Kazakh Steppe - A Panoramic Delight

In the last article we saw a Canyon in Armenia. In this article we will see a steppe. What does a steppe mean? Before that isn't it fascinating to know that there are different types of pieces, small and big on the land known as world. Canyon is steep rocks but Steppe is flat and vast. There are deserts, there are canyons, there are forests and there is steppe too. A steppe in simplest terms is a vast flat land area with grass and very little trees, so calling them semi desert would not be wrong. Very little trees because this area gets very little rain. A steppe may be semi desert or may be covered with grass or shrubs or both depending on the season and latitude. Steppe, the term is also used to denote a climate in regions that are too dry to support a forest but they are not dry enough to be a desert. There is this Great Steppe or Eurasian Steppe which is found in eastern Europe and Central Asia and its neighboring countries Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan to Altai Mountain and Tian Shan ranges. We will see Kazakh Steppe in this particle which is a part of this Great Steppe.

So Kazakh Steppe is a part of Great Steppe or Eurasian Steppe. This is also called Great Dala. It is a vast open grassland in northern part of Kazakhstan and adjacent parts of Russia. The steppe extends to Pontic steppe and Emin Valley steppe thus forming part of the Eurasian steppe. The vastness of Kazakh steppe can be observed by the fact that it almost covers one third of Kazakhstan's total territory and if measured it extends to more than 2200  KM and covers more than 804, 500 Sq. KM. Isn't it huge? Yes it is. The steppe is sparsely populated because the climate does not support the living. Another geographical way to denote the extension of this steppe is that Kazakh steppe extends from the east of Caspian Depression and north of the Aral sea which goes right till the Altai mountains. Kazakh steppe is the largest dry steppe in the world and is semi desert and in parts fully desert.

If you have not seen Kazakh steppe even in pictures then you would be wondering how does it look like? Well if you see in picture or in reality the steppe may look like an eternity piece of not so interesting land to you. But only if you are not among the one who just likes the regular sceneries then you can see the beauty of the steppe. Beauty what? Well if you see the snow capped mountain of Kazakhstan and admire the beauty of the tall vertical rocks then you see the flat never ending dry piece of Kazakh steppe. It is not about the difference but it is about the feeling that you are a part of the eternity. Yes the Kazakh steppe make you feel lonesome but the moment when you get a panoramic view from the smallest hills which do exist somewhere in steppe then the view becomes romantic that stays for long. You look around and then you look up in the sky, the vastness of all the creation around you may be overwhelming for you.

And if you talk about the Climate in Kazakh Steppe then you will get semi arid, continental climate over here. After the long summer here the temperature in winters goes up to minus 20° C in the month of January that covers the ground with a blanket of snow. And in the small duration of spring you can get to see beautiful tulips before the summers arrive again. Because of little rainfall here you would see only few trees and mostly sandy areas and you can also see animals like Siberian Roe deer, wolves,, foxes, badgers and steppe tortoise. It is also worth mentioning here that it is in the southern part of steppe where the famous and world's oldest space launch facility Baikonur Cosmodrome is. So if you did not include Kazakh steppe so far in your plan while taking Kazakhstan Package then do include it.

Places to See: Tourist Attractions in Kazakhstan