China is so big, which destination should I go to, go to coastal tourist cities such as Qingdao, Xiamen, etc. to see the sea, think about the crowd, and I want to be quiet and quiet. My colleagues suggested that I go to Tibet, and they all said that life is not perfect without going to Tibet, but I finally chose the 6-day tour of the Northwest Grand Ring Road recommended by a friend.
1. Qinghai Lake - China's largest inland saltwater lake
At noon on the first day, you can reach Qinghai Lake, starting from National Highway 109 (Huanhu East Road - Heima River Section), I never thought that there would be such a large area of saltwater lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, no wonder Qinghai Province is named after it, which shows the fame and status of Qinghai Lake. The largest saltwater lake in Chinese mainland (said to be the size of 4 Hong Kong). It is said that in the past, Qinghai Lake still had Bird Island and Sand Island scenic spots, but now it is permanently closed due to environmental protection issues. I checked these closed attractions on my phone, each with its own characteristics, I am more interested in Bird Island, the driver said that the migration of these birds is to cross the Himalayas, I don't know the truth, I feel very funny, hahaha.
Qinghai Lake Erlang Sword Scenic Area
There are a lot of herdsmen's trails on the side near Qinghai Lake, there are also many places to take pictures, we want to go to the regular scenic spot Erlangjian, the ticket is 90 yuan per person, the square of the scenic spot is two Tibetan-style small streets, there are some Tibetan-style prayer flags and sculptures around the street and square, on both sides of the street are souvenir shopping malls, restaurants, hotels, etc., as well as folk museums, herbariums, Tibetan tribes and other exhibition halls and buildings full of Tibetan characteristics, you can go to visit it.
Qinghai Lake Erlang Sword Scenic Area
The square walks to the lake, you can see the blue and vast Qinghai Lake in front of you, a wooden plank road is built along the lake, you can take a walk along the plank road to view the lake, you can often see the migratory birds soaring in the sky above the lake, the breeze blows, and it feels very pleasant. On the east side of the plank road, you can see the statues of Fuwa and the Queen Mother of the West, and the legend says that Qinghai Lake is the Yao Chi of the legendary Queen Mother of the West, and this sculpture of the Queen Mother of the West is telling this story, and you can take a group photo here. In addition, you can also see the ruins of a torpedo base in the lake, which was the site of the 151 torpedo base after the founding of the People's Republic of China, so the Erlangjian Scenic Area is also known as the 151 Scenic Area.
Qinghai Lake Erlang Sword Scenic Area
Close view of the lake rippling blue waves, far view of the blue picturesque, blue sky, white clouds, green grassland, yellow canola flowers, lack of which one, are not perfect, as a tourist, I can only simply feel the charm of Qinghai Lake, I believe that Qinghai Lake in different seasons, different weather conditions must have its more charming attitude.
2. Chaka Salt Lake - Authentic Sky Realm
The next morning, go to Chaka Salt Lake, Chaka Salt Lake is still a few kilometers away from Chaka Town, you need to take a shuttle bus at the tourist service center of Chaka Town, according to the investigation Chaka Salt Lake was originally part of the industrial salt farm, and now it has been made into a national civilized Internet celebrity check-in attraction by Zhejiang businessmen, and I have to admire the foresight of Zhejiang people. The former salt farm has been gorgeously transformed into an Internet celebrity attraction, which is really the plot of an ugly duckling turning into a white swan!
Chaka Salt Lake
I've seen photos and videos of Chaka Salt Lake in the circle of friends before, but it's far less immersive than being there, and the feeling of being one with heaven and earth is really fascinating.
Chaka Salt Lake
The small train is 50 yuan for a one-way trip, and 100 yuan for a round trip, and the Chaka Salt Lake has to go to the innermost pier to look good, where there are few people, and they are not afraid to use it to become a decoration in other people's lenses. The weather on the day is very powerful, blue sky + white clouds, what is in the sky, what is on the lake, it is really a word exhaustion, such a beautiful scenery, rare. Many young ladies and aunts wear long dresses, red, white, green, and yellow, anyway, the more bright the better.
The scenery of the northwest has its unique beauty, the sense of space is super strong, yesterday's Qinghai Lake and today's Chaka Salt Lake, let me feel for the first time that the lake still has such a beauty, not to mention, my vision has been better than myopia correction.
3. Emerald Lake - Emerald scattered on the earth
In the afternoon of the next day, we will go to the Emerald Lake in Dachaidan Town, the Emerald Lake is the same as the Chaka Salt Lake, and it is also a part of the industrial salt field, you can see the success and enlightenment of the Chaka Salt Lake, and now it has become a paid scenic spot, of course, the Emerald Lake has the beautiful scenery that the Chaka Salt Lake does not have, especially the aerial photography of the entire Emerald Lake, like a dazzling jade sprinkled on the earth.
Emerald Lake
Emerald Lake
Fourth, Qinghai Yadan landform group
Qinghai Yadan (Southern Eight Immortals): Located in one of the most mysterious places on the northern edge of the Qaidam Basin on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, many people take it literally to understand that there may be a story of wind and snow, but on the contrary, the Southern Eight Immortals are a tragic epic left by the first generation of old Qaidam people.
This is a magical land, it is a combination of geomorphological combinations of a series of intermittent stretching long mounds and hollow trenches, which is called Yadan landform by geologists. The Yadan landform of Qaidam is a lake sediment from the late Tertiary and early Quaternary periods 75 million years ago, which was separated from the water body due to geological movement, and the salt and sand condensation crust during this period was eroded and carved by the westerly wind. They are widely distributed in the northwest of Qaidam and are one of the largest and most typical Yadan landscapes in the world, covering an area of more than 1,000 square kilometers. Because of its peculiar and grotesque landforms, fluctuating winds, and mysterious wind sounds generated by strange terrain, coupled with the fact that the local rocks are rich in iron and the geomagnetic strength often makes the compass malfunction, resulting in the inability to discern the direction and get lost, it is regarded as "Devil's City, Ecstasy Array" by the world. With a total area of about 21,000 square kilometers and an average altitude of 3,260 meters, the Yadan forest is the largest wind-eroded soil forest found in China so far.
Haixi Yadan landform group
In 1955, the silent Qaidam welcomed its first developers, and the footsteps of the geological team woke up this ancient and desolate land and brought it to life. There are eight female geological team members from the south, who entered here in search of oil resources, swaying their youthful demeanor. One day, as usual, they trekked through a labyrinth of wind-eroded mounds to measure, and on the way back, the desert was covered with yellow sand. They lost their way in the terrain known as the "Devil's Town", and the only signs were buried...... It was not until half a year later that three female corpses were found with survey maps and geological bags pressed under them, and no other bones were found. Later, in order to commemorate the eight female geologists, people called the place where they died - the wind-eroded soil forest group between Dachaidan and Lenghu Lake as "Southern Eight Immortals".
According to the memories of many old Qaidam people, in order to develop Qaidam, many people not only left their youth there, but even left their lives there, and generation after generation of surveyors and builders walked into Qaidam, they took the wasteland as their home, took root in the Gobi, and dedicated their youth, lifelong energy and even life to Qaidam, and they gradually called themselves Qaidam people.
When you walk on the streets of Dachaidan Town, the old people wearing stone sunglasses and leaning over their bodies may be the older generation of geologists, and praise their dedication.
Qaidam Basin
5. Oil Town - Deserted Town (Filming Location of the Nine-Story Demon Tower)
Aksai Oil Town is the former site of Aksai County in Jiuquan area, because the oil town rises from the ground, in the last century, the town was once unprecedentedly prosperous, kindergartens, primary schools, hospitals, auditoriums, cinemas, etc., and now the oil resources are exhausted, the county seat is relocated, people go to the empty building, the small city becomes ruined, become a deserted dead city, a barren scene.
Time flies, time flies. More than ten years later, after a director named Lu Chuan made a movie called "Nine-Story Demon Tower" here, the town became an Internet celebrity attraction overnight, and many curiosity lovers and adventure enthusiasts came to the town with different moods, and the once silent town regained some popularity. Walking on the deserted streets seems to have a feeling of being separated from the world, and time and space are stagnant. As far as the eye can see, the mottled walls, the faded red slogans, the ruined factory area, and the rusty station all tell every visitor about the prosperity of the past.
Aksai
6. Dunhuang - Mogao Grottoes + Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring
On the evening of the third day, we arrived at Dunhuang, a famous city in the Hexi Corridor, a county-level city under the administration of Jiuquan City in Gansu Province, but its history and relics are world-famous. When it comes to the Hexi Corridor, the most well-known piece of history may be the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. It was during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty that Huo Qubing drove the Xiongnu out of the Mobei region in one fell swoop, so there was the later theory of the Silk Road, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty set up Dunhuang County, which was one of the four counties in Hexi. The two must-see attractions in Dunhuang are: Mogao Grottoes and Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring.
Mogao Grottoes
Limited to 6,000 tickets per day, you need to book tickets in advance, I was set before departure, I just looked at the official ticket reservation network, and it is not particularly nervous, it may not be the peak season so I don't feel deeply, if the peak season in July and August comes, it is better to book the tickets in advance.
Mogao Grottoes
Mogao Grottoes
The Mogao Grottoes, commonly known as the Thousand Buddha Caves, are located in Dunhuang at the western end of the Hexi Corridor. It was built in the pre-Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms, and then went through the construction of the Northern Dynasties, the Sui Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties, the Western Xia, the Yuan Dynasty and other dynasties, forming a huge scale, there are 735 caves, 45,000 square meters of murals, 2,415 clay colored sculptures, it is the world's largest existing scale, the most abundant Buddhist art place. It's a pity that at present, there are only 8 caves visited by tourists with normal tickets, and photos cannot be taken in the caves (protected cultural relics)
Mogao Grottoes
The deepest impression is when I was in middle school, the text about the Mogao Grottoes in the Chinese textbook, the Taoist priest Wang Yuanqi who was scolded by the teacher for nothing, in 1900, in order to rebuild some of the caves that have been abandoned for a long time into Taoist temples, I accidentally discovered the Tibetan scripture cave, as for the later scriptures scattered overseas, that is also the sadness of the times, and now I want to blame a Taoist priest. At least now we can still witness the magical murals of the Mogao Grottoes, and the flying dance and the rebounding pipa can become the historical figures that Internet celebrities are currently trying to imitate.
Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring
We entered Mingsha Mountain at 16 o'clock in the afternoon, it was not very hot, depending on the weather conditions, it is best to enter after 17 o'clock when the weather is hot.
The Crescent Moon Spring is surrounded by Mingsha Mountain. Throughout the ages, it is famous for the wonderful landscape of "coexistence of mountains and springs, symbiosis of sand and water", and is known as "one of the unique scenery outside the Saiwai", Mingsha Mountain, Crescent Spring and Mogao Grottoes art landscape are integrated, it is the "two uniques" connected in the south of Dunhuang City, and has become a tourist attraction that people in China and even the world yearn for.
Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring Scenic Area
Mingsha Mountain is formed by the accumulation of sand, about 40 kilometers long from east to west, 20 kilometers wide from north to south, dozens of meters high, the mountain peak is steep, and the momentum is like a knife edge. There is a moist layer of sand under the dune, and the wind blows the sand grains and vibrates, and the sound can cause the resonance of the sand layer, hence the name. According to the historical records, when the weather is clear, even if the wind stops and the sand is quiet, it will emit the sound of silk and bamboo orchestra, just like playing music, so "the clear sound of the sand ridge" is a scene of Dunhuang. This is a kind of wonder in the natural phenomenon, known as the "desert wonder" throughout the ages, and is known as "one of the best scenery outside the Sai".
Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring Scenic Area
There are four strange crescent springs: the shape of the crescent moon is like the old through the ages, the place of bad conditions is clear and becomes a spring, the sand mountain is not drowned in the sand, and the old fish in the ancient pond are not old. The best time to go to Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring is in the evening and dusk. Chen Yunhe's poem praises here: "The crescent moon spring is the comma of Mingsha Mountain, Mingsha Mountain is the aftermath of the crescent moon spring, and finally, there is a co-performance of successful people on the Gobi."
See also Dunhuang performance
On the evening of the fourth day, the four of us booked tickets for the performance of "See Dunhuang Again" early, and as soon as we came out of Mingsha Mountain, we went straight to the Dunhuang Theater, where we walked 50 steps, as if we had traveled through a hundred years, walked 100 steps, as if we had traveled through a thousand years, and unconsciously the audience was divided into 16 groups, entering different "caves" and talking with the "ancient people". This is not only a viewing, but also an experience, and "See Dunhuang Again" can be described as the pinnacle of melodrama in terms of art form and complex design of space.
Dunhuang
Seventh, Jiayuguan - the world's first city tower
About 12 o'clock noon on the fifth day to Jiayuguan, because the time is tight only to visit the city tower, you can go to the Great Wall of the hanging wall to see, Jiayuguan Guancheng is 6 kilometers southwest of Jiayuguan City, located in the middle of the narrowest valley of Jiayuguan, the highest terrain on the Jiayu Mountain, the city wall of the two wings of the city pass across the desert Gobi, 8 kilometers to the north even the Great Wall of Montenegro Hanging Wall, 7 kilometers to the south, the first pier in the world, is the west end of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty, since ancient times it is the first pass in Hexi. Guancheng was built in the Ming Hongwu five years (1372), from the beginning of the construction to build a complete pass, experienced 168 years (1372-1539) time, is the Ming Dynasty along the Great Wall along the jurisdiction of more than 1,000 passes of more than 1,000 passes, so far well preserved.
Jiayuguan Guancheng
The first pass in the world, there is Shanhaiguan in the east, Jiayuguan in the west, the shock of history lies in this, stretching for thousands of miles, across the Great Wall of northern China, guarding the Central Plains Dynasty in history, now its symbolic meaning is far greater than the actual significance, it symbolizes the long history of Chinese civilization, self-improvement, generation to generation. I have no regrets in this life.
8. Zhangye Colorful Danxia - World-class Heritage (pork belly in the mouth of netizens)
Arrive at Zhangye Qicai Town at about 17 o'clock in the afternoon of the fifth day, in fact, Zhangye Dan Qicaixia Scenic Area can enter the next morning to see the sunrise (one ticket two brushes), Colorful Danxia: "The color is like Wudan, bright as Mingxia" is the best interpretation of him. This piece of colorful Danxia, the beauty of nature is vividly expressed, between the flow of light and shadow, it is like a paint plate that has been beaten down in the mortal world, layer upon layer, magnificent, quietly strolling on the plank road, the distant scenery, is as refreshing as the drizzle of romance. Many tourists affectionately call him pork belly. It is also the filming location of many film and television dramas, such as Zhang Yimou's "Three Guns Shooting Surprise", Jiang Wen's "The Sun Also Rises", Qian Yanqiu's "Detective Di Renjie (Part 3)" and so on.
Zhangye colorful Danxia tourist attraction
"Danxia" refers to the isolated peaks and steep strange rocks formed by the long-term weathering and erosion of the red conglomerate by flowing water. The colored streaks on these peaks and rocks are formed by the continuous redox of calcium and iron ions in the sediment. The Danxia landform of Zhangye developed during the Pre-Jurassic to the Tertiary period, forming the current landform, which is the result of about 200 million years of careful carving by nature.
Zhangye colorful Danxia tourist attraction
This vast Danxia landform, as if God did not hesitate to pour the most brilliant colors on this mountain one after another, thick and light, deep and shallow, light and dark, as if it was a scene in another world, but it was so real in front of you. The rough surface of the mountain is full of the vicissitudes of time, but the wind and snow have not washed away the slightest bit of handsomeness, but it looks more and more magnificent. As long as you climb the viewing platform and watch the works carved by nature for hundreds of millions of years, you can't help but feel sincerely amazed by the magical power of nature.
If you want to take the Qinggan Ring Road, Gannan Line, West Sichuan Line, Sichuan-Tibet Line, Ali Line, and North and South Xinjiang Circle, you can set off with Lingyun.