Ala Kul Lake Trek: What You Need to Know

The Ala Kul Lake Trek is one of the most beautiful hikes I’ve done, but I won’t sugarcoat it, it’s also one of the most difficult. It remains burned into my memory to this day.

This stunning three-day trek in Kyrgyzstan takes you through diverse landscapes, past wild horses and turquoise glacial lakes, and over challenging mountain passes.

If you’re considering this adventure, this guide will tell you everything you need to know to prepare.

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Ala Kul Lake Trek: Basic Overview

The Ala Kul Lake Trek is one of Kyrgyzstan’s most iconic hikes, famous for its stunning glacial lake that sits at 3,560 meters in the Terskey Alatau mountains near Karakol.

The lake’s vivid turquoise blue colour comes from glacial sediment, and it’s even more breathtaking in person than in photos. The trek takes you through wildly diverse terrain, like green valleys filled with grazing horses, steep, rocky mountain passes, and an iconic lake view.

There are different routes and itineraries you can follow ranging from a day trip to the lake (not recommended—it’s gruelling and you’ll miss the best parts), 3 days (a happy medium and what I did), or 4 days (recommended if you have the time for a more relaxed pace).

The classic route starts near Karakol, passes through Sirota Camp, climbs over the challenging Ala Kul Pass at 3,920 meters, and descends to lower camps before finishing near the Altyn Arashan hot springs in Ak-Suu.

Quick Facts About the Ala Kul Lake Trek

• Duration: 3 days, 2 nights
• Distance: Approximately 43 kilometres total
• Highest point: Ala Kul Pass at nearly 4,000 meters
• Difficulty: Challenging (steep ascents and descents, high elevation, long days, river crossings)
• Starting point: Karakol, Kyrgyzstan (Entrance through Karakol National Park)

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When is the best time to hike the Ala Kul Lake Trek?

July and August are peak season, so you’ll see more trekkers on the trail, but the conditions are ideal.

I did the Ala Kul Lake Trek in mid-July, and I honestly think it was the perfect time. The weather during the day was warm enough to hike in a t-shirt, but it did get quite cold in the evenings at the yurt camps, nothing that a sleeping bag and extra blankets couldn’t handle though.

If you go earlier in June or later in September, you might encounter snow on the pass and significantly colder temperatures, so come prepared with warmer gear.

I’d avoid attempting this trek outside of summer as the high passes can be dangerous with snow and ice, and many yurt camps close for the season.

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Getting Started: Finding Your Group in Karakol

Before you hit the trail for the Ala Kul Lake Trek, I highly recommend visiting Duet Coffee Shop in Karakol. They have a signup board with lots of information about the trek, and this is exactly how I found a group of people to split a 4×4 to the park entrance. Trust me, you want to do this.

They can also book your yurts in advance for you. We took the risk of not booking in advance in order to negotiate the best price on the spot. As backpackers we were looking to save money where we could.

We paid 800 Kyrgyz som each, which included both the car ride and entrance fee into the national park. This saved us about 4 hours of walking (around 15 kilometres) just to reach Bridge 2 where the actual trek begins.

You don’t want to waste your energy getting to the trailhead, save it for the hike itself, because the Ala Kul Lake Trek is tough and long.

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My 3-Day Experience on the Ala Kul Lake Trek

Here’s a detailed breakdown of the 3-day route I followed for the Ala Kul Lake Trek. I’ll share everything I wish I had known in advance.

Day 1: Bridge 2 to Sirota Camp

A relaxed day of hiking, a good warm up for Day 2 of the Ala Kul Lake Trek.

The Start

I set off for the trail head at 7:30 AM after a breakfast of borsch – my first time trying the beet soup! I shared a 4×4 with a group I had met back in Bishkek and got dropped off at the second bridge around 8:00 AM.

💡Tip: Keep your receipt from paying the entrance fee until the end of your hike! We had a park ranger ask us for it partway through our hike on Day 1. If you don’t have your receipt, you’ll have to pay again.

I recommend starting at the second bridge if you are planning on following a 3 day itinerary. The trail from the park entrance to the second bridge is just a dirt road through the forest.

The scenery isn’t anything spectacular and you’ll be adding an additional 15km (3.5-4 hours of walking) on the first day when you have a very tough second day ahead.

The Hike

Our goal was to reach Sirota Camp.

The path was mostly flat with some muddy sections, it had been raining for the past few days so waterproof boots were a must! The views were breathtaking and I felt like I was in Nepal again!

We were so lucky to see a huge herd of horses, at least 20 or 30, walk out of the woods and cross the river. They played in the field together, and it was something straight out of a movie. We all sat and admired the scene.

At the end of the day, there was a gradual ascent to Sirota Camp of around 950m, but it was manageable since it was over a short distance. The first day of the Ala Kul Lake Trek was very enjoyable and not too physically demanding.

Arriving at Camp

The hike took us about 4.5 hours, and we arrived at Sirota Camp around 1 PM. We showed up without a reservation and were able to negotiate a lower price than the standard 4,200 som.

💡Tip: Yurt pricing usually includes dinner and breakfast but make sure you confirm in advance to avoid being charged separately.

Since we arrived early, we had plenty of time to rest, relax, and prepare for what would be the most gruelling day ahead. We were a little too optimistic about Day 2 and had no idea what was coming.

📊 Day 1 Stats:

• Distance: ~15km (from Bridge 2)
• Time: 4.5 hours
• Elevation gain: 950m
• Starting Altitude: ~2,550m (Second Bridge)
• Ending Altitude: ~3,300-3,550m (Sirota Camp area)
• Difficulty: Easy to moderate
• Highlights: Wild horse herds, scenic valley views, gentle terrain

Day 2: Sirota Camp to Altyn Arashan

Day 2 of the Ala Kul Lake Trek was supposed to be 9.5 hours over 15 kilometres. It was actually closer to 12.5 hours, and let me tell you this was the most difficult hike I’ve ever done in my entire life.

The night before had been freezing even with the sleeping bags and multiple blankets provided. It’s crazy how much the temperature fluctuated throughout the day.

We had a quick breakfast of fried eggs and sausage (included in our yurt stay) and headed out around 6:30 AM. I was eager to leave as early as possible because I knew we had a long day ahead.

Climbing to Ala Kul Lake

We started our ascent toward the lake. The path from Sirota Camp was steep with a 700-meter elevation gain, bringing us close to 4,000 meters. We took it slow to avoid altitude sickness.

After about 2 hours, we made it to Ala Kul Lake, and the pictures did not lie. The lake was really as blue as I’d seen online. We were met by a bright blue turquoise lake with snowcapped mountains in the background. The lake was so vibrant it almost looked radioactive.

It was just us and four other people at the lake, plus some campers down below. Absolutely worth it!

I wanted to swim in it so badly, but because it was glacial water, it had to be around 0°C, maybe a little warmer in summer, but still too cold for me. We ate our apples, soaked in the view, and prepared to continue.

The Grave Mistake

Here’s where we made a very grave mistake: we followed Maps.Me, which took us all the way down to the bottom of the lake. Then we had to climb all the way back up to reach Ala Kul Pass.

It was exhausting and really dampened our spirits. We were not the only ones to do this either.

💡Tip: Do not fully follow Maps.Me for the Ala Kul Lake trek! It will lead you down to the lake and then all the way back up a dusty and rocky path. Just keep going up and follow the path.

We finally made it to the top of the pass and had our sad lunch, stale bread with salami. The tradeoff for buying our lunch at the yurt camp instead carrying all of our own meals. But we’d made it.

Now came the next 4 hours and 20 minutes of steep descent.

The Descent That Nearly Broke Us

The descent was brutal without trekking poles. It was so steep, like 90-degree vertical drops on gravel and loose rocks. It was the first time in my life that I sat down on my butt and slid. It was the safest way.

My knees were shaking, my arms were shaking, everything was shaking.

Even those with poles still struggled and a girl that had been hiking with us earlier in the day actually fell forward onto her face. So please take it slow and steady.

It took us about 1.5 hours to complete the descent of Ala Kul Pass (this is where we lost a lot of time). I ended up with a bruised toe nail, something I didn’t even get trekking for 13 days through the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal!

At the bottom of the descent, there’s a yurt camp where you can stay for the night. If you’re feeling tired and have the budget, I recommend staying here for the night. You’ll have to extend your itinerary to 4 days 3 nights.

A second option would be to ride a horse for the remaining distance from the bottom of the Ala Kul Pass. A few people in our group were so tired they couldn’t walk anymore and opted for horses. I kind of wish I had too.

The Final Challenges

We thought the worst was behind us, but we were wrong. Although we had been hiking for quite some time, we didn’t cover much distance, only altitude.

The landscape opened up into this beautiful green valley with cows and horses everywhere, and we felt renewed. We were walking faster on the now, mostly flat, green pastures.

Then came the glacial river crossing.

A rushing river ahead of us varying from knee to almost waist deep water. We had no choice but to take off our socks and boots, and cross through freezing glacial water.

I could barely make it across, the water was numbingly cold and I had to jump across rocks without any hiking poles. Someone was kind enough to lend me their pole to help me across. Our feet were already killing us, and the icy water was almost too much.

As if that wasn’t enough, the final stretch was a giant patch of mud that was like quicksand. Kristina actually lost her shoe in it, and I had to fish it out and rinse it in the river.

Later, my foot got sucked in too and my boot was filled with mud. This was the first hike where I genuinely didn’t think I would make it.

Arriving at Camp

We finally arrived at the second camp over 12.5 hours after we’d started. We were able to negotiate 1,800 som for dinner and breakfast since we hadn’t booked in advance.

The food here was more delicious because the roads were closer and they can get fresh ingredients more easily. After that long day, the hot meal felt like heaven.

We were put in a mini two person yurt and braced ourselves for the last day of hiking.

📊 Day 2 Stats:

• Distance: ~15km
• Time: 12.5 hours
• Elevation gain: 1,000-1,100m (to the pass)
• Elevation loss: 1,400-1,500m (from pass to camp)
• Starting Altitude: ~3,300-3,550m (Sirota Camp)
• Ending Altitude: ~2,600m (Altyn Arashan/Ak-Suu)
• Difficulty: Extremely difficulty
• Highlights: The stunning lake (Lowlights: brutal descent, glacial river crossing, mud pit from hell)

Day 3: Altyn Arashan to Karakol

We wanted to get back to Karakol as soon as possible and headed out early in the morning. The terrain was a lot more favourable, no steep ascents or descents, no mud pits, and not glacial river crossings.

It was mostly flat and we walked along the dirt road when we could to save time. We were so happy when we finally reached the park exit, we almost cried.

💡Tip: They may ask you to pay a second park fee when you exit, I’m not sure if this is a new official fee. Some people in our group were asked to pay and others weren’t. It depended on timing and luck.

Although we were initially planning on visiting the hot springs of Altyn Arashan we decided to skip it and head straight back to Karakol. We were exhausted and didn’t have the energy.

Getting back to Karakol

Our plan was to take a marshrutka (local taxi minibus) back to Karakol once we completed the trek. Again, Maps.Me showed a marshrukta stop about an hour walk from the park exit but there was one much closer just on the other side of the road.

We paid 50 KGS som each (about $0.78 CAD) for the ride back to Karakol. Don’t be shy to ask the driver to stop along the route if your accommodation is nearby. You’ll save yourself from a lot of extra walking.

Taxi drivers may pass by and try to pick up tired hikers for a very high fee. Remember the marshrutka comes frequently and Karakol is actually quite close and not worth the exorbitant taxi fare.

📊 Day 3 Stats:

• Distance: ~13km
• Time: 6 hours
• Elevation loss: ~600m
• Starting Altitude: ~2,600m (Altyn Arashan)
• Ending Altitude: ~1,900-2,000m (Ak-Suu/park exit)
• Difficulty: Easy
• Highlights: Finally finishing!

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Budget Tips for the Ala Kul Lake Trek

The price of the Ala Kul Lake Trek has increased a lot over the past years with growing popularity, especially the yurt camps. But we wanted to make it as affordable as possible as budget backpackers, and we made it work.

• Transport: Split a 4×4 with other travelers (find them at Duet Coffee Shop). We paid 800 KGS som each including park entrance (300 KGS som).
• Accommodation: Most people book yurt camps in advance for around 4,200 som per night including dinner and breakfast at Sirota Camp. We took the risk of not booking and negotiated lower prices at both camps by showing up and asking.
• Food: We brought our own snacks and lunch for Day 1 (piroshkis from the supermarket) to cut costs. We purchased lunch boxes from Sirota camp for Day 3 at 600 KGS som.
• Alternative: They offer horse treks if you’re willing to pay extra, and you can hire horses for sections of the trek if you get tired.

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What to Pack for the Ala Kul Lake Trek

Pack as light as you can!

If there’s one piece of advice I could give you for the Ala Kul Lake Trek, it’s this: pack as light as you possibly can. This is a really tough trek, so you want to reduce your weight as much as possible.

The easiest way to cut weight is to stay at the yurt camps instead of bringing your own tent. You’ll pay a little more, but you save the hassle of carrying your tent, sleeping bags, and even food. For me, that’s worth every single penny.

We brought our own snacks and lunch for the first day (piroshkis from the supermarket) to keep costs down, but the yurts provided dinner and breakfast.

Essential Gear

Rain gear: The weather can change quickly, and mud becomes your enemy after rain. A plastic poncho or rain jacket will do the trick.

Waterproof footwear: This is non-negotiable. I wore Gortex waterproof boots, with ankle support, which saved me when my foot fell into a river while I was filming. The trail gets extremely muddy after rain, and you’ll have to cross streams. I wear the SCARPA Boreas GTX hiking boots.

Trekking poles: I cannot stress this enough. I didn’t have poles, and the descent from Ala Kul Pass was brutal. I actually ended up bruising my toenail so badly it fell off.

Water and filtration: There are lots of streams along the way where you can fill up your water bottle. I brought about 2 litres to start and used filtration tablets. The yurt camps provide unlimited tea if you’re staying with them, and you should fill up your water bottle before bed so you’re ready in the morning.

Warm layers: It gets cold at night in the yurts, especially at higher elevations. We took all the sleeping bags and blankets we could find since we were the only ones staying at Sirota Camp. Thermals came in handy at night.

Other Things to Bring

• Backpack (I used a 20L)
• Hat (sun protection)
• Sun screen
• Deodorant
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Beanie (it gets cold at night)
• Multiple pairs of socks (I lost a pair to the mud)
• 2 x T-shirts (moisture wicking)
• Leggings
• Undergarments
• Headlight
• Band-aids
• First aid kit
• Hand sanitizer
• Snacks

👉You can view a full list of my hiking essential here.

Where to Stay in Karakol

I recommend staying in Karakol for at least one night before your trek to organize transport and pick up any last-minute supplies, and another night after to recover (trust me, you’ll need it!).

The town is small and walkable, so most accommodations are conveniently located near restaurants, shops, and the essential Duet Coffee Shop where you can find trekking partners.

Accommodation Recommendations

Karakol has a good range of accommodation options to fit different budgets and travel styles. Here are my top picks:

Snow Leopard Hostel ($) – A popular budget-friendly option among trekkers and backpackers in Karakol. Snow Leopard has a great social atmosphere where you can easily meet other hikers planning the Ala Kul Lake Trek.

The hostel is well-known for helping organize transport to the trailhead and connecting travellers who want to split costs on a 4×4. The dorm rooms are basic but clean, and the communal areas are perfect for swapping tips with fellow adventurers.

Hostel Nice Karakol ($$) – A great mid-range option for travellers who want comfortable private rooms or dorms with a social hostel atmosphere. Hostel Nice offers clean accommodations with helpful staff who can assist with organizing transport to the Ala Kul Lake Trek trailhead.

The location is convenient for accessing Duet Coffee Shop, and many trekkers appreciate the communal areas for meeting other hikers and sharing trail tips before heading out.

Evergreen Guesthouse ($$) – A cozy mid-range guesthouse that offers a more intimate and homey atmosphere compared to larger hostels. Evergreen is known for its warm hospitality and comfortable private rooms.

The guesthouse can help arrange transport to the trailhead and provides hearty breakfasts to fuel your hiking days. It’s conveniently located within walking distance of Karakol’s main attractions and shops.

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Is the Ala Kul Lake Trek Worth It?

Absolutely. The Ala Kul Lake Trek is one of the most beautiful hikes I’ve done, and the stunning turquoise lake is worth every challenging step. The diverse landscapes with lush valleys, wild horses, mountain passes and glacial lakes make this trek unforgettable.

That said, this is also one of the most difficult hikes I’ve completed. Be honest with yourself about your fitness level, come prepared with the right gear (especially trekking poles!), and take your time. The Ala Kul Lake Trek will push you to your limits, but the views and sense of accomplishment at the end make it all worthwhile.

Would I do it again? Ask me after my toenail grows back. But would I recommend it? Yes, of course!