Yustytthe river near the Mongolian border |
Jus-Tyt (Yustyt, Yustut), alt. tyt – larch. Yustut – a hundred larches.
We go to the border with Mongolia, to the last settlement that is the village of Tashanta. Isn`t it interesting to get to the end of the Chui tract? What is there, at the border?
Asphalt road, straight as a ruler, faces the mountains. Mongolia is behind them. And around is unique landscape of the Chuya steppe. Just before Tashanta we will see the rock outcrop exposed. An interesting place, I call it – an animal cemetery.
There are three different roads to the Yustit valley. You can pave the way through the village of Kokorya or go straight to the steppe beyond the village of Zhanaul. But I recommend going through Sozontu Pass which opens the most terrific view of the Justin valley.
The road goes along the barb wires of training border post of the Russian Federation. It ends in 10 kilometers, revealing a good place for fishing. The grayling in the Yustyt isn`t that big, but its nibble won`t make you bored: it’s quite possible to catch a few dozen fish. The water isn`t deep, transparent and with no shrubs – fishing here is such a pleasure! .
The river`s current varies from site to site – from whitewater to a calm steppe flow. But the water in the river is always as clear as a crystal because of the main influents of Justin derive from two lakes: Boguty and Kindiktikol. All the suspended matter in waters of these lakes settles to the bottom, so rivers which flow out of Boguti and Kindiktikol are absolutely transparent.
In the valley of Justit keeps a huge cluster of ancient artifacts. Altars, graves, barrows, burial mounds, kereksurs (another form of barrows), deer stones, ancient metallurgical furnaces for bronze and iron smelting, ceramic furnaces…
In the Yustit river valley you can see the famous stele – “Conquest of Genghis Khan”, and ancient petroglyphs of animals and so-called Yenisei runes.
In the valley there are also stone rounds which regular geometric shape leaves no doubt that this was a work of man. Huge boulders form almost the right circle. But on a small plateau nearby the river there are no other stones larger than a football. So who brought these stones to this place and for what purpose? Maybe geographical measurements should be made? Maybe it’s an ancient observatory or a calendar?
The valley is still waiting for its researchers and photographers.
