Tulpar-Kol Lake

A turquoise alpine lake at 3,650 m at the base of Lenin Peak — the gateway to the most famous mountaineering camp in Central Asia.

Tulpar-Kol (‘Winged-Horse Lake’ in Kyrgyz) is a high-altitude lake at the base of Lenin Peak — at 7,134 metres one of the easiest 7,000-metre summits in the world and the most popular among Russian-speaking mountaineers. The turquoise lake sits in a wide moraine basin at 3,650 m, surrounded by yurts of climbers, trekkers and the families who supply them. The standard climbing season runs from late June through late August; outside that window only a handful of yurt camps remain operational for trekkers. From the lake, day-walks climb to the lower slopes of Lenin Peak base camp (4,400 m) and back, providing excellent acclimatisation and unobstructed views of the south wall of the mountain. EcoNomad’s Heights of Alay trek descends to Tulpar-Kol on its penultimate day before the return drive to Sary-Mogol and Osh.