Hiking Guide: Ak Suu Traverse - Days 3 + 4

Day 3: Wildcamping spot to Bozuchuk River

Distance: 18.5km

Ascent: approx. 700m

Time to walk: 7 hours inc. breaks

It turns out we didn’t learn our lesson of not starting the day too late the day prior, and on day 3 we didn’t start walking until about 9:45am. We finished climbing the mountain pass - thankfully it was a much easier climb than the day before.

On the other side, AllTrails was telling us to go a long way around to a viewpoint at the lakes, and thinking we knew better we decided to each go our own way. After an initial steep part down a few hundred metres, I cut through a mostly flat grassy plain where Tim tried a shorter way around the side of the mountain - mine seemed a lot easier, but all in all I don’t think either option cut much time off the main trail!

We got to the main lake just as the grey clouds were rolling in. There was a side trail that looped around the lake that went to a hidden lake behind, so we rugged up, left our packs and headed around. The views were a lot more dramatic and breathtaking at that lake so I am glad we did it, despite the snow starting to fall down on our way back to our bags and the main trail.

Luckily it was only a short bout of snow, and next thing we knew the sun was back out and streaming down on the mountains, making them look magical and golden! That afternoon was one of the most gorgeous stretches of the hike so far.

Initially we had planned to hike all the way to Boz-Uchuk Lake to the campsite there, but due to our late start yet again, we decided to set up camp in the valley alongside the Bozuchuk river. It was a beautiful spot to camp, and a perfect spot to watch the sunset.

Day 4: Bozuchuk River to Ala Kul River Yurt Camp

Distance: 11.5km

Ascent: approx. 400m

Time to walk: 6 hours inc. breaks

By camping in the valley the night prior, this meant starting our day off with a mountain climb up 250m, which I am never a big fan of. This climb was short and steep, but not too hard, taking us about 1.5 hours to climb.

At the top, we stopped for a tasty lunch of noodles at Boz-Uchuk Lake. I managed to spill half of them on myself, but it didn’t ruin my zen mood whilst eating the remains on a large rock on the lake!

The day was long and hard, given the blisters on my feet were becoming unbearable. However, when we reached just a couple of km from our campsite, we were greeted with views of a breathtakingly stunning valley, that distracted me from the pain during that last push!

That night I had to decide whether I was going to walk down the exit trail from our campsite to a village 18km away, or if I was going to push through the pain of my feet and walk one more day - which meant climbing the hardest mountain pass of the trek yet.