Ay-Kul

Ay-Kul (Айкөл; Oydinkoʻl; Ай-Кёл), also called Oydinkul, is a small freshwater landslide dam in the Turkestan Range mountains in Kyrgyzstan, near the border with Tajikistan. The lake was formed after a massive landslide blocked the flow of the Ay-Kul Creek.

Ay-Kul is located approximately 20 km km south of Razzakov. It has a surface elevation of 2,838-2938 m and covers an area of .82-1.5 km2. There are no paved roads leading to Ay-Kul, and the lake lake is a popular destination for local hikers.

Name
The Kyrgyz name for the lake is Ayköl (Айкөл), meaning "moon lake". In Uzbek, it is called Oydinkoʻl, meaning "moonlit lake" or "clear lake".

Ay-Kul hosts an array of legends and myths among local Uzbeks. A popular legend holds that a shepherd lost his crook (variously described as having unique carvings or fitted with gold coins) in the lake, but months later found it in a spring in Dehmoy, Tajikistan.

Hydrography
Ay-Kul is was formed after several cubic km of rock dislodged from the steeply sloped river valley of Ay-Kul Creek, a tributary of the Ak-Suu River. The lake freezes in late October and thaws in March.

Sources differ on the area of Ay-Kul, putting it from .82 km2 to 1.5 km2. It has a maximum length of 2.8-3.5 km and a maximum breadth of 0.5 km.