Location: Seven Bulls & Broken Heart Rock, Jeti-Oguz, Terskey Ala-Too Range, Tian Shan Mountains, Kyrgyzstan
Distance: 1 mile (out and back)
Peak Elevation: 6,840′
Elevation Gain: 161′
Difficulty: Easy
The foothills near the village of Jeti-Oguz have shocking displays of red rock formations sprouting from the green valleys. The Seven Bulls and Broken Heart Rock are the most memorable for their shapes and their tragic stories. Don’t forget to visit the nearby Devich’i Kosy waterfall.
Seven Bulls Viewpoint | Seven Bulls Folk Tale | Broken Heart Rock
Directions
Trailhead: From Jeti-Oguz, climb the road.
0.4 miles: At the viewing hut, keep going.
0.5 miles: You have reached the Seven Bulls viewpoint. Turn around and return to the trailhead.
Climb to the Seven Bulls Viewpoint
From Jeti-Oguz, it is a straightforward 15-minute walk directly up a steep road to a viewpoint for the Seven Bulls. On the way up, look at the red canyon below, which has several ravines used as horse corrals and farms. There are also rows and rows of beehives for harvesting delicious mountain wildflower honey. The industrious beekeepers even have a container truck carrying a line of hives for fast and easy transport.
The Seven Bulls rock formation is across the street beyond the light blue Jeti-Oguz River. The Seven Bulls are red rocky fins that dramatically emerge from the green hills. The colors are unbelievable. The red rocks really stand out next to the green trees and blue sky. On this side of the road, if you look to the right, there are more vermillion ridges and secret canyons. With giant red rock formations on either side of the road, it looks like this road and village were always meant to be here.
Seven Bulls Folk Tale
There once was a story about two khans. The first khan was kind and had a beautiful wife. The second khan was simply cruel. The cruel khan kidnapped the kind khan’s wife. The kind khan demanded that the cruel khan return his wife to him. The cruel khan agreed, but did not promise in what state he would return her.
The cruel khan lived up to his name and returned the dead body of the murdered wife. The kind khan mourned the loss of his wife and sacrificed seven bulls over seven days. During these seven days, they spilled blood across the valley. After this sacrifice was completed, a hot spring appeared and engulfed the cruel khan who was boiled alive. Remember to never get on the bad side of karma. If you examine the rock formation closely, you will notice the resemblance to seven red bulls standing side by side.
Broken Heart Rock
If you drive to the village of Jeti-Oguz, you will see Broken Heart Rock by the side of the road. This rock formation really lives up to its name. It looks like a heart with a giant crack in it.
There are two stories about the Broken Heart Rock, a sad story and the saddest story. Which one would you like to hear?
Sad Story about the Broken Heart Rock
There was a woman with many suitors who ended up not falling in love with any of them.
Saddest Story about the Broken Heart Rock
There once was a princess who was deeply in love with a man. The man asked the king if he could marry his daughter. The king agreed on the condition that the man find a present as beautiful as his daughter. After a long time had passed, the princess became saddened because the suitor never returned. The princess climbed to the top of Heart Rock. Heart Rock back then was still whole and intact. When she reached the top, the princess was so heartbroken that she jumped off. All of a sudden, a giant crack split Heart Rock in two. The people renamed Heart Rock ever after as Broken Heart Rock. The king was very upset and ordered a search for the missing man. The search party eventually found the man just outside the kingdom. The man had died grasping an edelweiss flower in his hand.