The oasis of Turpan is located in the Turpan basin, second only to Death Valley, California in elevation below sea level. Returning from Urumqi we were once again in the desert depression. It was 95^ at 2pm and the wind was blowing pretty hard-another dust storm...yippee!
We stopped just before the junction for lunch. Then, guess what? Our guide missed the turnoff. We were now headed in the wrong direction on a fenced and divided tollway. Ten kilometers down there was police turnaround. We made an illegal u-turn and were back on track.
Out of the bleak desert sand and Rock sprang a huge, modern oasis city. Where an irrigation canal reached, it was lush and green.
We stopped at the museum for an overview before going to our hotel. It was an amazing museum, beautifully oriented and presented. The mummies were outstanding. With a grand overview of the area, we settled in for a great test bro morrow we tour the ruins, tombs, and irrigation system.
Our hotel, BTW, for the first time on this adventure, was a true "budget" establishment making even the best Motel 6 look and smell like a sultan's palace. Ha-ha!
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
From the Mediterranean Sea to the Pacific Ocean, this is my first "round-the-world" tour and the first time I am traveling alone. It's also the first time I am NOT the leader of the group. This will be a huge adventure for me, one that tests my patience (smile), stamina and my ability to adapt. I can't wait!
Friday, June 7, 2013
Heavenly Lake (Tian Chi)
Once out of Urumqi our destination was a mere 45km east. Tian Chi
(heavenly cloud in mountain) National Park is a major local tourist attraction.
The lake is at 7,000 ft and requires a series of transfer busses and then an
electric trolley to access.
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We parked Sura, readied nm overnight pack of what we would need for
our stay and boarded the transfer busses. Up a steep and winding access road for
about 30 minutes brought us to the transfer station where we got on electric
trolleys for the last leg. As we arrived at the lake it started to rain and
continued until we left the following morning.
We were met by our yurt hosts and taken by truck to the camp where we
settled in for some free time relaxing. In between showers we walked to the lake
and toured the temple and monastery. A bus load of brides arrived, along with
their grooms in tow, for picture taking. At one point we counted over 100 of
them, flouncing around in beautiful gowns and umbrellas. Each followed by a
photographer and a stager. Very amusing!
We all shared on yurt, enjoyed dinner of rice and veggies, and slept
through the night amidst snoring and raindrops.
Morning was no different. Yet even with the rain and low hanging
clouds it was still quite beautiful and peaceful. We packed up around 9am and
headed back to Sura for our six hour drive to Turpan.
Google "heavenly lake Urumqi" for some amazing photos I wasn't able
to take due to the weather.
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
Getting Out of Urumqi
A hot shower, BBQd chicken on the street, a/c, and beds hard as rocks
(really) were followed by a breakfast of rice, seaweed, and coffee-we stayed at
a Chinese business hotel.
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
Leaving town was no easy task with construction blocking most of the
GPS suggested routes. Once again, as has become a daily realization, our local
guide is anything but, being absolutely clueless about location and directions.
It took two full hours to find our hotel last night. It's frustrating because
the lost time means missing out on things one could have done within our tight
schedule. Ok, enough bitching...maybe.
Urumqi is the capitol of Xianjing province, the largest in China, and
home to three major ethnic groups-Uyghur, Kazakh, and Chinese. The Uyghur being
the largest accounting for the numerous mosques and the signs still in both
Arabic and Chinese.
Urumqi's 2.5 million people live in a city undergoing huge changes in
infrastructure and development. A new high speed rail system will soon link it
with the east. Major freeways will and already weave through old and new
skyscrapers. Huge wind farms with hundreds of generators (possibly more) supply
new energy to feed the growing need. And theres the nuclear power plant in the
centet of the city! Yikes! All bing said, it was a pretty city with lots of
green space and beautiful people-a blend of eastern and western Asia
ethnicities.
The air was surprisingly clear. The traffic jams were amazing. It
took us more than two hours to get out of the city-mostly because we were
constantly lost. Frustrating! Dave and Frenchy have amazing
patience!
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
More Desert...Sorta
We slept like rocks and woke up like them too! 80^ at 5:30am! Stumbling around in the dark we broke camp, stowed our gear and hit the highway. Blazing through the sands we made great time and had put away almost 250km by daylight at 8:30am. It was windy causing a dusty haze. The mountains were mere shadows in the distance and the sun cast eerie rays of light through the din.
Breakfast was in another gravel pit along side the road and next to a drip irrigated orchard. 450km to go. A real bed and shower waiting for us at the other end.
Another 100k and there was cultivated fields as far as you could see in all directions. And, it started to rain. The temperature fell. Wow, a lot of desert land reclaimed for farmland. Good for a hungry nation.
Weaving in and out of desert and farmland we covered another 250 km before lunch. At a police checkpoint past Korla we saw a Buddhist shrine-several trident shaped poles surrounded and wrapped with hundreds of prayer flags on string. Being a checkpoint, I couldn't take any photos.
Heading north toward the Mongolia border we crossed a 9,000 ft range and down into the Turpan Basin. Labeled "the hottest place on Earth," it earned its rep today. Nothing but sand and rock to the horizon. Yet to the east would be the city of Turpan in a couple of days. And it was 104^ on the temperature thingy.
We had noodles at a truck stop along with a self tour of the kitchen. Cute staff! Good food. Ah-em, not so cute toilets! Seems to be the norm. Restaurants (and their litchens) are close to clean and the personal facilities aren't. So strange.
Two more hours and another 150km and we arrived in Urumqi. Nice hotel, comfy bed, shower. Ah, now this is overlanding! Tomorrow-Heavenly Valley!
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
Breakfast was in another gravel pit along side the road and next to a drip irrigated orchard. 450km to go. A real bed and shower waiting for us at the other end.
Another 100k and there was cultivated fields as far as you could see in all directions. And, it started to rain. The temperature fell. Wow, a lot of desert land reclaimed for farmland. Good for a hungry nation.
Weaving in and out of desert and farmland we covered another 250 km before lunch. At a police checkpoint past Korla we saw a Buddhist shrine-several trident shaped poles surrounded and wrapped with hundreds of prayer flags on string. Being a checkpoint, I couldn't take any photos.
Heading north toward the Mongolia border we crossed a 9,000 ft range and down into the Turpan Basin. Labeled "the hottest place on Earth," it earned its rep today. Nothing but sand and rock to the horizon. Yet to the east would be the city of Turpan in a couple of days. And it was 104^ on the temperature thingy.
We had noodles at a truck stop along with a self tour of the kitchen. Cute staff! Good food. Ah-em, not so cute toilets! Seems to be the norm. Restaurants (and their litchens) are close to clean and the personal facilities aren't. So strange.
Two more hours and another 150km and we arrived in Urumqi. Nice hotel, comfy bed, shower. Ah, now this is overlanding! Tomorrow-Heavenly Valley!
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
Into The Desert...Again
Today we left Kashgar and began our two-day journey across the Taklamakan Desert, known as the hottest place on earth. It is over 1700 km to the Turpan Basin and oasis. With full water tanks and two new, Chinese approved, propane tanks, we covered almost have of that today. Whew!
Leaving at 6am it was dark for another two hours. Dawn found us traveling along a huge ridge line of the Tian Shan mountains to the north and vast open desert to the south. It seemed almost endless with amazing earthen colors of red, yellow, tan and gray. Alkaline deposits glistened in the morning sun.
China is a building country and just as in Kashgar with skyscrapers and industrial sites under construction, so it was in the desert. We followed a massive highway project for well over 400 miles. Why a four lane super highway is needed to connect a city of 400,000 with the northern unpopulated Chinese desert was a mystery to our guide and intriguing to us.
After 450 km we reached the city of Aksu and its 150,000 people and huge industrial complexes of factories, cement and brick mills, and nuclear power plants. We had lunch on the outskirts of town at a local cafe and then hit the road for another 300 km. the desert turned from scrub to sand and alkaline flats-the Tian Shan ridge ever present to our right. An oasis would appear occassionally surrounded by acres of irrigated farmland. The temp reached 95^ by 6pm with the sun straight up on the sky. Can't imagine July and August!
The saving factor was a beautifully finished super highway that allowed for fast sailing and a smooth ride! The rest stops were huge and modern but mostly empty and the shops unoccupied. Obviously something huge is planned for this region.
The further east we went the bigger the factories and surrounding housing got. Where's the water for all if this? There are no rivers on the map! And poplar forests sprung from the sand and rock, along with small mud brick towns-no doubt full of laborers. And then there was still the desert. The heat. Wow!
We drove off the road a few hunted meters to a gravel flat and set up camp. A quick dinner and bed by 10pm ended our day.
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
Leaving at 6am it was dark for another two hours. Dawn found us traveling along a huge ridge line of the Tian Shan mountains to the north and vast open desert to the south. It seemed almost endless with amazing earthen colors of red, yellow, tan and gray. Alkaline deposits glistened in the morning sun.
China is a building country and just as in Kashgar with skyscrapers and industrial sites under construction, so it was in the desert. We followed a massive highway project for well over 400 miles. Why a four lane super highway is needed to connect a city of 400,000 with the northern unpopulated Chinese desert was a mystery to our guide and intriguing to us.
After 450 km we reached the city of Aksu and its 150,000 people and huge industrial complexes of factories, cement and brick mills, and nuclear power plants. We had lunch on the outskirts of town at a local cafe and then hit the road for another 300 km. the desert turned from scrub to sand and alkaline flats-the Tian Shan ridge ever present to our right. An oasis would appear occassionally surrounded by acres of irrigated farmland. The temp reached 95^ by 6pm with the sun straight up on the sky. Can't imagine July and August!
The saving factor was a beautifully finished super highway that allowed for fast sailing and a smooth ride! The rest stops were huge and modern but mostly empty and the shops unoccupied. Obviously something huge is planned for this region.
The further east we went the bigger the factories and surrounding housing got. Where's the water for all if this? There are no rivers on the map! And poplar forests sprung from the sand and rock, along with small mud brick towns-no doubt full of laborers. And then there was still the desert. The heat. Wow!
We drove off the road a few hunted meters to a gravel flat and set up camp. A quick dinner and bed by 10pm ended our day.
Sent from Leopard's iPhone. Read my blog at www.leopard2013.blogspot.com
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