Fairy Tale Valley

The Fairy Tale Valley is located on the southern shore of Lake Ysyk-Köl, close to the main highway. It is located 125 kilometers east of Balykchy and 4 km away from the Tosor village. 

The "Fairy Tale" valley is located on the slopes of rocky mountains and forms a picturesque canyon. This canyon is one of the most scenic places in Kyrgyzstan. There are many fantastic-looking landforms due to which the canyon got its name. The valley is formed by red Neogene sediments, which were transformed into a "fairy-tale-like" landscape by wind, water, and sun. 

The landforms consisting of clay and sand are quite easily transformed by wind and water erosion. Therefore, the shape of the landforms keeps changing. These landforms were formed as a result of weathering and denudation processes. Tectonic uplifts also contributed to the creation of this landform.

The legend has it that back in olden times, the Ysyk-Köl valley was home to numerous cities. A very beautiful young lady lived in one of those cities. One day a huge red dragon saw the beautiful young woman and fell in love with her. However, the young woman did not reciprocate. 

Furious at her refusal, the dragon swore to drown the cities in the valley. Every night, the dragon tried using his magic to draw water from local wells. However, the locals would cover the wells with golden lids to block the dragon's magic. The beautiful young lady forgot to cover her well with the golden lid one night. 

The water dragon drew from it, flooded the entire valley, and formed the lake. Mesmerized by the beauty of the lake, the dragon laid down on the lake's southern shore and turned into rocks. According to the local legend, that is how the Fairy Tale canyon came into being.