The mountain range of the Greater Balhan is Western Turkmenistan. The ridge stretches from the Krasnovodsk Peninsula to the Kopetdag and is adjacent to the Karakum.
The length of the Great Balhan range is 60 km long and 20 km wide. But even with all their "compactness" in comparison with other mountain systems of Turkmenistan, these mountains look massive for the flat steppe surrounding them on all sides.
The mountains are quite high. The highest point is Mount Arlan - up to 1880 meters above sea level. Steep slopes with a large number of long and short intricate gorges and juniper thickets are difficult to pass and little explored.
The mountains are made up of limestone and sandstone massifs, which are covered with gray soils, which explains the abundant vegetation cover. Karst sinkholes, niches and recesses in the calcareous mantle of rocky slopes give the whole panorama bizarre shapes, reminiscent of various fabulous monsters.
It is worth going through the first 300-700 meters of most of the gorges, as you find yourself surrounded by various geological forms.The mountains are replete with cascading amphitheater cliffs, extended scree, consisting of a small fragmental mass.
The canyons running down from the top end with a narrowing and gullies, which in the final part turn into potholes - vertical open stone "pipes", popularly referred to as "glasses".
In one of these "glasses", the sides of which rise to 50, and together with the upper step - up to 100 meters, there is a spring called "big".
Inside there is a semblance of a dwelling and an orchard. All the tourists who come here make their own contribution to the care of the garden.
In the area of the “big” spring, two gorges converge, the beginning of which comes from the top of Arlan, and they are spaced apart by about 6 kilometers.
Now Balhan is called the island of life in the hot desert, but once it towered over the surrounding plains as an icy block, the ridge was decorated with a cap of eternal snows, and glaciers were sliding down from its slopes, the website of the State Publishing Service of Turkmenistan reports.