The karst region of Seresu is located on the limestone Isfan-Jayloo mountain massif, which is the north-western spur of the Fergana Range.

Seresu took its name after an alpine lake located at an altitude of more than 2000 m. This beautiful place attracts many tourists and travelers. There are 3 known caves which were found during one tourist excursion of a local tourist club. Speleologists learned about the caves later. The formation of stalactites and stalagmites were found in the caves. The length of the largest cave is more than 150 m. But touristic trails always follow the same route, bypassing the places where the entrances to the caves can hide.

This area wasn’t explored by speleologists before. From the description and photographs that were taken by geologists, it is clear that limestone walls and canyons may be of interest for searching and exploring new caves. The locals of the surrounding villages told us about black openings on the walls of the gorges and canyons, which can continue in the form of caves. Some old locals tell legends about how during the power of the Bolsheviks during the rise of the USSR, rich people hid gold and treasures in this caves. Of course, no one remembers the information about their location, but nevertheless, people remember that the caves were places to run away and hide treasures.

According to geologists, the Isfan-Jayloo mountain range is a classic example of pure carbonate limestone with a high content of calcite. This limestone has a Carboniferous geological age (C) and lays the mountain range to more than 3000 meters in height. The upper part of the mountain range is a long plateau. North-west of the Seresu region there are deep canyons with numerous black openings on the walls. In the vicinity of the lakes there are numerous karst springs feeding these lakes.

The limestone massif is full of numerous cracks and faults, which could be channels for the movement of groundwater and the formation of tunnels and galleries. A really dense forest could cause here the formation of really abundant amounts of carbon dioxide to dissolve the limestone.

The Isfan-Jayloo mountain range, as part of the Fergana range, serves as a battery of big amounts of humidity in the path humid air currents bringing humidity from the north-west. As a result, this area is one of the most humid in Kyrgyzstan, as well as in Tian-Shan as a whole. This is evidenced by a large number of springs and streams in the thalwegs of canyons.

For the last two years, speleologists wanted to explore this karst area, but the organization of logistics and specific places to search for caves remained unclear. It is very difficult to get close to the heart of the area due to the lack of roads for cars. To transfer the equipment to the base camp, the use of horses is needed.

An excellent option for a tactic research is the installation of a base camp in the area of Seresu lakes, from where it is necessary to make 2 or 3-day autonomous radial exits to explore the area. To change the place of the main base camp, we will need to move to a more convenient place from the northwest, in the area of the Karakul city, from where it will be possible to make researches of high-altitude plateaus.

In this regard, we invite interested groups of speleologists to participate in the research of this area in 2021. The most favorable time for a speleological expedition is July.

Expedition dates can be changed. If the group is one – from one club, association, federation, then the group has the right to change the dates of the expedition. If the group is mixed, then we rely on our capabilities and the capabilities of the majority of potential participants. At the moment we have indicated the most favorable season of the year according to the climatic conditions in a particular geographical area.

See the expedition route

 

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