Garabogazköl

Garabogazköl is a shallow gulf on the eastern side of the Caspian, joined to it by a strait only a few hundred metres wide through which water runs in a constant one-way current and then evaporates, leaving the gulf several times saltier than the sea. A dam closed the strait in 1980 and the gulf dried almost entirely before the barrier was removed in the 1990s. Sodium sulphate is extracted commercially from the deposits.

What you actually see

• The strait - the narrow channel with its constant one-way inflow.
• The hypersaline water - a gulf several times saltier than the Caspian.
• The salt deposits - the mineral flats worked for sodium sulphate.
• The dam history - the 1980 closure that dried the gulf and its later removal.

When to go

April to May and September to October are the tolerable months. Summer heat and glare off the salt are severe. Winds off the Caspian are constant.

Honest expectations

There is no infrastructure of any kind around the gulf. Summer conditions are harsh with no shade or water. Industrial extraction dominates parts of the shore.

Nearby

Turkmenbashi is south, and Yangykala is southeast.