The Zaamin National Park is situated in Jizzakh Province, on the northern slopes of the Turkestan Mountain Range. Its total area comprises 15,600 hectares. The elevations range from 1,700 m (in the Guralash valley) to 3,571 m (Guralash Peak). Zaamin National Park (Jizzakh Province) is the oldest nature preserve in Uzbekistan, created in 1926 as Guralash Nature Preserve on the northern slopes of the western part of Turkestan Range, in the valleys of the rivers Kulsoy, Guralash, Baikungur, and Aldashmansoy. Total area 156 square kilometres. Elevations from 1,700 m (in the Guralash valley) to 3,571 m (Guralash Peak). The territory consists of two sites: Zaamin State Reserve and Zaamin National Park, located in the northern slope of Turkistan mountain range and bordering upon each other. Zaamin State Reserve organized in 1960, located in Zaamin and Bakhmal regions on the area of 26840 hectares. Zaamin National Park organized in 1978, located in Zaamin region on the area of 24110 hectares. The reserve provides the preservation in the absolute inviolability condition of all natural properties and complexes, which located on its territory. The park was created aimed at preservation, rebuilding and recreational investigation of unique mountain-pines ecosystems. There are two marked zones in the park - recreation and buffer. The mountain-pines ecosystems, which stay 1760-3500 m. above sea level, are under the protection. More than 700 form of plants resented in the flora from them forest forming-zarafshan, hemi globe-shaped and Turkistan pines. Pine forests of represent area are the largest massifs in the region. There are many rare forms of animals (14) and plants (18), inscribed into the Red Book of the Republic of Uzbekistan.Slopes of all mountains in Central Asia were once covered with archa - the Asian variety of juniper reaching 18 meters in height. They began disappearing simultaneously with the development of humanity between the Amudarja and Syrdarja. Archa is a good fuel that produces a lot of heat, and its felling began long before A.D.Junipers need time to recover. A tree becomes truly mature only after 100-150 years. By the early 20th century, archa forests in Turkestan survived only high in the mountains. Unfortunately, intensive cattle breeding the Soviet regime brought with it all but did away with them too. Collective farms' sheep and cow ate and trampled what had not been cut down yet. Scientists say that climatic changes in Central Asia (leading to the drying up of the Sea of Aral and shortage of water in general) began with degradation of mountainous forests in the Pamirs and Tyen Shan. Archa forests can only be found in national parks in modern Uzbekistan. The largest of them is located in the southern part of the Dzhizak region, in the Zaamin district. The first archa national park was established there in 1926. It was closed for the Great Patriotic War, and reestablished in 1960. Sharaf Rashidov, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Uzbek Communist Party who had a dacha in the Zaamin mountains, ordered establishment of a resort in the national park in 1972. The whole national park was soon given the status of a People's Park.
Wildlife includes hares, foxes, porcupines, wolves, bears, Turkestan lynxes, etc. The road across the Sufa Pass leads to the famous spring in the no less famous grotto with stone staircases and arches. Its bitingly cold water has the sweet taste of chilled milk. Tourists and even locals are not permitted to proceed further on because this is the state border between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. Access to Zaamin was restricted when the civil war raged in Tajikistan. Approaching the border even now is hazardous because of minefields. At the same time, the resort under the pass and a dozens spas nearby welcome tourists and vacationers. When this correspondent was in Zaamin, a convention of young Uzbek writers was taking place there. Representative of the personnel say that officials of the medium level with their families like to vacate there. The locals' income depends to a substantial degree on tourism. Dishes of local cuisine are offered as one of the attractions. Gourmets from Dzhizak and even Samarkand and Tashkent come here to taste the tandyr-kabo - a dish of mutton and... juniper. Kumys, a fermented milk of cares, is served with it. For some reason, travel agencies working in and with Uzbekistan, do not often offer trips to Zaamin. Probably because of the distance from international airports and absence of modern hotels in Dzhizak. Still, according to what information this news agency has compiled, the national and regional authorities do plan to develop Zaamin infrastructure. They contemplate construction of a modern highway that will connect Zaamin and Samarkand, the tourist capital of Uzbekistan.
