Tyvand Family Adventures: May 2015 - Sayram-Ugam National Park

Catching up on our posts! Last spring, over a 5-day weekend in May the Tyvand clan traveled by overnight train to Sayram-Ugam National Park outside of Shymkent, Kazakhstan. The train trip was nostalgic, as it served as the primary means of travel while both Rose and Jim served in the US Peace Corps in the late 90's. Not much had changed, certainly not the carriages.

What trip to the Kazakh countryside would be complete without overnight accommodations in a yurt. Though the days proved to be filled with sunshine, we were greeted with viscous thunderstorms in the evenings which had the effect of creating a loud symphony over our heads as we tried to sleep. Wouldn't have changed a thing.

The highlight of our trip was a planned 1 hour jaunt on horseback into the national park. Often, something gets lost in the translation. We had instead signed up for a 7 hour day trip into the national park. Hello saddle sores. Given that we were staying adjacent to the park, our horses were delivered to us.

We re-mount after our lunch break 4 hours into the day!

Perhaps also lost in the translation is that we were all beginner riders. Not a problem in the Kaz, it's a learn as you go country, no silly insurance or legal issues. By the end of the day, we were experts (non-beginners).