Stage 122: From Kyzyltu to Kerbulak

Aman and I had decided the night before to visit the Altyn Emel National Park together. We had read on the internet that a permit is required to enter and that there are two entrances, with the permit only available on site for one of the entrances. For the other entrance, you have to get a permit in advance in Almaty. There was no time for the latter, so our plan was to reach the 'allowed' entrance as quickly as possible. If necessary, we would hitchhike, as this entrance was actually too far away.

We said goodbye to our hosts and set off. After ten kilometers, we were already on the highway, hoping for a ride. After 20 minutes, we were already frustrated and decided to get coffee at the nearby gas station instead. Plan B was to speed on the highway and make the 50-kilometer journey to the next major city, Konaev, and try from there by bus or taxi. Along the way, we could enjoy the view of the huge lake with a few holiday resorts. After 50 fast kilometers, we reached Konaev, a tourist spot with many casinos. The local taxi drivers demanded totally exaggerated prices for the transfer, and there were no buses to the national park. Well, then Plan C it is! Just drive to the 'forbidden' entrance and convince/bribe the officials on site, what could possibly go wrong? So we continued along the road to Shengeldy, a small village about 30 kilometers from the entrance. There we could still replenish our supplies, but it was too late to drive to the park today.

We were just about to look for a camping spot by the lake near Kerbulak when a local named Ruslan approached us on his motorcycle and basically forced us to stay with him. I liked the idea, but Aman was suspicious. Ruslan seemed drunk to him, but I just thought his mannerisms were 'Kazakh' (Aman turned out to be right). After we got to know Ruslan's neighbors, we had shashlik by the campfire from our own harvest. Ruslan also assured us that he would drive with us to the national park the next day and we wouldn't need a permit. He didn't have to work tomorrow, so he could take a tour with us. Full of optimism, we went to sleep!

The next morning, we had shashlik for breakfast again. Afterwards, Ruslan said he only had to work two hours in the field and would then have time for us. So we waited and waited and waited. To pass the time, three really cute puppies were running around the yard. In the late afternoon, we went in search of him and found him visibly drunk, working on his motorcycle. His new plan was to ride to the national park with the three of us on his motorcycle. So I grabbed a beer as well and told Aman that even I thought this idea was completely stupid. In between, Ruslan showed us his 'driving skills' and told us that he had tried to blow up an old car with his neighbors (fortunately, it didn't work!). Later, he drove heavily intoxicated to a birthday party in Shengeldy and promised to finally take us with him on his motorcycle the next day. Yeah, right!