The ecoregion stretches around the lower altitudes of the Tian Shan mountain ridge, running for approximately 1,000 km from western Kyrgyzstan to a small section inside the western reaches of Xinjiang Province in China. The foothills of the northwestern Tian Shan are a series of ridges and lake basins in this region. Elevations for this ecoregion are 150 - 660 meters.