Western Altai State Nature Reserve

Western Altai State Nature Reserve

Date of establishment: 3 July 1992
Area: 86,122 ha
Main ecosystems: Siberian black taiga forests, decidous and mountain taiga forests, subalpine and alpine meadows, alpine tundra

The area, now under protection as the Western Altai State Nature Reserve, is well hidden in the most westernly part of Altai mountain range in the far east of Kazakhstan. It is best known for its spectacular buttes, logan stones and rock towns made of strangely shaped granite boulders many up to 35 meter tall. Not surprisingly, local people call the reserve: ‘Rocky fairytale‘. These extraordinary rocks attracted people for long time and were worshipped in the past, especially by Budhists. There are plenty of religious artefacts found in their vicinity. Many rocks were even given own names such as Meeting of the Elders, Watching Man, Knights, Dolphin, Lizard, Greeting Sun and so on. This unique landscape surrounding the Skazka peak (Fairytale peak in English, 2,179 m a.s.l.) covers staggering 1,600 ha, but it is only small proportion of the whole reserve.
Hence, it is just to say that the reserve has more than the unusual rocks worth exploring. Altai is one of the few remaining places in the world where one can still discover undisturbed nature with spectacular landscape vistas. Many valleys contain pristine mountain lakes and streams flanked by lush green natural forests and at higher elevations alpine meadows and rugged peaks. The most famous lakes are a group of so called Beloubinskye Ozera, of which Kedrovoe (Siberian pine Lake) is considered the most beautiful of them. All this mountain paradise harbours not less fascinating and diverse wildlife replete with endemic and relict (old-age) species of plants and animals.
A specific mention deserves Gulbishche – the largest high mountain peatland in Western Altai (6 km long and 2 km wide). The area attracts a lot of large mammals – roe deer, maral deer and elk. Sightings of brown bear are also common. Visitors with a photografic camera will rarely go home without spectacular images of local wildlife.
Most of the reserve is strictly protected and is off-limits to visitors to keep its nature undisturbed. However, there are several opportunities to explore its vicinity (buffer zone) or take one of several guided tours within the reserve on offer by the Administration of the Western Altai Nature Reserve. Each visitor has to pay entrance fees and to be accompanied by a ranger at all times who provides detailed information about the reserve and takes care of visitor safety and comforts.

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