Kyrgyzstan Travel: Horse Trekking and Yurt Stay adventure to Song Köl

Prior to the World Nomad Games we had a great introduction to the country of Kyrgyzstan through an adventurous several day horse-trekking journey where we stayed overnight in yurts en route to Song Kol. The highlight for us both was the rugged scenery along the way in tandem with the getting to experience traditional Kyrgyz culture in a yurt at night where we had traditional food and then slept inside.
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Kyrgyzstan Travel: Horse Trekking and Yurt Stay adventure to Song Köl Travel Video Transcript:
Hey guys we're in Kyrgyzstan. Yeah, new country for both of us so that is pretty exciting. First time in Central Asia so we are stoked to be here. Yeah and over the next few days we are going to be horse-trekking in Song Köl so we're going to take you along but before we get there we're making a little stop. First up Burana Tower right here. So we're going to climb to the top.
The first day of our tour was mostly a travel day, so we just enjoyed the scenery, caught up on sleep, and experienced our first Kyrgyz traffic jam. We also go our first taste of Kyrgyz food with a massive lunch featuring all types of spreads and dishes.
From there, we did a short hike in the outskirts of Kochkor and then checked into our guesthouse for the night.
(Traditional music of Kyrgyzstan)
So good morning from Kochkor. We did a home stay here last night which was a lot of fun. We got to watch a music performance and eat amazing food. So we're just going to enjoy breakfast now and then go horse-trekking. And we're wearing our cool hats. Yeah, so can't wait to do that. Let's get started.
Alright so we just arrived at the first camp. We've had lunch and now we're going to pick out a horse and begin the trek. Yeah!
Okay so it is time for a little update. How are you feeling?
Well, I've been getting tenderized on that horse. Yeah. Like we've been riding for over three hours now and after I got off of it I could barely stand up. Like I almost collapsed. I almost fell. Obviously we are not trained at doing this but it has been a lot of fun. The scenery has been awesome, the weather has really cooperated so this is over the halfway mark and we're really looking forward to reaching the Yurt for supper.
So we made a new friend and we've arrived at camp. We've arrived at last. So we're at our yurt and we're going to eat dinner. We're getting ready for dinner and this guy is our entertainment for the night.
So it is now bedtime. The boys are in one yurt and the girls are in the other and this is what it looks like.
Little tour. There we go. And we have loads of blankets because it is freezing cold tonight.
Good morning. I don't know about you but I slept really well. We were in separate tents. Yeah, it was men only and women only. And it was so cold that you know we just bundled up in these big thick blankets and I think everyone just was like out like a rock. Past out right away.
And we went to bed early. Yeah because the horse riding took a lot out of us and we had a nice big meal and then a little bit to drink and then just it was fantastic. So this is the start of day two. So we're going to be riding again about five hours today. I'm feeling pretty sore so we'll see how that goes. But it should be fun like the landscapes have been amazing all the way. And the weather has been awesome too so I think we're going to have another really good day. Mmmhmmm. Let's do this.
Alright welcome to MTV cribs the yurt edition. Yurt edition. So we're going to show you what is going on in here. Alright. This is like the men's sleeping quarters last night so we were all sleeping here. Looks pretty messy. It is properly messy. We all just woke up. We're just getting ready for breakfast and this was the awesome stuff we had last night. We had some vodka.
On our second afternoon of trekking we made it to Song Kol, our final destination. We arrived shortly before sunset, so after dropping off our packs and warming up with tea, we made our way down to the water to watch the sun work its magic.
So we finally made it. We arrived. So it is day two. It is the end of our horse-trek and this is Song Kol. Viola!
This is part of our Travel in Kyrgyzstan video series showcasing Krygyz food, Krygyz culture and Kyrgyz cuisine.
Music in this video courtesy of Audio Network

[@aydinzerey]

Great nice video, Kygrzstan fantastic place, nice to see our orginal Turkish culture, music,food,tradional. Love from Turkey

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! We have more videos coming out soon :)

[@Aniutiny_glazki]

Just wanted to thank you for sharing your advices and your smile. Hi from France 😊 keep going you both !

[@samuelandaudrey]

Ah, thank you very much! Greetings from South Korea :)

[@sorcerersupreme4300]

Wow KYRGYZSTAN is amazing beautiful country

[@samuelandaudrey]

It most definitely is!

[@MaikeVogtLueerssen]

The world is an amazing place ... Please show us more, Samuel and Audrey!!!!

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! I sure hope we can :)

[@brendawieszek5159]

omg! beautiful!!💖💖💖loved it!👍👍 everything looks like so new, refreshing and exciting! cheers to that cheers to u guys👏👏 loved it✌

[@samuelandaudrey]

Ah thank you very much! We really enjoyed our time in Kyrgyzstan. It was the kind of adventurous trip we needed to have.

[@SR-mv2mf]

You guys convinced me to go to Kyrgyzstan it seems superb

[@samuelandaudrey]

Ah, cool to hear! We highly recommend it :)

[@BillGreenAZ]

I love the colors in the yurts. The scenery is fantastic there.

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thanks Bill! They're really decorated nicely inside and simple on the outside. The scenery is really stunning and it is certainly not crowded.

[@marta203]

wow! amazing country!

[@samuelandaudrey]

The scenery is incredible :)

[@PatMaxAdventures]

Wow Kyrgyzstan looks amazing! Those Yurts were very interesting and quite beautiful on the inside. Great idea guys! I can't wait to travel there some time ^^

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you! It is a fascinating country to visit and the yurt stays were definitely a highlight of our trip :) Hope you can go soon!

[@PatMaxAdventures]

I hope so too. If I do, it will be in August or September of 2017. How did you guys arrange to say in the Yurt with a local family?

[@DamirAsanov]

You can contact CBT Kyrgyzstan (Community Based Tourism)

[@lovelive7849]

PatMax Adventures Hey if you visit August 2017 feel free to email: [e-mail]. I'm happy to show you Kyrgyzstan's nice places.

[@TravelingTeachr]

Thank you for visiting these places. These are hidden gems (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan). If only people knew how amazing they are. If we were to pick a country to live in longterm, it would be one of these three countries. We loved our yurt treks and stays. :)

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! Having this taste of travel in Kyrgyzstan has made us want to explore more in Central Asia :)

[@TRAVELZILLA]

OMG you guys ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOCK one of my dream trips is through central Asia! This vlog is so spot on! You guys ROCK! warm greetings from São Paulo! Oh You guys when ur in Kazakhstan don´t forget that those are the ancestral peoples of Europeans, Middle Eastern, Northern Indian, Native Americans and East Asians. Id luuuv to see it! Some families can trace their genome 40k yrs! This is the place where the African peoples changed into most our ancestors today according to the latest genetic research! First big mutations out of Africa were in the Indian Subcontinent, second big mutation was in Central Asia!

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! It sure was quite the adventure and it has made us want to travel more in Central Asia. That is fascinating about the history.

[@sorcerersupreme4300]

TRAVELZILLA I.am same here, i would love to visit all the stan countries next year

[@RaquelTeixeiraa]

so inspiring video!! I loved it!!! I wanna go there and also Tajikistan!!! What's the name of this horse trekking tour?

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you! Highly recommend it. To book you can go through CBT Kyrgyzstan (Community Based Tourism).

[@bekapro8862]

I love son col

[@samuelandaudrey]

Cool to hear.

[@lovelive7849]

Traffic jam so funny with Cows;))😂

[@samuelandaudrey]

Hahaha....yes...that was funny :)

[@sheesherwhiz3846]

Thank you for including my mother's homeland in your videos! I'm half American and half Kyrgyz! Love your videos, but I would've recommended Iccyk-kol rather than Song-kol

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! Do you get to revisit often? Ah, we'll have to check out Iccyk-kol.

[@jcbaily5559]

fantastic video...thanks....you all seem to be having a good time.

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! We really did enjoy traveling in Kyrgyzstan.

[@ElizabethTravelsNow]

It's one of the highest county on my : TO VISIT list right now! Seriously, it seems so amazing there! And I hear the food is amazing. A lot of lamb based dishes?

[@samuelandaudrey]

That is awesome to hear! We'd recommend it for sure. The lamb is awesome. You can get it prepared numerous different ways.

[@OneikaTraveller]

LOL @ Samuel getting "tenderized" on the horse! Love that metaphor! Great work as always, guys! Really enjoyed the video. Reminded me quite a bit of my time in Mongolia!

[@OneikaTraveller]

Also your "new friend" who seems to love the camera... Omg so adorbs!

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thanks Oneika! We've done some horse riding in the past but never all day long on such rugged terrain. We actually started to feel better on the 2nd day believe it or not...LOL That is really cool to hear about Mongolia :) We're hoping to visit for the 1st time next year.

[@samuelandaudrey]

LOL, he was the cutest.

[@НурбекАйдыралиев]

Супер сон кол 🇰🇬👍

[@samuelandaudrey]

:)

[@НазаралиБатыров]

Super 👍

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thanks!

[@Alexx_BAS]

you guys are awesome!!!

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you!

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

Squeeze TEnt... WOW with mother nature wow..

[@samuelandaudrey]

Yeah, we got to do a lot of great things on this tour :)

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

lovely Hills and nice horses Dears

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you! It was quite the adventure :)

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

Samuel & Audrey yep...no Ppl around...fully loaded nature

[@JamieBanksTravel]

Another great video!

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you! :)

[@АлмазМуктарбеков]

Super😄

[@fiorellacruz206]

WoW i Love your vídeos !! 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃

[@samuelandaudrey]

Ah! Thank you very much! :)

[@traveltogether301]

nice☺

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you!

[@Arushi1234]

Absolutely gorgeous!! Could you tell me what kind of vlogging camera do you guys use?

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much! We use an Olympus OMD-EM5ii and a Canon G7X :)

[@dawayneduval]

Did anyone give the history behind the hats people wear there? Also, Audrey s legs are skinnier then I imagined, nice! Sam, since you got "tenderized" on that horse did Audrey or one of the locals look at you like they wanted to grill you? Lol

[@samuelandaudrey]

Ah, I wish we would have asked more about that. I know they are called kalpak and they were really popular during the World Nomad Games. She's in much better shape than I am ;) Ah gosh, I'm lucky I got back on that horse ;)

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

wow Vodka and cute cat too. You did not show the meal..

[@samuelandaudrey]

Ah, we forgot to do that! We were so tired but still no excuse ;)

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

Samuel & Audrey Ho no dear...miss it darlings

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

shy dog yess

[@samuelandaudrey]

That shy dog growled at me (Sam) the day before...hahaha

[@PradeepRaajkumar1981]

Samuel & Audrey Ho ok

[@darijekrstanovic]

So nice :)

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you very much!

[@davebrown2721]

ok i'm a canuck that has wanted to go to kyrgyzstan for some time now. i'm actually heading to chile and patagonia for 2 months next week, but this would definitely be a future trip for me. anything in particular you can recommend?? p.s. thanks for the great videos!

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thanks! That is cool to hear. Best wishes with your trip to Patagonia. You'll have to let us know how that goes because in late 2017 we plan to do a Argentina/Chile exploration of Patagonia for the first time. In terms of Kyrgyzstan I highly recommend the outdoor activities (hiking, trekking, horse-trekking and yurt stays) and the key to really enjoying it is to not be rushed. The more time you can budget the better.

[@mdarafathossain3580]

❤️💞🇧🇩💞❤️

[@Adri40craft]

Good video, thanks! I am trying to arrange same trekking as you guys. Can you remember how much it was?

[@Cozycoz]

Hey awesome video, too bad you don't upload all of your Kyrgyzstan videos one after the other though :( I was also wondering if you earn enough from youtube to keep you traveling?

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you! We have a few more coming out soon - one per week. Honestly, just from the videos themselves not enough but we do other things to earn money online to make it work right now.

[@Dmitry_Dmitrii]

Not Song-Kul, but Son-Kol 😀🤣

[@YesYes-lz2cp]

Nice baby )

[@samuelandaudrey]

Thank you!

[@leedaomillz]

It's very expensive to fly to this country

[@samuelandaudrey]

From where would you be coming in?

[@leedaomillz]

United States

[@samuelandaudrey]

I would also search via Kazakhstan because you can easily cross overland.

[@leedaomillz]

Oh thank you ☺️

[@mohammedalshehri6647]

Additional tip : there's is a cheap direct flight from Dubai if you planing to visit Dubai and Kyrgyzstan.