Mountains & WalksMountains & WalksPhoto: Nikita Mikhailovskiy, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
From the Medeu bus station to the waterfall and viewpoint with a "swing" is about 8 km round trip, taking around four hours at a leisurely pace. No special equipment is needed: the trail is well-worn and the elevation gain is modest. The gorge is considered one of the most accessible mountain routes near the city. This is where those trying the mountains for the first time usually come, with no plans to continue further to Furmanov Peak. In the upper section, near the ranger station, the gorge splits into two branches: the right branch leads to the Komissarovsky Pass, while the left ends at a waterfall at the foot of Furmanov Peak. Snow can linger in this area until July. In spring and early summer, be prepared for remains of avalanche debris on the trail.
People have been in these places long before tourists and mountaineers arrived. At 4.5 km from the gorge entrance, archaeologists found an early iron age settlement, overlaid by a later ethnographic layer — today it is a local historical monument. Thousands of years ago, people stopped here at the foot of the ridge before the city was built. The current name is Kimasar, but old Soviet maps still show the older name — Komissarovskoe. It recalls Dmitry Furmanov, the legendary commissar of Chapayev's 25th Division. From late 1919, he represented the Revolutionary Military Council in Semirechye, and at his initiative, military hospitals were opened in the Almaty foothills. The neighboring peak still bears his name today. Furmanov is known not only as a commissar but also as a writer. His novel "Chapayev" (1923) was adapted into a Soviet film of the same name — one of the most widely distributed films in Soviet cinema history. A street bearing his name still exists in central Almaty today. The swing on the route to Furmanov Peak, at an altitude of around 2,600 meters, was installed by enthusiast tourists in the mid-20th century. Since then, it has become one of the gorge's main landmarks, though the exact history of its appearance — who brought and installed it — remains unknown.
The viewpoint with the swing is the most famous feature of the route and one of the most photographed spots in Almaty's mountains. The swing stands on a cliff with a panoramic view of the ridge, and the shot is indeed worth it. In the lower part of the gorge, an old ski cooperative called "Kimasar" operates — a simple, almost homey alternative to Shymbulak for those who ski in winter. Further along, the route can continue to Furmanov Peak itself or across the Komissarovsky Pass into the neighboring Butakovskoe Gorge. But that's an option for those planning a full mountain day, not just a walk. For a first visit, it's enough to reach the waterfall and swing and return along the same trail: with children and without special training, the route is quite manageable if you don't rush.