Rafting on the Shu (Chu) River -
The Shu (Chu) is a river in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Its length is 1,186 km (600 km in Kazakhstan).
River Origin
The Shu (Chu) River originates from the confluence of the Zhuanaryk and Koshkar rivers, which originate in the Terskey Alatau and Kyrgyz Alatau.
Information
There are 80 large and small industries along the river, the largest (in Kazakhstan) being Koragaty, Merke, Karabalta, Aksu, and others. Crossing the Alatau and Kyrgyz mountain ranges, the Shu formed the Upper Ortotokoy and Lower Ortotokoy gorges. The Ortotokoy Dam was built near the latter. Below, the Shu flows into the Issyk-Kul basin. In the 1950s, part of the Shu River flowed into Lake Issyk-Kul through the Kotemaldinsky branch during floods.
After exiting the valley, passing through several narrower gorges, the river gradually widens after the Boom Gorge. Beyond the Koragaty River, the Shu River reaches the sands of the Moinkum Desert. It then divides into several branches. During floods, water from the northern slopes of the Karatau Mountains reaches the lakes of the Ashysinskaya Depression between the foothills and the Betpak-Dala Desert.
Hydrology
The river is replenished by snow, rain, and groundwater. The Tasotkel Dam is located in Kazakhstan. The Eastern and Western Bolshoy Shu, the Shu Canal, Sortobe, Georgievka, Atbashi, and other canals, as well as small hydroelectric power plants, are used for irrigation. The waters of the Shu River are used to irrigate more than 60 thousand hectares of arable land in the basin.
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