The Kugitang caves are located on the slope of Kugitangtau Ridge and are a typical representation of various karst forms. Some 60 caves have been discovered, with a total length of 50 km, featuring galleries, passages, halls and labyrinths. The caves are rich in formations made of plaster, calcite, aragonite in the form of stalactites, stalagmites and stone curtains. The Kugitang State Nature Reserve was organised 11/07/1986, and is situated on the west slope of the Kugitangtau Mountains, representing spur of Gissars range of great mountain system Pamiro-Alay. The territory of the Reserve is 27,139 ha. The main aim of the Reserve creation is the protection of the unique nature of the Kugitang mountain range, and its bordering territories and the development of the sensible ecosystems and in particular the protection of Capra falconeri (a very rare species of wild goat included into the Red Data Book of CITES). The climate of the reserve and its bordering territories is very peculiar. Average annual precipitations makes up 402 mm decreasing at the foothills and increase up to 700-800 mm on the top of the mountains . In spring shower rains in the mountaineaous canyons sometimes result in mud floods and land slides. The name of the Kugitang (or Koytendag in Turkmen) mountains characterises the specifics of its relief. Its name came from the Persian "kuhi" and Turkic "teng" and means "almost impassable mountains". The mountain terrain is cut with numerous valleys and deep canyons, the longest of which is Hodjachilgazbaba with a length of 28 km. The steep walls of Daraya canyon can reach up to 600 m. The upper slopes of the mountains plateau is covered by forest consisting of walnut, maple, juniper (archa) and wild grape. The whole year round a stream of cold clear water flows under the shady trees. The Umbardepe canyon with its vertical hillsides and with an amazing waterfall of 27 m, absolutely strikes one's imagination.
When in Kyrgyzstan,the passionate also get their share of caves. Almost all of them a re located in the Osh area inthesou them part of the re public. The Osh Mountains are well known and easily accessible. There are dozens of caves in the low limestone mountains on the foot of the Great Pamirs. Between Aravana and Ak-Bura rivers, on the sunny foothills of Chil-Ustun, mounds are scattered like islands of a mysterious archipelago. From a geological, and particularly a geomorphologic point of view, these mounds are the remnants of a huge mountain range and are the sediments of the Paleozoic period, dating back 350 million years. 4km from Aravana, on Chil-Ustun Mountain, just below the peak of 1460m lays the entrance to three underground caverns connected by narrow passages, of which the third is the most impressive with its 100m length, and up to 50m width. The cavern is propped up by beautiful columns, glistening as the beam of your flashlight reflects off it. The walls are decorated by finely woven crystal lace. As you touch the crystals, a sound reverberates off them, the sound of music of millions of years back. On your way out, pay attention to the many inscriptions on the walls, some of which are in Sanskrit. Besides the Chil-Ustun cave, there are many other interesting and easy to access caves on the slopes of the mountains: Sasyk-Unkur (140m), Suvli-Kamar (120m), Chil-Mayram (130m), Teshik-Tash (180m), Snake (185m) and Besh-Unkur (the depth is 100m). 20 km south of Chil-Ustun, the Tuya-Muyun mountain is split by a deep canyon. On its left side: the deepest cave of the republic, Fersman's Chasm, the depth of which is 240m, next to it Big Baritovaya cave (length is 300m) and Ajiadar-Unkur cave, which is famous for its bat communities. On its right: Surprise cave with a length of 450m and Po bed nay a cave with the length of 1200m. All the caves of Tuya-Muyun region are characterized by rich mineralization. Multiform and multicolored crystals cover the surface of the majority of its underground passages and caverns. The next cave is so interesting, it is indispensable to any speleologic itinerary through Southern Kyrgyzstan. Kan-i-Gut(Pitof Ruin) is located in the easter most of the Osh region near Batken. The cave served as a mining pit from where in the VI XI centuries lead and iron were extracted. Over two dozen gigantic caverns, deep passages, fire-places, narrow trapdoors and tunnels give you a g limps at mining activity centuries ago.
Geologists of the Turkmen exploratory expedition discovered a new cave in the Kugitang mountains in Koytendag, which they named "Taze Charva", the Ashgabat correspondent of Turkmenistan.ru reports referring to the State news service (TDH). It has an underground gallery running for about 80 m. However, by beauty of minerals that shine in the sun it can be compared to such well-known caves as "Khashimoyuk", "Kapkatan", "Dashyurek", the TDH notes. These caves, which were formed as a result of million years long denudation, are comparable to the most famous world caves by their scale and mineral formation. There were found reserves of such precious and semi-precious stones as marble onix, agate, rock crystal and amethyst. It is not difficult to reach Kyrk-Tau. The major Uzbek Highway from Samarkand to Shakhrisabzs passes about 40km south of Samarkand, by the Takhtakarach pass. The saddle of the pass (1673m) separates the two flanks of the Zarafshan chain. The wide spectrum of karst development will amaze you: craters, chimneys, niches, grottos, caves and chasms are all part of this system. Snow lies in the craters till May. When it thaws, the water runs into the hollows on the bottom of the crater, washing out these arteries of the mountain range. Along that same road, the Aman Kutan cave, the length of which is about 1km, and Yakobakskaya cave with the length of 600m can be also recommended for amateurs. The district abounds with craters. There are over 3000 of them. In the middle of this multiplicity Kievskaya Chasm, the deepest cave of the Asian continent, is located. The entry into the cave is 2km in length and 0.6km in width. It is situated on the bottom of a karst crater in the western part of the plain and on the altitude of 2400m below sea level. Kievskaya cave consists of many-staged vertical chasms, with shafts from 5 to 100m deep. An underground lake, 10m deep lays at the bottom of one of the shafts and many leads run further into the mountain. There are many other leads on Kyrk-Tau, varying in depth from 20 to 250m. Gur-Gur-Ata is another district, which attracts the attention of the speleologists. It is located on the slopes of Boy sun Mountains between Samarkand and Termez, in the South-western Hissar/Gissar range. Crossing the town of Derbent, turn left into the Machay Valley, where only recently an amazing underground system has been discovered in the Ketmen Chaptu ridge, including the deepest known caves of Asia, the Boy Bulak at 12Mm.
