Overview

Nurata Region

Uzbekistan

Unique Nurata region is located in the central part of Uzbekistan in the Navoi province. This relatively small territory confined by the Nurata Ridge of mountains in the southeast and the desert of Kyzyl Kum in the northwest comprises a number of interesting tourist objects – from monuments of Muslim culture in small town of Nurata to enormous Aydarkul Lake in the desert, from mountain gorges of the Nurata Nature Reserve to ancient petrogliphs of the enigmatic Sarmysh Gorge.
Up there in the mountain and desert villages life of inhabitants did not changed much over centuries. And the highlanders preserved their lifestyle and genuine kindness and sincere hospitality of their forbearers.
There for the purpose of nature conservation and biodiversity preservation the Narata-Kyzylkum Biospheric Reserve has been created.

The Aydarkul Lake with its more than 3,000 km2 water surface is the largest fresh water lake in Uzbekistan. The lake is manmade and is regarded as a “geographical wonder” for it has originally appeared as a result of filling up the enormous natural depression with excess water from Chardara reservoir during the disastrous high water in Syrdariya river in 1969. Today there live and migrate variety of wildlife - birds, fish and mammals.

Nurata today is just a small 40,000 population big town, administrative centre of the district. But it had seen days of glorious past of which remind ruins of the old-time fortress beetling at the mountain spear over the holy spring steadily producing 230 litres of fresh clear water. The spring, undoubtedly, was a reason why people once settled there. Around the spring, an architectural complex has developed to include earliest in the Central Asia multi-dome Chil Sutun mosque (9th c AD), Panch Vakta mosque (16th c AD), grave of Abu Hassan Nuri Baghdadi (the Arab sheikh who preached Islam there in the 8th century), a pool full of holy fishes and a small museum of history.
Six kilometres north of the town one can see and explore peculiar “karizy” - underground tunnels built in medieval time to bring subsoil water from mountains to the plain to irrigate fields.

Nurata Ridge of mountains also gives a mountain-soul traveller opportunity to see hundreds of stone “sculptures” created by Mother Nature with help of her customary “tools” - water, wind and sun. Enormous rocks and boulders develop one’s imagination to resemble fantastic animals, birds, cobras, tortoises, dinosaurs etc.
In the desert of Kyzilkum one can see “petrified forest” and " dinosaur graveyard" – a hello from Jurassic Park times! - and also have a dip in a mineral hot water spring in the middle of desert.

The Sarmysh gorge famous for its extensive "stone picture gallery" in the open is ranked amongst world’s most large ones. Even today, there on the black basalt panels more than 3500 petrogliphs (pictures hewn on rocks) artistically depicting animal (goats, camels, dogs etc.), human beings and scenes of hunting still can be seen - 4000 years past the time they have originally been made.

The yurt camp "Aydar" is a starting point for those seeking camel-back riding or walking opportunity in the desert. The yurt-stay gives a traveller an insight into traditional nomadic lifestyle and a good introduction to flora and fauna of the deserts of Kyzylkum (Red Sand Desert). Extensive evening meal by a campfire flavoured with singing of local Kazakh bard (“akyn”) leaves indelible imprints in the memory of traveller.

Hidden in winding mountain gorge, the villages of Sentyab, Uhum and Manzherum alike are also of interest to tourists because of indigenousness architecture of their houses built of flat stones. There in the Nurata mountains a traveller can see a life of a highlander as it is, enjoy views of the picturesque valleys, see wildlife in the world’s only reserve of Kyzilkum argalis, see famous thousand-years old Monjerum juniper tree, have an equestrian tour around at the backdrop of a splendid pristine natural landscape.