Postcard from Bishkek

One of the problems of being an Englishman here in Kyrgyzstan is that I am often about English, like questionhs “How do you say in English, xxx?“, where “xxx” can be a simple word, or a complicated phrase … and I sometimes have to think hard to some up with an answer; especially if I am a little unsure of what the Russian word or phrase means.

Andy, on the other hand, has a habit of asking “What does xxx mean?“, where “xxx” is supposed to be an English word, and I often have to answer him with “I don’t know, give me a context”, but often even that doesn’t help.  The trouble is that he has heard “xxx” as part of a song and, when he asks me, his intonation isn’t quite right.  He says what he thinks he has heard … but it’s not exactly correct and so I often end up saying, “That’s not an English word … “, until he plays me the song and I go “Oh! xxx!”.

By far the most difficult question, however, is usually posed by people like Lisa, who already know a lot of English and are quite fluent … and who ask, “Why, in English,  do you say xxx?“.

For example, in answer to an inquiry from a potential client who as interested in Bird Watching, Ilona put together an itinerary for tour … and I, jokingly, called it a Twitching Tour … which, naturally led to the question, “Why do you call it that?”  So I had to explain that, in England, the slang term for Bird Watching is Twitching … which naturally led to the question – “Why?”  To be honest, I haven’t the faintest idea.

The other term, “Birding“, is perhaps easier to understand … like “medalling” at the Olympic Games … That’s a fairly recent innovation in the language, but if you win a medal in the games then you are said to have medalled … turning the noun into a verb.  Likewise, the noun Bird was turned into a verb, “to bird”, around the end of the First World War … and refers to the practice of observing birds, (either visually or by hearing their birdsong), usually in a serious manner – going in search of them, rather than just sitting and watching them as they “come to you” – which is usually referred to as simply, Bird Watching.

Twitching, seems to be more modern and dates from sometime after the Second World War, and also carries a connotation of someone going in search of “rare birds” … and once it has been observed it is, so to speak, “ticked off” a list … or added to a list of birds that they have encountered.  Exactly why this is described as “twitching“, however, as I said before … I have no idea!

Bird watching is a remarkably common recreational activity.  When, many years ago, I was at school, my friend Paul started a branch of the Young Ornithologists Club in the school – subscribed to their newsletters and organized talks and films during the Lunch hour and occasional trips into the surrounding countryside to see what birds they could find.  I went along a few times to show support … but, to be honest, it wasn’t exactly “my cup of tea”.  Although it was fascinating, and I felt good – and still do – when I saw a magnificent specimen … learning all those details about the colouring, molt, distribution, seasonal migrations, food, reproductive cycle, egg size and colouration. and habitat was a bit too much like an extra Biology lesson …

Having said that, a lot of people are very interested in Ornithology and can tell the difference between a Hawk and a Kestrel, a Crow and a Rook.

A few years ago, in a press release for the publication of a new book, The Atlas of Birds: Diversity, Behavior, and Conservation by Mike Unwin, it was said that Kyrgyzstan was one of the least well endowed countries in the world when it came to the number of bird species that could be found here – with fewer than 250.  I pointed out in a postcard at the time that there seems to be a problem with that statistic … as other sources suggest the figure should be nearer to 400, (a recent news article said 390 – it’s in Russian), although not all of them are native to the land of the Tien Shan, but are migratory birds that simply pass through on their way North or South as the seasons change.

For the serious Twitcher, Kyrgyzstan has a lot of potential as a place to observe a wide variety of birds … maybe not as much as Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Indonesia which can all claim more than 1500 species … but there is still quite a lot to observe.

Of course, many of the species to be found here are fairly “common or garden varieties” but some 57 species are listed as endangered to some degree or other.  

To be honest, although I have always been happy to organize itineraries for clients who have expressed an interest in ornithology, I have tended to shy away from organizing specific Twitching Tours … as birds are wild animals and you cannot guarantee exactly what people will encounter.  There’s always a heavy caveat to any inventory and description … “Species of Birds seen in this region have included …”, rather than detailed promises.  Perhaps the most difficult task I had in this respect was having to break the news to one client who was specifically keen to see Cranes that her holiday was at the wrong time of year … in the hiatus between the different migratory seasons. Fortunately, however, Twitchers are usually well aware of the difficulties and I am often amazed at how pleased they are with what species they do encounter … often being able to identify different subspecies even at some distance away.

Anyway, here’s Ilona’s itinerary for a 6 day summer tour, (April-October):

Day 1. Bishkek – Ala-Archa – Bishkek
Overnight in a Hotel

Arrival in Bishkek. Meet the driver and guide at the airport and transfer to the hotel. If it is an early arrival – have a lie in and rest. After breakfast, drive to Ala-Archa National park, (40 km from Bishkek), and explore the area. Packed lunch. Return to Bishkek for a short city tour of the Central downtown, including: the main square, Oak park and Victory square. Dinner at a café. Overnight in the hotel.

The Ala Archa National park was created in 1976 by Government decree and occupies about 120,000 hectares.  With snow-covered peaks, steep forested slopes, picturesque water meadows of the fast-flowing, noisy Ala-Archa river.  It is sometimes closed when there are official visitors.

The Ala-Archa gorge has more than 10 large glaciers, more than 50 mountain peaks (with 140 classified mountaineering routes of various levels of difficulty/complexity), and 30 mountain passes. The national park is also rich in flora and fauna – with over 800 species of plants, 160 species of birds and about 170 specials of animals.  It has Marco Polo sheep, wolves, bears, lynx, boar, eagles, and snow leopards.  The hills are lined with Spruce and Juniper woods.

In this area have been seen: (Leptopoecile) tit-warbler, (Carpodacus rhodochlamys) red-mantled rose finch, grosbeak, (Cinclus) dipper, black tomtit, black-grey tomtit, Asian turtledove, (Gypaetus barbatus) lammergeyer.

Day 2. Bishkek – Issyk-Kyl (southern shore) – Bokonbaevo
Overnight in a Homestay

After breakfast drive to the southern shore of Issyk-Kul. Drive the road theourh the Kongur Ulan valley  to Bokonbaevo watching the birds in the area.  Lunch on the way (or packed lunch from Bishkek).  Dinner and overnight in a home stay.

*It is possible to organize demonstration of golden eagle hunting in Bokonbaevo village.

In this area have been seen: White-winged Sparrow, Mongolian Sandy Plover, (Larus ichthyaetus) Great Black-headed Gull, (Larus argentatus) Herring Gull, Ducks, Pochards.

Day 3. Bokonbaevo- Ak-Terek- Jety- Oguz gorge.
Overnight in a yurt camp.

After breakfast continue driving along the southern shore. Visit Ak-Terek gorge. Watch birds. Packed lunch from Bokonbaevo. Drive to Jety- Oguz gorge. Explore the area. Dinner in a yurt.

As you approach Jety- Oguz gorge (Jety- Oguz meand seven bulls from Kyrgyz and there is a typical red rock), you pass rock formation, which resembles a “broken heart” and legend says that this is the heart of a beautiful woman who died of a broken heart after two suitors killed each other fighting over her. These two rock formations have almost become symbols of the Issyk Kul region and are favorite images for photographs and paintings.

In this area have been seen: (Oenanthe isabellina) Isabelline Chat,  Mongolian Desert (Fringilla montifringilla) Brambling, (Monticola) Rock Thrush, (Alectoris chukar) Chukar, Little Owl, (Circaetus) Serpent Eagle, Snipe, (Himantopus) Stilt, Western Marsh Harrier, Gold Crest, Nutcracker, (Motacilla cinerea) Gray Wagtail, (Phoenicurus) Redstart, Kestrel.

Day 4. Jety-Oguz – Karakol – Grigorevskoe gorge – Cholpon-Ata (northern shore of Issyk-Kul). Overnight at the resort/guest house.

After breakfast spend some time in the area. Drive to the northern shore of Issyk-Kul via Karakol. In Karakol, visit Dungan Mosque and Orthodox Church. Visit Grigorevskoe gorge on the way.  Lunch on the way in a café.  Dinner in a café in Cholpon-Ata.

Issyk Kul is Kyrgyzstan’s largest Lake and at about 180 km long by 70 km wide and 668 meters deep at the deepest point, (the average depth is about 300 meters), it is the world’s second largest mountain lake – and the fifth deepest lake in the world. 

The lake has been held in high regard by the Kyrgyz – it is known as the “pearl of the Tien Shan” – and in 2004, the government declared the lake as the “property of the nation”.  One source even suggests that, at one time, it was even forbidden to swim in the lake.

In this area have been seen: Pallas sand grouse, (Passer hispaniolensis) Spanish sparrow, grey lark, (Galerida cristata) crested lark, pheasant, (Luscinia megarhynchos) nightingale, (Asio otus) long-eared owl, northern woodpecker, Eurasian swallow, (Phylloscopus trochiloides) greenish warbler, (Apus apus) black swift, royal brambling, (Hieraaetus pennatus) booted eagle.

Day 5. Cholpon-Ata- Bishkek.
Overnight in a hotel.

After breakfast drive to Bishkek. Visit the open air museum of petroglyphs and Burana Tower on the way.

 Day 6. Airport transfer and departure.

 

 

Tags: Celestial_Mountains, Fauna_and_Flora, Itinerary, Tourism