Nuratau Mountains

The Nuratau range is a low spur of the western Tian Shan rising above the Kyzylkum Desert, sheltering traditional Uzbek villages that retain earthen architecture and apricot orchards largely unchanged for centuries. The mountains lie within the Nuratau–Kyzylkum Biosphere Reserve and harbour a remnant population of Central Asian wild sheep. Community-based tourism programmes based in villages such as Sentob provide homestay accommodation and guided walks through walnut and juniper forest.