WHERE IS KAZAKHSTAN?

Apologies to "House of Games" fans, but every birder should know where Kazakhstan is, because it's a great place to visit.  It is actually a very large country, and there is much to see scenically as well as birds. There is a variety of wildlife in the country, and whilst much of it (such as Snow Leopard) is not on the normal tour routes there are mammals, reptiles and butterflies in some numbers in parts.       

It's one of the few countries (except Oz) I've visited twice, and the two trips were completely different. This was primarily because there was a thirty year gap between them, but I still remember the first trip as clearly as the one last year. It was just after the break-up of the former Soviet Union, and was organised by Russian Nature Tours, a fledgling company run by Algirdas Kynstautus, who has written several books and much else about birds in the region. The organisation was superb, but there was little tourism then (still isn't) and no tourist infrastructure. The sense of release from the shackles of Communism helped us immensely,  and whereas locals had to queue for (sometimes) hours for petrol, we went straight to the head of the queue as "foreign tourists". Food and alcohol were in short supply, but we had alcohol for dinner every night even when miles from the nearest village. Sometimes it was beer, sometimes vodka, but more usually "Russian Champagne", a complete misnomer with about 3% alcohol. I picked up a taste for "birch juice" which is exactly what it says, from a birch tree, so much that I bought a couple of bottles home (yes, in my luggage-different times). Accomodation was varied, our first night was in an ex-hunting lodge no longer needed by a Russian politician. It was run-down, and some windows were broken, but I don't remember any problem sleeping. One night tents had been erected for us at the side of a river so that we could "commune with nature". Unfortunately huge numbers of mosquitoes wanted to share the environment, and we had to go back to our coach. No problem, a hotel was found at very short notice, even if it had apparently been an army barracks!

But the best accomodation was in the Altai mountains, a place that is no longer on most tour routes. We were flown in in a Mil-6 helicopter which had formerly been used in a military role. Great, except that maintenance is not high on the agenda of Soviet military forces. There weren't enough seats so two of us perched on the luggage in the back (guess who?). The seats that  were there had seatbelts, but many of them weren't bolted to the floor! Never mind, I expect the machine guns still worked, but I must confess to being a little nervous on the return journey.  The accomodation was actually a mountain rescue hut, or rather re-purposed petrol tanker. The old "oval" type from the 1950's, they took away the driving unit, fitted a wood burning stove in one end (like a huge Aga) and ran hot water pipes down the length of the "tank", which was fitted with bunk beds. It was simply the best few night's sleep of the whole trip. Food was eaten outside, in June it was quite mild despite the altitude, and we were accompanied by our own cooks. The only slight drawback was that the only water was meltwater from the top of the mountain, we had to wait for a while after dawn for it to flow, and it was freezing cold. Character building or something!  

Obviously much had changed by my second visit, but outside the main towns of Almaty and Nur-Sultan, the new capital, it was far less evident. Most hotels were quite basic, but the most enjoyable accomodation for me was in a little village, in people's houses, where they earn a little money by accomodating researchers working on the steppes, and in particular Sociable Plovers. 

 

 

Which brings me to the birds, obviously. Numbers are down as everywhere, but there is still a wide range of interesting species to be seen, and if you're wanting something a little different, its got to be a top destination. We travelled with Birdfinders, which meant our leader was Vaughan's wife, Sveta, who was great, with local knowledge as she was born there. Cost is obviously a factor nowadays, but it is a relatively inexpensive destination. A "basic" tour will see most things, an extension is available to the steppes for Sociable Plover and Black and White-winged Larks, plus the most northerly-breeding Greater Flamingoes in the world, Pallid Harriers, Pallas', Slender-billed, Mongolian and "Steppe" Gulls. Specialities on the basic tour should include Ibisbill, sadly it is no longer possible to approach very close, but they are breeding birds, whereas many sites for them involve wintering birds. 

Other goodies are Himalayan Snowcock, Pallas' Sandgrouse, Demoiselle Crane, Caspian Plover, Dalmatian and Great White Pelicans, and White-winged Woodpecker.  Passerines, as well as the aforementioned larks, include Azure Tit,  Bimaculated Lark, Black-headed and White-crowned Penduline Tits, Eastern Rock Nuthatch, Brown Dipper, Syke's and Asian Desert Warbler, Blue Whistling-thrush, Guldenstadt's, Blue-capped and Eversmann's Redstarts, four Accentors, White-winged Grosbeak, Black-headed (Brandt's) Mountain-finch, Mongolian and Desert Finches, Saxaul Sparrow and up to ten species of  Bunting.

 Kazakhstan is a large country and it is possible to visit other areas with other tour companies (sometimes based in the country). I would not advise self-travel unless you speak Russian or Kazakh, as unlike the freedom of thirty years ago, some areas are now "no-go" unless you speak nicely to guards, who rarely speak English. Foremost among these places is Lake Alakol, where I saw breeding Relict Gulls and there is actually a ringing station. However the gulls disappeared after a few years and weren't seen in KZ. However I believe they have now returned to the area.  Other areas of the country are probably still accessible, think Siberian Rubythroat, Altai falcon, Rosy Finches and Altai Snowcock in the mountains, Turkestan Ground-jay, Imperial Eagle, Saker and Blue-cheeked Bee-eater elsewhere . Should you be interested I have recently put a tour report on my website,  https://www.aabirdpix.com/Trips/kazakhstan.htm. This only covers the "modern" tour.