The Tong District is a raion (district) in Issyk Kul and the Tian Shan in north-eastern Kyrgyzstan. The capital of the district is Bokonbayevo which is covered in a separate article.

Understand

The district is between the southern shore of Issyk-Kul lake and Teskey Ala-Too Range, and features a natural passage from the depression to the west through the Boom Gorge. Approximately 89% of the district is occupied by mountains, and 11% by valleys.

Get around

By taxi

A return taxi from nearby Bokonbayevo to the salt lake is 1,500 som—1 hr drive, 2 hr at the lake, 1 hr back.

See

• 1 Ancient Burial Place I. Ancient nomad dome burials. (updated Mar 2019)
• 2 Ancient Burial Place II. Ancient nomad dome burials. At the nearby Konur-Olon, a mosque regularly attracts tourists. (updated Mar 2019)
• 3 Ak-Sai Petroglyphs. Tibetan stone inscriptions of the 15-17th century CE, and cave drawings of 1 BCE. Checkout the path leading to the petroglyphs: https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/610293285 (updated Mar 2019)
• Er Tabylyd Mausoleum (a few kilometers after the petroglyphs on the right). Hero epics of Er Tabylyd describing Kyrgyz people stories of the 15th-17th century. (updated Mar 2019)

Do

• 1 Issyk Kul State Reserve. winter, spring, fall. About 50,000 waterfowls stay here during winter. Great for photo hunting and birding. (updated Mar 2019)
• 2 Zhindl Chap Canyon. A picturesque, red and white colored canyon cutting its way through the hilles between the highway and Issyk Kul. It is possible to hike down the canyon to the lake directly from Ak Say village at the highway, there are some trails. 10 km from the highway to the lake. (updated Mar 2019)
• 3 Salt Lake (Туздуу-Көл / sometimes Кара-Куль) (at Kyzyl Tuu). This is apparently the touristy one of all the salt lakes in this region, often called Dead Sea of Kyrgyzstan. It is comparable to the Dead Sea—one can float on the surface due to the high salinity. The lake was opened as a tourist destination in 2001. The water is so salty that one can read a newspaper while floating on the surface. The water contains about 132 grams of salt per liter. This lake is also popular as a “medical tour”. Mud is superheated deep beneath the earth’s surface. Many locals believe that it has healing properties. If you walk across the dune, you can wash off the salt in Issyk Kul lake. The naming is inconsistent and sometimes it is named Кара-Куль aka Kara Kul, which however is the same name as the one below right next to the highway. 100 som. (updated Mar 2019)
• 4 Tuz Kul (Туз-Көл). Another salt lake just before the touristy one along the same road. The situation on which one the saltiest is unclear. Eiter way, they are close to each other. So, you can check out both or just skip the one that is charged for. (updated Nov 2018)

Hot springs

• 5 Bar Bulak (Бар-Булак). A village with hot springs. Its name literally means hot springs. (updated Mar 2019)
• 6 Jyluu Suu (Jily Suu / Жылуу-Суу). Hot springs (updated Nov 2018)

Hiking

• 7 Ton Ashuu Pass (4,250 m) (Тон). (updated Nov 2018)
• 8 Teshik Kul (3,505 m) (Тешик-Кёль). A triangular-shaped mountain lake. (updated Nov 2018)

Sleep

• Kadji-Sai 2, a beach resort along the highway, and its twin village of Kadji Say have many hotels, guesthouses, and yurts, catering for tourists.