Populus euphratica is a magical species, known as the "Hero Tree", "Fairy Tree", "King of the Desert", "live for a thousand years without dying, after death for a thousand years without falling, after a thousand years of immortality", the taproot of the poplar tree can penetrate more than 100 meters underground, is a living fossil of the plant kingdom.
Due to the extremely harsh living environment, it has become a rare and endangered plant endemic to desert areas. The poplar forest that grows in patches is even more rare and precious, and now there are only three natural river primitive poplar forests in the world, and they are all in China, including the poplar forest in the Tarim River Basin of Xinjiang, the poplar forest of Yiwu Naomao Lake in Xinjiang, and the Ejina poplar forest in Inner Mongolia, and the Ejina poplar forest is the largest.
On January 28, 2003, with the approval of the State Council, Ejina Poplar Forest was named "Inner Mongolia Ejina Poplar Forest National Nature Reserve".
Ejina Banner is located in the westernmost part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, bordering Alxa Right Banner in the east, Jiuquan City in Gansu Province in the west, and Mongolia in the north. "Ejina" is a Mongolian language, which is the transliteration of the Western Xia Dangxiang language "Yiji Nai", which means Heishui or Heihe, that is, the Ejina River today. Since the beginning of the Han Dynasty, the sons and daughters of China have garrisoned and camped here, and it is also an important town of the Tang, Xixia and Yuan dynasties, creating a splendid civilization. With a total area of 114606 square kilometers, Ejina Banner is the sum of the area of Taiwan, Hainan and Ningxia provinces, and is the largest area in China's banner counties (urban areas), but its population is only 18,000, making it the least populated county-level administrative region in the mainland.
Ejina Poplar Forest Reserve is located in the center of Ejina Banner of Alxa League in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region - Ejina Oasis Ejina River Basin, adjacent to Dalaihubu Town, the government station of Ejina Banner in the west, and Juyanhai in the north. The total area of the reserve is 4,860 square kilometers, and the core area is 1,550 square kilometers, with 450,000 acres of poplar forest. Ejina Poplar Forest Reserve integrates desert, weak water, red willow and poplar forests, with magical natural resources and unique cultural landscapes, and is known as the "green pearl in the depths of the desert". The poplar forest here, with its tenacious vitality and diverse images, has become a masterpiece of nature. Walking into the Ejina poplar forest, as far as the eye can see, there are fabulous beauties everywhere, and there are fairyland-like beauties everywhere, as if entering a dream world full of beautiful pictures and magnificent colors. The poplar forest in the Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area belongs to the natural river poplar forest, which is mainly divided into eight scenic spots according to the geographical environment on which the poplar forest depends. Because there is a bridge every 2000-3000 meters on the Ejina River, there are eight bridges in total, and the scenery of the poplar forest between each bridge has its own characteristics, the local people call it the "Eight Bridges" scenic spot, and are accustomed to divide the scenic spot into eight scenic areas. The landscape of each bridge is different, which can be described as "one bridge and one beautiful scene, eight bridges and eight exquisite". Each landscape area is unique and unique, closely connected and complements each other, integrating poplar, red willow, desert, Juyan culture and Mongolian customs, so that natural resources and cultural traditions are closely integrated, and a unique and beautiful chapter of poplar forest is written.
A bridge scenic spot, love shadow forest. The land is full of golden leaves, and the poplar forests grow freely, blending with the wetlands, deserts, and nomadic families. Erdao Bridge Scenic Area, Reflection Forest. The poplar forest is perfectly combined with the weak water river, the water borrows the golden tree to rejuvenate the beautiful scenery, and the tree borrows the water to be more graceful. The water here is wide, the golden leaves of the poplar trees are reflected in the clear water, the strong poplar branches become gentle and friendly in the ripples of the water, the ancient trees become vibrant, and the old trees become graceful. A magnificent spectacle of "the afterglow of the sunset, and the golden autumn dyeing of poplar". Three bridges, red willow sea. Patches of red willows bloom with small pink flowers, clusters of trees, and the forest is particularly spectacular, and it has become a sea of rose-red flowers. Four Bridges, Hero Forest. The live-action shooting scene of the movie "Heroes". Dressed in red, Feixue and Ruyue fought hand-in-hand among the flying golden poplar leaves, and the beautiful scene became the youth memory of many people. Wudao Bridge Scenic Area, Giant Forest, Tuerhu Manor. Huge poplar trees are everywhere, growing freely in the salt flats and deserts. In addition to the natural scenery, there is also a strong folk atmosphere, there is a very magnificent Tuerhu manor, food, specialties, national costumes, will make tourists feast their eyes and mouths, and can't put it down. Liudao Bridge Scenic Area, Brilliant Forest. The poplar trees here have been air-dried with all the moisture in their bodies, but still struggle to show their charm in the coming autumn. Occasionally, camels and sheep can be seen passing through. Seven Bridges, Dream Forest. The area is open, the poplar is tall, the shape is different, and the vicissitudes of ancient life. There are many thick dead trees and rotten trees distributed on the ground, lying or lying, standing or crooked, horizontal and vertical, tragic and poignant. There are more youthful and energetic poplar trees here, at the turn of spring and summer every year, the poplars of the dream forest are the most impatient, the first to recover, the first to turn golden after a year of dormancy, and the most enthusiastic to show the most beautiful scenery to tourists. Eight bridges, vast sand seas, undulating sand slopes, sparse poplars, camel bells, sun and moon brilliance, wonderful artistic conception, photographer's paradise. This is the northern edge of the Badain Jaran Desert, showing in front of tourists is the majestic beauty of the desert sunrise and the gorgeous and colorful sunset, and you can appreciate the wonderful artistic conception of "the desert is lonely and the smoke is straight, and the sun sets on the long river" at zero distance. Each poplar tree in Ejina has its own extraordinary story, each has its own maverick beauty, and each tree has its own high and cold beauty, or fantasy, or vigorous, or beautiful, or tragic ....... The shocking landscape of Ejina poplar forest and the dazzling golden autumn will always be engraved in my heart. Due to the climate and season, the scenery of the poplar forest in Ejina is the most beautiful in autumn, it is really the most beautiful golden autumn, the gold is full of trees, the forest is full of rivers. From September 15th to October 20th every year, it is the best period to appreciate, the leaves of the poplar tree are slightly yellow from the beginning, changing day by day, changing day by day, until the tree is full of gold, the forest is golden, and the whole scenic spot has become a golden Ejina.
The magical and beautiful Ejina has rich and colorful tourism resources, unique characteristics, very Western Regions style, and national characteristics. Heishui City, Tawangfu, Juyanhai, Strange Forest, Gashun Zadegai Rock Painting and other scenic areas, you must go sightseeing.
Heishui City, known as "Harihot" in Mongolian language. Located on the east bank of the weak water river 25 kilometers southeast of Dalai Hubu Town, it is an important agricultural base and frontier fortress in the Western Xia period, and is the Yanjun Division of Heishui Town established in the lower reaches of the Heihe River in the Western Xia, and it is also the main road of the post station pass leading to the Lingbei Province in the Hexi Corridor of the Yuan Dynasty. Heishui City is a rectangular city, and the surrounding city walls are well preserved, with an average height of more than 10 meters. Today's Heishui City can no longer see the prosperity of the past, the ruins and broken walls, the long yellow sand, the pagoda stands, it is the most complete and largest ancient city ruins on the Silk Road. Since 1930, more than 35,500 Han slips have been excavated at the Juyan site, which is the place with the most excavated slips in the mainland, and is known as a major archaeological discovery in the 20th century. A large number of documents and archives unearthed here have formed a new discipline "Blackwater City Philology". In 2001, Heishui City was listed as the fifth batch of national key cultural relics protection units and was designated as the Juyan Ruins Protection Area.
Tawangfu, Mongolian language called "Nuoyan is Baixing" (Wangye's Mansion). It is located 2.5 kilometers east of Dalaihubu Town, covering an area of 3 square kilometers and a construction area of 1,900 square meters. Tawang Mansion was built in 1938, sitting west and facing east, it is a courtyard building in Beijing, the layout of the building is rigorous, magnificent, and the style is unique. The tower palace is surrounded by poplar forests on three sides, one side of the Ejina River passes, the green trees and golden branches inside and outside the courtyard, the green grass and golden leaves, the scenery is pleasant. The Gimhaejang Mansion, the Imperial Palace of the Brilliant Sai. In the middle of the small square outside the prince's mansion, there is a "Monument to the 300th Anniversary of the Return of Turgot". The palace is not only the residence of the king of Zasak County, but also the place where the revolutionary predecessors of the Anti-Japanese War and the domestic revolution Tawang Jiabu, Su Jianxiao, Zhou Renshan, Gao Bozebu and others lived and fought, and it is also the secret channel and contact point of the Comintern and the Soviet-Mongolian Red Regime to assist the Chinese revolution, and the secret meeting place of the peaceful uprising on the eve of liberation. Tawangfu has been listed as a base for patriotism and revolutionary traditional education.
Juyanhai, located in the southernmost part of the Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area, is the tail lake of the Heihe, the second largest inland river in the mainland. Originating in the depths of the Qilian Mountains, the Heihe River flows through Qinghai, Gansu and Inner Mongolia for 800 kilometers and then flows into two depressions in the Badain Jaran Desert to form two lakes in the east and west, which are collectively called "Juyanhai". Juyanhai is located in the desert, it is a very peculiar wandering lake, the location is changeable, the south and the north, the east and the west, the water surface is sometimes large and sometimes small, the basic shape is narrow and long, like a crescent moon. Miao Miao lives in Yanhai, Xiao Xiao Lu Di Lin, the largest area of Juyanhai in history is 2,600 square kilometers, and the area of Juyanhai in the Qin and Han dynasties is still more than 720 square kilometers. The water of the Ejina River flows into the lake and is the main source of water for the Juyan Sea. The "Notes on the Book of Water" called Juyanhai "weak water quicksand", the Han Dynasty called it "Juyanze", the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties called it "Beihai", and the Tang Dynasty called it "Juyanhai".
Strange forest, located 28 kilometers southwest of Dalaihubu Town, the Ejina River is cut off. There is a dead poplar forest here, there is no end in sight, there is no edge at a glance, and there are poplar trees with withered branches everywhere, showing the vicissitudes of history for a long time, exposing another scene of the hideous and terrifying poplar forest. This is a piece of more than 10,000 trees, due to the Ejina River more than 100 years ago cut off and diversioned and died of drought and death, but the immortal tenacious poplar forest, looking up to the sky and roaring sadly, the dead wood is more intense, angry to the wild sand roaring to the sky, resolutely standing up heroic. It was as if there had been a terrible battle, and everywhere there were huge withered and rotten boxwood trees, some of which were broken at the waist, some of which were broken off from the thick branches, and some of which were lying crooked in the dunes; Some are like bruised giants, twisting their bodies in pain; Some are like monsters that have fallen to the ground from a high altitude, and their faces are hideously paralyzed on the desert. The poplar trees here are strangely shaped, lifeless, eerie and lifeless. Under the light of the warm sun, there seems to be a glimmer of life, the dead wood is rotten and intertwined, or like a dragon struggling to take off, or like a phoenix flapping its wings and soaring, telling the tragic story of life and death, incisively interpreting the value and energy of life, and making people see the misery and pathos of vicissitudes and decay. Against the backdrop of desert clouds, the sky is desert boxwood...... , everything is frozen, making people's hearts beat, holding their breath, the atmosphere does not dare to come out, and inexplicable sadness and indignation arise spontaneously. Populus euphratica is the most ordinary and selfless tree I have ever seen, desperate to block the wind and sand, no plant can last in the desert, only Populus euphratica has always held on to the belief that has remained unchanged for thousands of years.
Gashun Zadegai petroglyphs, located 216 kilometers southeast of Dalaihubu town, have been around 1500 years ago. In 556 A.D., when the Turks of Mobei went to Qinghai via Juyanhai, they used the unique rubbing method of the Turks to create rock paintings on the rock wall of the ravines of the Gashun Zadegai pasture. The petroglyphs are divided into 5 concentration points, 6 groups, and 2 individual pictures, and the images are mainly camels, horses, wild goats, and horse riders, as well as primitive characters, symbols, totems, and gods. The petroglyphs focus on hunting, nomadism, migration, etc.
The Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area is located in the desert, and there must be some difficulties in getting to the scenic spot, but it is certainly worth visiting. From Hohhot to Ejina, there is a direct train, once every two days, hard seats, hard sleepers, soft sleepers. From Zhangye, Jiuquan and Jiayuguan to Ejina, there are bus shuttle buses operating. Self-driving, national highways, provincial highways are very convenient, and there are RV campsites in the scenic area. If you want to visit in depth, it will take at least 3-5 days, and you should make a reservation in advance for accommodation in hotels or B&Bs, which is safe and economical.
The Ejina Poplar Forest Scenic Area in autumn is a beautiful picture scroll, a heroic epic of heroes, a majestic hymn of a thousand years of history, and a magical journey through time and space. The scenery is beautiful and pleasant, no need to guide, go as you like, you will definitely be deeply attracted by Ejina, fall for it, and forget to return.