If you love someone, take him or her to Ejinna, because the desert poplar there is heaven; if you hate a person, take him or her to Ejina, because that is the place where the sandstorm originated.
Ejina is one of the only three remaining poplar woodlands in the world, and it is a wild poplar, where you can see the hundreds of years of poplar still flourishing, and the state of poplar from birth to death. It is also an important barrier to prevent the spread of the Badain Jaran Desert to the north. Every autumn, the Ejin Banner will usher in the most beautiful glory of the year, and also create the most beautiful autumn colors in China that amaze the world every year.
Ejina poplar forest
Three thousand years of watching, just waiting for your arrival; golden autumn, Gobi poplar, in more than half a month passionately sprinkled their own gold, it seems that the passion that has been stored for a year suddenly burst out in autumn, every leaf vein is blooming warmly, every branch is hung with the sun, if you can wander this picturesque scenery, even the most demanding travelers can not be indifferent to Ejina, so we came to visit.
At the entrance of the Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area
On the afternoon of October 2nd, after visiting the colorful Danxia in Zhangye, we took a train to Jiayuguan City overnight, and took a tourist bus to Ejin at 7:00 the next morning, traveling more than 400 kilometers and taking more than 5 hours.
Although Ejina Banner (equivalent to a county-level administrative region) belongs to Inner Mongolia, it is more than 1,000 kilometers away from Hohhot and only more than 400 kilometers away from Jiayuguan and Jiuquan in Gansu, so many tourists choose to enter from Lanzhou, Gansu (because Lanzhou is the capital city, and the air ticket is cheaper). We also chose to enter from Lanzhou.
Starting from Jiayuguan City, after passing through Jinta County, the Gobi Desert is endless, grassless and sparsely populated. I heard that if you are lucky, you can see the sand mirage, but we didn't see it. I really felt the desolation of the Great Northwest. On the way through dongfeng space city, I heard that the National Day is free to open, see a lot of self-driving tour cars parked on the side of the road (there is only one gas station along the way), we do not include this project with the group, but from a distance to the Jiuquan satellite launch base, you can see the launcher, but also appreciate the greatness of China's aerospace industry.
The white house in the far distance of the barbed wire fence is the basis for the launch of the Jiuquan satellite
The most famous attractions in Ejin Naqi are the Poplar Forest Scenic Area, the Heicheng Weak Water Poplar Scenic Area, and the Juyan Seaview Area. The first thing we passed was the Black City Weak Water Poplar Scenic Area, which arrived at 12:00 noon. The Heicheng Weak Water Poplar Forest Scenic Area is composed of four major plates of the Weak Water Poplar Tourist Area, the Strange Forest Tour Area, the Black City Ruins Tour Area, the Black Water Ancient City Tour Area, and the Weak Water River Scenery Belt. There are shuttle buses in the scenic area that can be taken.
First, the Black City Weak Water Poplar Scenic Area.
Let's first go to the Black City Ruins Tour Area, which is the most complete and largest ancient city site on the Silk Road, and now it is a ruined wall, and the yellow sand and five ancient pagodas are its main attractions. The earthy walls are closely linked to the desert, and under the blue sky, the beauty is majestic, and people can't help but imagine the prosperity of the Western Xia Dynasty in the past.
Ruins of the Black City - Stupa
Ruins of a desertified Black City
For the first time, I felt the feeling of a large area of poplar forest in the weak water poplar forest scenic spot. We came at the right time, the poplar forest is golden (the mobile phone shooting effect is not good), the natural advantages of ten kilometers long and eight hundred meters wide on both sides of the weak water poplar area have derived the natural landscape of "Five Forests, Two Islands and Seven Bridges", the weak water is closely combined with the desert and the poplar, and a beautiful picture scroll is displayed in front of the eyes, which is not only given the love theme of "three thousand weak waters, only take one scoop", but also given the eternal tenderness of "poplar hundred beautiful life, trapped in weak water".
Weak water poplar forest
Finally arrived at the Strange Grove Scenic Area, where there are many people. The strange forest is full of dead poplar trees, they are either tall, or rickety, twisted into an inexplicable strange shape, "strange forest" got its name. It is said that poplar does not die for a thousand years, dies for a thousand years and does not fall, and falls for a thousand years. Legend has it that the Strange Forest is the place where the Black General and his generals died in battle, and where the immortal souls are located. The most appropriate time to go to the strange forest is in the afternoon, generally during the National Day is the most beautiful season in Ejin, at this time almost every day is sunny, so the afternoon to the strange forest can take a great view. You can also watch the sunset here, and it is also a great place to take pictures of poplar silhouettes at sunset. After sunset we drove into the city and checked into the homestay after dinner.
Strange woods scenic area
Dead wood in spring
2. Juyan SeaView Area.
The second day's itinerary is to watch the sunrise in the Juyan Seaview Area and visit the Poplar Forest Scenic Area. JuyanHai's "sea" is actually not a sea, it is a lake, in the morning before dawn we set off, to arrive at the scenic spot before sunrise to watch the sunrise, because it is too early, the shuttle bus in the scenic area has not yet run, to walk a distance. It was crowded before dawn, and it was hard to find a place to wait for the sunrise. The temperature difference between the morning and evening in Ejin is very large, and it is very cold in the morning, although it is still not ok with a thick long-sleeved coat, so I rented a cotton coat for 50 yuan. The reeds here are beautiful, and this season just happens to be in the flowers of the reeds, and the color is pink, which is simply beautiful. Unexpectedly, there are many seagulls that are not afraid of people, you can prepare some bread and biscuits to feed, and it will fly to your hands to eat.
The reeds of the Juyan Sea sway
Seagulls of the Juyan Sea
3. Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area
After seeing the sunrise, we rushed to the Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area. Here set desert, Gobi, grassland, lake, poplar forest in one, the scenic spot from a bridge to eight bridges divided into 8 scenic spots, most of which are based on two bridges, three bridges, four bridges, seven bridges, eight bridges. The tour lasts 5-6 hours and there are shuttle buses to and from the stops.
Erdaoqiao is a place where many tourists are more concentrated, here is the most beautiful autumn color in China, because there is a river, the poplar forest grows densely, the reflection is photographed, and the woods are very suitable, so it is difficult to squeeze the interval car.
The Three Bridges are dominated by red willow, which is a relatively low clump of plants that grow mostly in deserts.
Red willow
The Four Roads Bridge is also called hero forest, and the movie hero is filmed here. There is a fork of the Ejin Naqi River flowing from south to north, and the two banks of the small river are distributed with contiguous poplars, which is the most concentrated place of Ejin Naqi poplars, and after getting off the bridge, you can choose to tour the south and north of hedong or hexi.
Qidao Bridge is the first place where the leaves of the whole scenic spot are yellowed, and the most beautiful scenery of the Qidaoqiao Dream Forest is the most beautiful poplar forest I have ever seen! The reflection of the water adds a lot of color to the poplar forest here, and the leaves appear more golden and translucent.
Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area
At the end of the Badao Bridge, the northern part of the Badain Jaran Desert, the third largest desert in China, you can walk sand, ride camels, and see sand sculptures of different styles. You can also feel the ruggedness and magnificence of the desert.
Large sand sculptures
Lunch needs to be solved in the scenic spot, and after leaving the scenic spot at 2 p.m., you will return to Jiayuguan City by car.
We can't help but sigh that in this place where the annual precipitation is 110 millimeters and the evaporation reaches 3,900 millimeters, every plant and tree lives too hard and tragically. In order to absorb a little moisture, the root system of a grass can often go deep into the ground for several meters, and the poplar can reach twenty meters, which is also the secret that he dies and does not fall. What kind of faith did our ancestors carry to stay and live in such a desolate and lonely Gobi, leaving us with such a vast and diverse land. Maybe this is the case for our nation, a poplar that is so tall, no matter what kind of predicament it is, it can survive and grow into the most dazzling scenery in that desperate situation!
4. Precautions for playing in Ejina.
Clothing: Entering the Gobi in October, the daytime temperature is around 20 degrees, and the nighttime temperature will reach less than 10 degrees, or even lower. The temperature difference between morning and evening here is very large, so there is a saying that "wear cotton jackets early and wear yarn at noon". Be sure to bring a thick jacket (preferably a thin down jacket), easy to wear and take off, it is recommended to carry a backpack, easy to put clothes, but also convenient to play and take pictures.
Sunscreen: Remember to bring sunscreen, the ultraviolet rays during the day are very strong, and it is easy to sunburn and peel.
Accommodation: Ejina is a very seasonal scenic spot, only a short one-month viewing period from the end of September to the middle of October every year, so the accommodation here is also rising at this time, especially the National Day Golden Week is a room is difficult to find, so be sure to book in advance.
Here's a reminder not to travel to Ejin Naqi in the near future, and wait until after the epidemic has passed. Due to the outbreak of the epidemic on October 18, all the scenic spots in Ejina were closed and managed, in this regard, the Ejin Naqi Tourism Association issued a letter from Ejin Naqi to stranded tourists and friends on October 21, which mentioned that all stranded tourists will be given away three core scenic spots in Ejin Naqi, namely 1 ticket for the Poplar Forest Scenic Area, the Black City Weak Water Poplar Scenic Area, and the Juyan Seaview Area, and it will be valid for 3 years.
A letter from Ejin Banner to a friend of stranded tourists