West-Kazakhstan Region
Kazakhstan Regions

It has big opportunities for tourist activ ity. Among its natural attractions is the Shalkar lake with rich flora and fauna. Mineralized composition of its water, identical to that of a sea, makes it useful for medical purposes. The territory of the region also features the scenic Sasai and Santas mountains, the Sadovskoe lake and many other attractions.

Uralsk is situated in the place where the Ural River changes its course of stream from western to southern. It is one of the ancient towns of Kazakhstan where live about 190000 people. It was founded about three centuries ago as a small yaitsky town, the settlers of which were kazaks from Yaitsky troops, who guarded the borders of the Russian State, and also the settlers from Volga and Don. And also it was founded as the fortification on the bank of the Yaik River on the eastern borders of Moscow State at the beginning of XVII century under the name Yaitsky town.

In 1773 Emelian Pugachev hoisted a flag of the peasant rebellion in these places. In 1774 the soldiers of E.Pugahev captured Yaitsky town, where they were in power for some months. After the suppression of Pugachev's rebellion in 1775 Catherine II declared rename Yaik into Ural, and Yaitsky town into Uralsk. The main road of the modern Uralsk Lenin Avenue, which was the former Mikhailovskaya. The oblast museum of historical and regional studies is situated on this Avenue in the former temple of the Christ Savior, which was built in 1891 in honor of 300 anniversary of gathering of Ural kazak troops. There are such sightseeing as: Ural cathedral, the house of the ataman, the izba of E. Pugachev, monuments Of Chapayev.

Ural River is the third river in Europe after Volga and Dunai. The length is 2428 km. This river crosses the near Caspian lowland from north to south and it is the part of the geographical border between Europe and Asia. Ural is a calm river without any rapids, but there are 99 shallows from Uralsk to Guriev. There are about 50 kinds of fish dwell in the river (sturgeon, beluga, wild carp, sheat-fish, pike). Out of Atyrau limits the river is divided into two parts: Yaitsky (is a shallow branch with treeless banks and full of fish) and Golden (is a navigable branch with sandy beach). The Golden branch flows into artificial channel. The end of the Golden branch is the mouth of Ural. Here Ural flows into the Caspian Sea.

Joint project of OrexCA.com and KTA & KAGIR. Information is taken from CD "All about tourism in Kazakhstan"