Mist rising over Xinjiang's Kanas Lake by Judy Chen
If you ever had any doubts as to the natural beauty that Xinjiang has to offer, I aim to make you a believer. Kanas Lake, besides being one of the top lakes in Xinjiang, offers some of the most breathtaking scenery in all of China. The only problem is location. From Urumqi it takes more than 12 hours by bus to get to this lake which is close to the border of Russia and Kazakhstan. Still, the rewards are worth the effort.
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6 Comments:
gorgeous photo!! it would be totally worth a 12 hr bus ride to see that.
Nice photo.
If people are expecting to travel to Kanas and to be the only ones there think again.
It is full of Chinese tourists(I think at times there up to 10000 tourist there) with there quaint habit of dropping there rubbish where they stand.
If your willing to hike for a few days you will find solitude.
It is a stunningly beautiful place.
Thanks for the comment Jessie, it really is gorgeous!
Damo, you're right. It has become somewhat touristy, but there are plenty of hiking trails and most tourist don't have the time to really explore them. I doubt it would be too hard to lose the crowds - at least not as hard as 3 days of hiking!
Josh
I don't know about Karamay but in Shihezi there would be now at least five outdoor/hiking shops(there where none eight years ago)
All these outdoor/hiking shops also run hiking trips and I would find most times these trips/hiking tours booked out and Kanas was extremely popular.These trips where multi day hikes.
The Chinese to my surprise have taken to hiking in large numbers.
Yes there are short hikes in Kanas but you will not be the only one on that trail but to see the true beauty of Kanas a multi day hike is the way to go.
Heavenly lake and Kanas would have to be some of the most spectacular spots in Xinjiang but there also the most popular.
Uyghur: I dropped a comment on your latest blog. I'm just using Uyghur as my screen name. Do you think the government is doing enough to protect the natural beauty of Kanas?? What a shame that I never had a chance to visit that place. To tell you the truth, I never had a chance to visit Turpan either, I had been living in Urumqi for over 20 years and never visited Turpan. As a uyghur it was such a shame.
It happens all the time that people who are living in Xinjiang never see as much of the province as those who are there traveling. It is a shame, but it happens primarily because we tell ourselves "I've got all the time in the world...I'll see that place next year".
I think the government is taking measures to protect Hanas, but as you can tell from the comments above, it's popularity may prove to be its demise. The more people who come to see this park the harder it will be to maintain its natural beauty.
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