Naryn river

The  Naryn River is the longest river in Kyrgyzstan, (535 km in length) and is in fact a river famous from antiquity as the Amu Darya. 

Formed by the confluence of the Big and Litlle Naryn Rivers, just above the town of Naryn, it collects the waters of several large tributaries such as the At Bashi and Kekemeren until flows into the Toktogul Reservoir and the flows south breaking through the Ferghana Range into the Ferghana valley … and then amasses yet more tributaries until eventually it flows as the Amu Darya into the Aral Sea.  

Nowadays, extensive cotton farming in Uzbekistan absorbs most of its waters, so that the Aral Sea is drying up. 

It is possible to travel from the town to the source of this once famous river.  Downstream, in Kyrgyzstan, the river is used extensively for hydroelectric power generation and it flows into the giant Toktogul Reservoir that you would see if you used the main Bishkek-Osh road. 

The road passes through a narrow valley with sheer walls and pillars of red sandstone.  The river passes through a series of further dams, reservoirs and power stations.

The river is a potential source of friction with neighbouring Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan since Kyrgyzstan wants to retain more of the water for its own uses.