Ala-Archa national park

The Ala Archa national park is located about 40km south of Bishkek and is the closest alpine area assessible from Bishkek. It was set up in 1976 in the Tianshan mountain range and covers an area of about 200 km², which includes many peaks and glaciers up to almost 5000m altitude (with the lowest park sections at 1500m altitude). The park entrance at the end of the paved road from Bishkek lies at an altitude of 2100m. Here there is also a hotel where travellers can spend the night. There are three trails, between 1km and 6km long, of which one leads up to a glacier at 3900m altitude.