of magic: Karun, Derbend,
Padang, Rabat. Walnut groves are replaced by juniper forests, alpine
meadows delight the eye with their bright green, spreading like a
carpet on the slopes. The crystal water of the rivers breathes life into all
living things around. The locals cultivate the land in the old way –
drawn by horses and plows. Here the houses are decorated with
handmade carpets, bright suzanas, and local clothes and shoes with a
variety of embroidered ornaments. Almost all houses have a tandoor –
an oven, where bread is baked. Everything in this region is done
manually. Blacksmiths masters of Surkhandarya are famed for their
skills.

Konigil village
and Meros
paper Mill
Sometimes, all we need for happiness is to look at familiar things in a
new way. Just 13 km from Samarkand there is one special place – the
tourist village of Konigil.
The place is famous for its unique traditions of handicrafts, the purest
nature, shady trees, and the Siab River owing nearby. But, perhaps,
the main attraction of this corner is the Meros factory, where paper
production is carried out.
The paper mill was founded by the brothers artisans Mukhtarov.
Thanks to them, the factory revived and established the production of
paper in an ancient way – a technology used long before the advent
of paper machines. The main feature of this technology is manual
labor, which uses exclusively natural raw materials. For this reason, the
paper turns out to be slightly yellowish in color, because it is not
bleached by chemical means. The strength of the paper differs
signicantly from modern bleached paper. Compare: an ordinary
sheet can be stored for 40 years, and Samarkand paper is ten times
longer – 400 years.
In the near future, the village of Konigil is planned to be expanded.
There will be new tourist routes, guest houses and craft centers.

Aral Sea coast
It is difcult to believe that once there was a real sea in place of a hot
and arid desert, and which was the fourth largest in the world. Large
shing boats sailed on it, its waves beat against the coastal rocks, and
hundreds of tourists came to its beaches to swim and sunbathe.
On the one hand is Karakum, on the other hand – Kyzylkum, and
between them is the Aral Sea, or we should say its bottom. Now this
place is called Aralkum or a new desert, and it occupies 54 thousand
square meters. Dozens of ships are moored here forever, slowly turning
into a rusting cemetery. Passing from the ship to the longboat, you
realize that each ship had its own history, its own captain. Now it is the
ships cemetery, resembling a dystopian landscape.
All this can be seen in the city of Muynak, on the southern shore of the
Aral Sea. Half a century ago, this place was the largest port in
Uzbekistan. Here shing vessels came, the largest sh plant worked,
and numerous beaches with places to relax were very popular.

Muynak was surrounded by water and could be reached by plane
or ship. The Aral Sea has moved almost 200 km away, leaving a lifeless
desert. The sea began to dry up in 1970, and by 1980, its level had fallen
so much that it was divided into two parts: the Great and Small Aral.
NASA satellite images clearly show the drying process of the Aral Sea.
By 2014, only 10% of the sea remained, and the salinity of the water
increased from 14 to 100 grams per 1 liter. This has led to the disastrous
consequences. The climate of the Aral Sea region has changed from
moderate to sharply continental.
The bottom of the Aral Sea is mysterious; some scientists compare it
with Atlantis. In addition to the ancient settlements on the sea oor, the
geometric gures were also discovered, which many people have
taken for the message of an extraterrestrial civilization or ancient
writing. They are located on a huge area – almost 20 square meters,
and represent parallel lines that create certain drawings and symbols.
You can see mysterious drawings, poisonous salt marshes and what is
left of the Aral Sea by the helicopter. To do this, you will have to y to the
West in the direction of the Big Aral Sea. Below you can see endless
Martian landscapes, thousands of hectares of white salt sediments
where no life is possible. From time to time, you may come across rows
of saxaul, which show that this is the work of a man. Surprisingly, with
great difculty, the Uzbek people, trying to prevent the Aral disaster,
plant saxaul in the typical desert, creating green oasis.

Zaamin
National Park
One of the national pride of
Uzbekistan, the country's main
health resort, recently named
“Uzbek Switzerland”, is Zaamin
National Park. This area is famous
for its unique nature and healing
air.
The national park with an area of 24.1 hectares is located to the north
of the Turkestan Range in the Zaamin district of Jizzakh region.
Zaamin National Park is opened for the visitors all the year round. The
sanatorium Zaamin is located not far from the park. There are many
boarding houses, sanatoriums, rest homes and children's camps in the
recreation area, which have become a favorite vacation spot for all
Uzbeks for the several decades.

Deserts of
Uzbekistan
The deserts of Uzbekistan are sultry and boundless, incandescent
and under the scorching sun. They occupy more than half of the
country's territory and are considered harsh living conditions in Central
Asia. Deserts stretch from the north-west of the republic and gradually
shrink to the east. In some areas there are picturesque valleys and
oases. Historical cities appeared in such places, which became
important strategic objects.
1. Kyzylkum.
Sandy and rocky desert with ridges of red dunes. The desert is
located in the interuve of the Amudarya and Syrdarya and occupies
a large area on the territory of Uzbekistan. In the northwest, the desert
abuts the Aral Sea, and in the northeast it reaches the spurs of the Tien
Shan. The area of the desert is about three hundred thousand square
meters.

It is noteworthy that despite the harsh desert climate, life is actively
boiling in Kyzylkums. In some places there are lakes, reservoirs and
even tugai thickets. Clay takyrs are replaced by salt marshes, and
sandy massifs by forests of black and white saxaul. Mammals live in the
desert: gazelles, steppe cats, ground squirrels, jerboa, foxes, wolves,
hares, bats. Of the birds, you can meet bustards, eagles, larks, owls.
Snakes, lizards and other reptiles are permanent residents of the
desert.
There are many attractions in the desert for a "wild" or nomadic
holiday. For example, in the Navoi region, you can stay in recreation
areas and live in yurts, ride camels and try camel milk.

2. Aral Kum.
Unfortunately, nature can be
very cruel, so a new desert has
appeared on the seabed of the
once huge Aral Sea. The sandysaline
desert is located on the
t e r r i t o r y o f U z b e k i s t a n a n d
Kazakhstan, has a characteristic
white color due to the large
amount of salt. The area of Aralkum
continues to increase and today it reaches 38 thousand square
meters. The ora and fauna of the desert are poorly represented, and
dust storms carry out about one hundred million tons of dust and toxic
salts per year.
3. Ustyurt plateau.
A mysterious and unusual place on the territory of Uzbekistan occupies
the western part of the country between the Aral Sea and the Amu
Darya Delta. Once there was a world ocean on these lands, leaving
them, there was a lifeless territory - a plateau without water and
greenery. The total area of Ustyurt is almost 200 thousand square
meters and is a clay and clay-gravelly desert. Sometimes on the
plateau there are mountain ranges, high cliffs with steep cliffs,
limestone rocks and white cracks in the ground.

4. Hungry steppe.
It is located on the territory of the Syrdarya region on the left bank of
the Syrdarya, at the outlet of the river from the Fergana Valley. The
total area of the Hungry Steppe is 10 thousand square meters. Initially,
the steppe was a vast plain space with places suitable only for
nomadic life. In the south, the steppe is bounded by the spurs of the
Turkestan Ridge, in the north by the Kyzylkum desert.
Since the end of the XIX century, the development of the Hungry
Steppe took place, the construction of irrigation canals was started.
Gradually, the steppe began to change and become suitable for
economic needs. Thanks to engineers and scientists, the barren
steppe turned into irrigated land and cotton, melons and other crops
began to be grown here. Today, in the Syrdarya region, you can taste
delicious varieties of melons, watermelons, pomegranates grown on
the territory of the once Hungry steppe.

Konimeh Ecopark
Konimeh Ecopark - ecotourism and camping center in Navoi region
At the entrance to the park, next to the parking lot, there is a cozy
restaurant where you can taste Uzbek, Kazakh and Karakalpak
national cuisine. You can also taste fresh camel milk – shubat , a
traditional Kazakh drink, walk around the park, visit yurts, 12 of which
are designed for 12 people at the same time and 1 – for 25 people.

Chatkal
Biosphere Reserve
Chatkal Biosphere Reserve is located in the south of Ugam-Chatkal
National Park. The total area of the reserve is 45 thousand hectares. It is
divided into two sections – Boshkizilsoy and Maidontol. The rst one
stretches on the southern slopes of Chatkal at an altitude of 1000 to
3247 m, and the second one – on the northern slopes and glaciers at
an altitude of 1200 - 3800 m.
The picturesque landscapes of the reserve are represented by
mountain ranges, decorated with juniper forests, alpine and
xerophytic meadows and windy steppe zones.
Chatkal nature reserve is dotted with mountain patterns, caves and
noisy waterfalls. And in the southern part of Maidontol, on the rocks
near the coast of the Tereksai in the Karasau tract, you can observe
ancient cave paintings – the Tereksai petroglyphs. In addition, very
interesting ornithological tours are held in Chatkal reserve.

Kitab State
Geological Reserve
Kitab Nature Reserve is located in Kitab region on the spurs of the
Zarafshan range. This is one of the most unique natural monuments.
Here, you can touch the history of the ancient world, track the stages
of life formation on our planet. The remains of ancient life forms can be
seen in the cuts of the local rocks.
Kitab Nature Reserve is located in Kitab region on the spurs of the
Zarafshan range. This is one of the most unique natural monuments.
Here, you can touch the history of the ancient world, track the stages
of life formation on our planet. The remains of ancient life forms can be
seen in the cuts of the local rocks.

Agalyk mountains and
Devsharshara waterfall
The mountains have always
attracted people with their
delightful appearance, expanse
and immensity. Just 15 km from
Samarkand are located the
picturesque beauty of the Agalyk
Mountains. These mountains, in
tandem with the village of the
same name and the Agalyksay
river, create a unique view of the mountain landscape.
The average height of the mountain is 400 meters, and the highest
peak of the Agalyk Mountains is Mount Kemkutan, its height is 2178
meters. On the territory of the mountain range, you can meet unusual
forms of stone inuxes, numerous channels and tributaries, blooming
poppy elds and the Devsharshara waterfall.
The location of this waterfall is interesting. It seems to be hidden from
prying eyes, but it is betrayed only by the sound of falling water. The
waterfall is located in a small gorge of the mountain, its height reaches
8 meters. Rocks and intricate shapes allow water to ow intensively into
the natural pool.

Stone forest
Stone forest In the Uchkuduk district of Navoi region, 30 km from the
village of Migbulak, there is a unique paleontological open-air
museum.
The stone forest in the Jarakuduk territory is a unique natural
phenomenon. According to scientic assumptions, a real stone forest
grew here more than 96 million years ago as a result of the evolution of
nature based on the centuries-old plane trees.
Stone Forest is a unique and indelible page of the distant past, which
did not go unnoticed even after several million years. According to an
ancient legend, many eras ago, a meteorite fell on this area. As a
result, the sea has gone, and the local land remains in the depths
under the scorching sun and surrounded by boulders. As a result of
physical and chemical phenomena, the remains of the local animals
and plants were dried out and turned into stones.