Packing List for a Kyrgyzstan Hiking Trip
We arrived to Kyrgyzstan underprepared, and that meant wasted time trying to find equipment and clothes in an unfamiliar city with a language barrier that made it even harder to find what we needed.
There are things you absolutely will need that you might not need for regular travel or even hiking trips in other places, so check the below lists against what you’ve already planned to take and save yourself time when arriving to Kyrgyzstan!
If you’re still planning, check out the perfect Kyrgyzstan itinerary here and the most popular hikes here.
Honestly, there’s too much info to share from spending over a month in Kyrgyzstan, so be the first to know about the release of our upcoming Kyrgyzstan Travel Guide. The first 50 on the waitlist will receive our entire Google Maps pin list for free with their copy.
Clothing essentials
We didn’t expect to experience all four seasons during our month in Kyrgyzstan in the middle of summer, with rain, hail, snow and blistering 36+ degree days all in a single week, so you really do need to be prepared for every kind of weather.
Lightweight windbreaker, ideally rain resistant.
Long, quick-drying, lightweight pants.
Long-sleeve shirt
Thermal top minimum, ideally top and bottom.
Quick-drying socks
Trekking shoes, trail runners with good grip ideal.
Waterproof sandals.
Broad hat and sunglasses (the sun at the altitudes you’ll be travelling to is no joke).
Gloves for preventing blisters if you’re taking trekking polls (recommended), and warmth at night and in the mornings.
Set of swimwear or activewear you’re comfortable taking on your lake dips.
Some comfortable everyday wear for towns and travel days.
Long, lightweight pants should be non-negotiable, something no one talks about is the sunburn experienced on the long walking days in direct sunlight at high-altitude.
Waterproof sandals for crossing rivers also should not be missed, treks will require you to cross streams and rivers, and depending on recent rainfall these can be considerably higher than your shoes and soaking wet shoes and socks is not how you want to start or end a 15km day of walking.
Camping essentials
Just like clothing items, we arrived without a few key pieces of camping equipment that we (foolishly) didn’t think we’d need, after all, why would you need a water filter when trekking high up in mountains that produce crystal clear, glacial water?
Water filter… Ideally bring your own because the quality of what you can find at home will be much better than the cheap ones you’ll find in Bishkek. The streams in Kyrgyzstan, no matter how high, are almost definitely grazing pastures for a massive amount of livestock so Giardia and e. Coli are very serious risks when drinking unfiltered water straight from streams and rivers, no matter how clear. Seriously, we saw massive piles of cow and horse manure 30cm below the surface of otherwise glassy-clear streams.
Trekking poles, absolutely recommendedl if taking your own camping equipment like tents, sleeping bags etc as a lot of the treks are steep and cover unsteady ground.
Quick-drying towel
Hiking backpack with rain cover or shell. It will rain on you, no matter what season you travel to Kyrgyzstan.
European travel adapter, Kyrgyzstan uses round two-prong power outlets.
Portable charger, at least 10,000mAh to ensure your GPS maps will be available for the duration of every trek.
Head torch, a phone torch won’t cut it if you’re late to get to a campsite and need to set up in the dark.
That’s It!
If you’ve made it down here, thank you so much for reading!
Now you’re ready for the trekking trip of a lifetime in Kyrgyzstan!
