This was the third day of hiking in Arslanbob. This time we tried to reach the three lakes southeast of the town centre.
Hiking to the three lakes of Arslanbob
On the third day of hiking in Arslanbob, we decided to go for the three lakes in the south-east direction from the town centre. The lakes are not particularly special, but they are a bit like a summer retreat, and there are accommodation facilities around the lakes. Instead of just enjoying the lakes, you can hike along the country roads to them and take in all the action.
There are several routes to the three lakes. We took the road up to the south across the bridge in front of Misha’s shop, about 1km west of Arslanbob town centre.
The road goes up and up! We thought it would be quite steep, but the road is frequented by cars, so it was not impossibly steep.
The three lakes are not shown properly on Google Maps, but they are on Maps.me. Again, we relied on Maps.me to select our hiking route.
Gentle downhill after the uphill
After the steep climb, it was a gradual descent, and we walked towards the viewpoints marked on Maps.me.
On the way, we passed several trucks loaded with hay, but all the locals were friendly and greeted us back with friendly ‘hellos’.
When we came to a large meadow, we turned left.
There was a spring where we could fetch water and a cup was provided, if you needed one. This hiking trail is not paved, so it was very dusty. Just washing your hands in the cold water here was refreshing.
Turn in the direction of the large hut and walk further.
All villagers are friendly
We passed jeep and truck drivers, donkeys and villagers on horseback, all of whom were friendly and polite. When you say, “Assalam aleikum”, they almost always greet you back. We were also often asked ‘Akuda?’ (“Where are you from?” in Russian) and we often started chatting with them.
We walked along paths through sunflower and potato fields. We hiked while enjoying the distant mountain ranges and countryside.
There were a few paths on this hiking trail that were not shaded, but there were many parts where we walked in the shade of cool trees, so we did not feel so hot.
We arrived at the viewpoint marked on Maps.me. Technically, the photo above was taken a little before that.
Arriving at the three lakes
We continued up and down until we came to an area with three lakes – one of the three lakes was large, but it seemed to be within the gates of the facility. As we approached the gate to ask if we could enter, we saw the husband of the domestic tourist couple we had met on the previous day.
When we called out to him, he remembered us too and told us, “There is a small lake over here, I will show you.” By the time we climbed a little hill to the shore of the lake, his wife was there too, and we all had a picnic by the lake.
We had lamb, ham and cheese sandwiches. The husband was swimming in the lake, but we were already tired from walking, so we decided to catch a minivan from a nearby road to go back to the town centre of Arslanbob.
We said goodbye to the couple, thinking that we might see them again another time as they both work at the airport in Osh, the second largest city in Kyrgyzstan.
Back to the city centre by minivan
The three lakes are not far from the main road to Arslanbob town centre. We walked to the main road and then took a minivan back to the town centre. The minivan to the town centre cost 20 som per person.
We left the guesthouse in the morning at 9:00 am and returned by minivan to the town centre at around 3:00 pm. The total distance walked that day was 18 km.
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