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Asian Water Adventures: Kayaking, rafting, and canoeing in Kyrgyzstan

 Kyrgyzstan has a lot of potential for whitewater rafting and kayaking, but it seemingly remains  undeveloped. An exotic way to seek adventure while in Kyrgyzstan is through water rafting, kayaking, and canoeing in the waters, and it is a totally new experience when a tourist conquers the whitewater rapids.

According to Orex CA, adventure seekers can actually raft through grassy lowlands and vertical rock faces in the country. The runs in Kyrgyzstan differ from Levels 2 to 4, with trips beginning at half a day along the Chui River, which flows through the Boom Canyon, just two hours from Bishkek by car, and also the nearby Chong Kemin River.

Further afield and more rigorous, involving camping, are trips through the Suusamyr Valley on Levels 3-4, including a trip through flooded marshlands and on the Kokomeren River on Levels 2-4, through a fast-changing landscape on the western edge of the Suusamyr Valley. To the west of Naryn, rafting trips go through the Naryn River on Levels 3-4, where rafters usually put up their camps. 

There are also a lot of other outdoor activities to take pleasure in on the wild expanses of the country, including horseback riding, trekking, and cycling, but the one that sparks the interest of most water sportsmen is mountain rafting. White water rafting tours didn't become popular in Kyrgyzstan until recently. 

There are well-known rivers that have been labelled as good eco-rafting destinations in Kyrgyzstan so far, as claimed by Silk Road Explore. But there are many rivers that have never been explored yet.  Some of the reasons why tourists want to explore kayaking, rafting, and canoeing are these destinations that travelers  visit each year for water adventures in Kyrgyzstan.

Travelers usually begin exploring the Chu River on Level 2-4. The Chu River is considered as the most popular river for rafting tours in Kyrgyzstan.  The river flows at over 1,500meter elevation and the best season for a river rafting trip is from June to mid-September, when the water temperature fluctuates between 15-18 degrees Celsius. Part of the river runs through Boom Gorge, which is known throughout Central Asia to be the best training location for rafting. 

Another river visited by tourists is the Chong-Kemin. As mentioned in Caravanistan, Chong-Kemin is a right tributary of Chu. It is a river flowing in a valley to the north of Issyk-Kul Lake. It is so easily accessed from Bishkek and nice pine-forested class 4-5 gorges make this river very popular choice for water sport enthusiasts.

The Kekemeren River, on the other hand, runs through the valleys of the Tien Shan "Celestial" mountains.  The most exciting whitewater is in the first 40-50 km of the river, sporting class 4 and 5 rapids. Whitewater rafting trips are present in May-October while the best months for the activity are in August and September.

Meanwhile, even though travelers claim that there are still a lot of waters that were not yet explored in the country, the Chu River, Chong- Kemin, and Kekemeren River are the rivers mostly visited by tourists. They also say that the water rapids aren't the only ones guests want to capture, the awe-inspiring natural beauty of the country will also make their trip just as enjoyable as the adventure of tackling the rivers and rapids of Kyrgyzstan.


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