On June 30-31, Kun.uz employees took advantage of the weekend and traveled to Khazrat Sultan peak, one of the highest points of Uzbekistan, located in Shahrisabz district of Kashkadarya region. During our trip, we were accompanied by employees of the Hisar state reserve under the State Ecology Committee.

Khazrat Sultan peak is located at a distance of 100 kilometers from the cities of Shahrisabz and Kitab. AWD vehicles can reach the summit.

On the way to the peak, the beauty of nature quite impressive. A river with clear water flows from the mountain gorges. The slopes are covered with fir trees. Everything is green.

The area around the peak is covered with snow throughout the year and it melts by July. Therefore, 30-40 days are allowed in July-August to arrive at the peak.

The peak is mostly reached at night and the sunrise is observed from there, and then the descent is made. On July 30, at 19:00, when we reached the threshold of the peak, there were 30-40 AWD vehicles and more than 200 people. There were many women among them too.

In the evening, people started moving along the trail leading to the peak. The staff of the reserve said that the top of the mountain is very cold, and if you leave for the destination earlier than the set timing, you may catch a cold. After consulting, we agreed to start walking at 22:00.

Since I reached the top in 2019, I became a pioneer for my partners. As we went to the top of the mountain, at first the warm clothes weighed down and we warmed up.  After climbing a little, we started to feel cold.

The main part of the trail to the summit was very steep with gravel underfoot. Since the movement was very difficult, we stopped often to rest.

Breathing became difficult as the oxygen level decreased as we ascended. After that we started to walk less and rest more.

As we continued on the way, we saw that some of those who wanted to climb the peak turned back because they could not bear the hardships of the trip.

We neared the top at 04:00. The trail is no longer steep, but sloping, making it much easier to walk.

A path was made on the steep rock that one person could walk on. It was a bit difficult to climb to the top as it was very dangerous to drive on it. When we hardly reached the top, there were already 60-70 people who had climbed before us.

After 10 minutes, the sun came out. After watching the sunrise, everyone started to descend from the peak. Those who did not reach the summit before sunrise were still moving towards the summit as we descended.

What has changed since 2019?

Since Khazrat Sultan peak is located on the border with Tajikistan, the access to it was closed for many years when relations with this country cooled.

The summit was opened in 2019 after the restoration of friendly relations with the neighboring country. When we went that year, there were very few people who wanted to climb the peak. When we went this time, their number increased dramatically.

Due to the large number of people, glue bags and plastic bottles were thrown haphazardly on the platform below the peak. Even around the trail leading to the summit, we noticed plastic bottles. It is obvious that we do not pay much attention to cleanliness and treat nature carelessly.

In addition, in 2019, the air was very clean, this time we encountered some dust. In my opinion, the sand storms that occurred this summer also penetrated between the mountains.

Most importantly, in 2019, there was a lot of ice around the peak and on other mountains around it. This time, climate change was very obvious. There are no glaciers in the high mountains, except for some areas where the sun does not touch. Everything has melted.

The challenges of climbing a mountain can be a little tiring. There is even a desire to go back. But after reaching the top, seeing the beauty of the surrounding landscape, all fatigue will be forgotten.