First snow on the Talas Alatau as the herds come down to the valley.

Month by month in Talas, Iyık Janyl and Nurzhan

Weather and climate

Hot, dry summers, cold, bright winters and a short, wet spring. Here's what to expect in each month, which passes close, and what to pack.

First snow on the Talas Alatau as the herds come down to the valley.

Irad is far from any sea, so the climate is continental: hot summers, cold winters and not much rain. Altitude matters more than distance. The climate changes more between a valley floor and the ridge above it than across hundreds of kilometres of plain. Talas, at 1,270 m, is noticeably cooler than Iyık Janyl and Nurzhan, both below 700 m.

Month by month

Average daily highs and lows in °C, 1991 to 2020, from the stations of the ISEZ hydrometeorological service. Rainfall is for Talas.

Month	Talas high	Talas low	Iyık Janyl high	Iyık Janyl low	Talas rain (mm)	Rainy days
January	−1	−12	4	−5	18	7
February	1	−10	6	−3	21	8
March	8	−3	13	3	34	9
April	16	3	21	9	47	10
May	21	8	26	13	44	10
June	26	11	31	18	27	7
July	29	14	34	20	15	5
August	29	13	33	19	9	3
September	24	8	28	14	9	3
October	16	2	20	8	22	6
November	7	−4	12	2	26	7
December	1	−9	6	−3	21	8

Talas gets about 300 mm of rain and snow a year and Iyık Janyl about 450 mm, most of it in spring. In Nurzhan, on the Chu plain, July highs average 33 °C and January averages about −5 °C (around 0 °C by day and −10 °C at night), with about 270 mm a year. The hottest Talas day on record was 40.1 °C, in July, and the coldest −33.6 °C, in January.

The seasons

March to May

Spring

The wettest season and the greenest. The orchards blossom, tulips come up on the desert pastures of the north, and the mountains are still white. Snowmelt and thunderstorms can send floods and mudflows (sel) down the dry gullies in the foothills, so take care on foothill roads after heavy rain. It's a good time for Irad Day, Nooruz and Easter.

June to August

Summer

Hot and dry in the valleys: 29 °C in Talas and 34 °C in Iyık Janyl in July. Head for the mountains. The high pastures are open from about June to September, and the rivers run fullest from May to July. On the Aksay Plateau there can be frost even in July. The Feast of St. Janyl falls at the end of August.

September to November

Autumn

Dry, settled and golden: our favourite season. The poplars turn, the walnuts and apricots come in, and the Toktogul reservoir is at its fullest. The first snow reaches the passes in October or November, and the herds come down from the pastures after the Feast of the Cross on 14 September.

December to February

Winter

Cold, clear and mostly dry on the plains, with Talas nights around −12 °C. Snow and avalanches close most mountain passes from November to April. Snow rarely lies for long in Iyık Janyl, but it closes the pastures above the town.

Before you travel

The Ala-Bel pass (the Fergana Gateway, 3,184 m) on the Talas to Iyık Janyl road is shut for about 20 days in an average winter. Iradiya's flight from Talas to Tash-Kömür is then the only way through, so allow a spare day.
The Kök-Bel road, the short summer way between Talas and Nurzhan, often closes in winter. The lowland road and the train are always the safer choice.
Air quality: in the heating season, from mid-October to mid-April, smog builds up in Nurzhan on still days, and to a lesser degree in Talas. If you have asthma or a heart condition, check the air-quality figures in the Today in Irad box before you go.
Trekking: plan treks in the Talas Alatau for June to September. Afternoon storms are common in the mountains in early summer, so start early.
Road reports: IradOne carries mountain-pass reports.

What to pack

Summer: sun hat, sunscreen and light, modest clothes for churches and the Fergana Rim. Bring a warm layer for mountain evenings.
Spring and autumn: layers. Days can be warm and nights near freezing, especially in Talas.
Winter: a proper winter coat, hat and gloves, and boots with a good grip.
All year: a headscarf if you're a woman visiting churches (white scarves are lent at the cathedral in Iyık Janyl), and cash for the countryside.

Planning around a festival? See What's on.