Kyzyl Cheen

The name of the place has two interpretations. According to toponymical dictionary of Altai Mountains by O.T. Molchanova:

Kyzyl-Cheen (Kyzyl-Chun, Kyzyl-Sheen) – a river, a stow; (ancient Turkic) kysyl — a narrow, a gorge; (Altaic) cheen/shyn — a deep cutting between two steep slopes. Kyzyl cheen — a deep cutting in a narrow or gorge.

It is also probable that the name comes from modern Turkic Kyzyl – red color.  Both names suit the place perfectly – there is a narrow and a plenty of red.

That place has also been tagged “Mars” and local scenery differs a lot from anything you can find around.  Color clays exposures paint the slopes the most exotic colors – from violet through all shades of red and green to almost white.  If you wish and if you have some skills you can find some beautiful crystals of bull quartz or other minerals.  As in any other place of the Another Planet the gone epochs remind of themselves with a number of artefacts in a good state of preservation: Scythian and Turkic burial mounds, balbals, kereksurs of the Bronze Age and petroglyphic drawings. The best light for photo taking is at dawn – a good reason to wake up early.