Charyn Canyon (Valley of Castles) & Altyn-Emel National Park (Singing Dune & Aktau)

Once you drive east out of Almaty past the orchard suburbs of Talgar and Esik, the green Tian Shan foothills drop away into the semi-arid Ili Depression. Within two hundred kilometres, rivers and ancient lake beds have sculpted crimson sandstone towers, chalk badlands, and resonant quartz dunes.

Charyn Canyon and the Valley of Castles (Dolina Zamkov)

Protected within Charyn State National Nature Park about 200 kilometres east of Almaty (around three hours via the concrete Kuldja highway), Charyn Canyon stretches for 154 kilometres along the Charyn River as it rushes down from the Tian Shan toward the Ili River. Over twelve million years, wind and glacial meltwater cut 150 to 300 metres deep through Neogene red sandstone and conglomerate strata. The most celebrated section is the two-kilometre Valley of Castles (Dolina Zamkov), where rust-orange hoodoos, arches, and castellated cliffs rise above a sandy foot trail that descends from the rim viewing platforms to the cold, jade-green river at the bottom, where Sogdian ash trees (Fraxinus sogdiana), a Tertiary-period relic flora survivor, grow along the banks.

On the drive between Charyn and the village of Saty, stop at two contrasting overlooks along the same gorge: Black Canyon (Chyorny Kanyon), where the river churns through dark volcanic basalt walls, and Moon Canyon (Lunny Kanyon), carved out of pale yellow clay hills.

Altyn-Emel National Park: The Singing Dune and Aktau Mountains

North of the Ili River and Kapchagai reservoir lies Altyn-Emel State National Nature Park, established in 1996 across 307,000 hectares of desert steppe inhabited by goitered gazelles (dzheyran) and reintroduced Turkmenian kulans (wild asses). Because tracks inside the park cross rocky desert washes, visits require a high-clearance 4WD and registration at the Basshi park ranger office (check official park guidelines before departure):

• The Singing Dune (Aygaykum): Wedged between the limestone ridges of Big and Small Kalkan near the Ili River, this three-kilometre-long, 150-metre-high crescent of pale quartz sand has never migrated across the plain due to opposing valley wind currents. In dry weather, sliding down its steep leeward crest causes millions of friction-charged sand grains to vibrate, producing a deep, organ-like bass hum audible across the steppe.
• Aktau and Katutau Mountains: Ninety kilometres further east inside the park, the floor of an ancient Cenozoic basin exposes the multi-layered chalk and gypsum badlands of the Aktau ("White") Mountains striped in bands of terracotta red, ochre yellow, and chalk white alongside the frozen Permian lava cones of Katutau.

Combine Charyn Canyon with the Kolsai and Kaindy lakes on a weekend loop from Almaty, and check our best time to visit Almaty guide to avoid peak mid-summer desert heat.