The Ustyurt Plateau

West of the Amu Darya delta, the land rises suddenly into a vast plateau. The Ustyurt (in Turkic languages, roughly "high plain") covers some 200,000 square kilometres between the Caspian Sea and the Aral Sea. Its western part lies in Kazakhstan, its south in Turkmenistan, and its eastern part in the west of Karakalpakstan.

The surface is a flat, almost empty desert of stones, clay and sparse shrubs, at an altitude of roughly 150–300 metres. It has no towns, almost no roads, and very few people: a few gas installations, scattered herders and a railway crossing to Kazakhstan. Its edges, however, are spectacular.

The plateau ends in steep escarpments, known locally as chinks. On the eastern edge, the cliffs drop towards the former bed and the remaining waters of the Aral Sea. Layered in white, cream and pink limestone and chalk, they rise in places more than 100 metres above the shore. In the evening light they glow, and the view over the shrunken sea and the white salt flats is one of the most extraordinary landscapes in Central Asia.

The cliffs also show the scale of the Aral disaster: from above you see how far the shoreline has moved, and the salt and sand where water used to be.

Despite its harshness, the Ustyurt supports wildlife adapted to the desert: the endangered saiga antelope, which migrates across the plateau; the goitered gazelle; foxes, wolves and many reptiles; and birds of prey such as eagles and vultures. In spring, after rain, the desert briefly turns green and flowers appear. Part of the plateau in Uzbekistan is protected for the saiga. Sightings of large animals are not guaranteed; they are shy and the area is huge.

The Ustyurt was crossed by caravan routes linking Khorezm with the lower Volga and the Caspian, and the remains of caravanserais, wells and burial grounds survive across the plateau, especially on the Kazakh side. Nomads used it for winter grazing. Ancient stone hunting structures known as "arrows", long walls used to drive animals into traps, have been found on the plateau. All this is remote and hard to reach, but adds to the feeling of a place with a long, mostly unwritten history.

The usual trip starts in Nukus or Muynak. From Muynak and its ship cemetery, the route goes west across the dry seabed and the delta, often past Sudochie Lake, then climbs onto the plateau and follows tracks along its edge. The final descent leads to the shore of the Aral, where a yurt camp offers dinner and a night under a very dark sky.

The trip requires a 4x4 with an experienced driver who knows the tracks; there are no signs and no mobile signal for long stretches. The round trip from Nukus usually takes two or three days. Our Aral Sea and Karakalpakstan tour follows this route.

Season: the best months are late April to early June and September to mid-October. Summer is very hot; winter is freezing and windy, and tracks can be impassable after rain or snow.

What to bring: warm layers (nights are cold even in summer), a windproof jacket, sun protection, sturdy shoes, a torch and personal medicines. Camps provide meals, bedding and simple toilets.

Safety: never attempt the plateau alone or in an ordinary car. Travel with a reliable operator, a spare vehicle if possible, and plenty of water. Drones and photography near gas installations or border areas may be restricted; ask your guide.