In September 2011, my parents and I arrived in Xinjiang for a two-week stay. We had been discussing the trip for nearly four years and our primary goal was to spend time in the Tian Shan.

We accomplished this goal, but not in the way or to the extent we had hoped for. I am writing this article to explain our experiences to other would-be trekkers, and reflect on what we could have done differently, or what other people in different circumstances could do, to better experience the Tian Shan.

A Brief Introduction

My family is fond of hiking. Although we are not fiercely avid trekkers, my parents, who are in their 60s, take multi-day backpacking trips in Montana’s Glacier National Park every year, in addition to many other day and overnight hikes each summer.

I have done a good amount of hiking in the Rocky Mountains and other parts of the world, with my most exotic experience being a five-day trek in the foothills of the Himalayas in Nepal. On that trek, my friends and I walked up a river valley, buying meals and lodging at tiny settlements along the way. We carried clothing and some supplies, but no food or bedding.

What we were looking for in the Tian Shan was something of a mix between what my parents do every year in Glacier Park and my experience in Nepal: a multi-day trek with plenty of stunning views of snow-capped mountains but without having to carry and prepare all of our own provisions.

However, despite our clear goal, we landed in Urumqi with almost zero plans in place. This was not for lack of trying, we had all spent many hours on the Internet looking for information about trekking in the Tian Shan. We had sent inquiries to several companies, organizations and websites but had gathered very little that was useful in a concrete way.

This lack of a plan was partially by choice. We did find companies who offered exactly the kind of multi-day trips we wanted. The kicker: enormous price tags. So, if you are willing to pay several hundred dollars per day per person for a trek in the Tian Shan, stop reading and start searching for tour companies.

China guidebooks said almost nothing about hiking in the Tian Shan, and there were no useful resources or maps online. But armed with a flexible attitude, we began our trip knowing there were big mountains out there and somehow were were going to find a way to see them.

Hiking the Nan Shan

The only concrete piece of advice we had was that the Nan Shan areas near Urumqi should provide some good hiking opportunities. We spent a day organizing in Urumqi and the next morning boarded a bus for Nan Shan. We arrived, found a place to stay in a yurt and took a pleasant walk up the canyon to a waterfall.

The next day, we hiked around the surrounding hills. The grasslands spotted with sheep and herders’ huts were lovely and there were some pretty mountains, but no snow-covered giants. There were no other obvious recreational options, so we decided not to spend another night. We poured over our maps and decided on a plan that would take us on a big loop out West and back to Urumqi, probably lasting about a week.

I should note that I speak basic-intermediate Chinese due to a year living in Beijing, and my Japanese abilities make it easy for me to recognize and learn new characters. Making the trip we did with zero Chinese skills would be significantly more difficult. We met few people on our travels who spoke English, and once we left Urumqi, saw almost zero other foreign friends.

Nalati Grasslands (Narat)

We returned to Urumqi and with great difficulty and some tweaks in the plan we had made, got on an overnight train to Yining. We spent the night in town and left on a bus the next day to Nalati, a small town that serves as a launching point for the Nalati Grasslands Natural Park.

The next morning, after paying the surprisingly pricey entrance/bus fee (something we encountered in all nature parks in Xinjiang), we headed into the grasslands. They were, as advertised, impressive—a vast verdant expanse edged by those big white mountains we had been searching for. We took a long walk up into the foothills that afforded even better views of the snow-capped giants.

While there was plenty of amazing country, the park lacked the infrastructure to support the kind of multi-day treks we wanted to do. This represents the biggest obstacle we encountered on our trip: a lack of support for people wanting to get even slightly off the beaten path.

In every place we visited, we encountered good facilities for the sizable crowds wanting to see the main sights. Some of these facilities were impressive in the way only China can be—like one hike of several miles where the trail was completely made of giant hand-laid stone blocks.

But walk just ten minutes away from these headliner attractions and there was nothing.

If we had been fully supported with food and gear, we could have just walked toward the horizon, but we could find nothing in terms of trails, maps or guides. If we had been more adventurous, we might have had success with just setting out with our day packs and offering to pay for bread and board at the yurts we passed in the hills.

Bayanbulak Grasslands

The next morning, we boarded a mini-bus for the trip of several hours up into the highlands to the town of Bayanbulak. A true frontier town and the most remote settlement we were to visit on our trip, Bayanbulak sits on a high plain surrounded by higher mountains.

I am not sure of the elevation, but the area is above tree-line, so there were only endless hills of brown grass. Nearby is the Bayanbulak Swan Nature Reserve, which is the main, and only, attraction.

We spent a day touring the reserve, which is mostly known for a view of a zig-zagging river that shines like a jewel when the sun sets over it. Again, the place was beautiful, but options were limited to the stops on the tour bus.

We had planned to complete the route by taking a bus south to Kuche and then an overnight train back to Urumqi. However, we learned in Bayanbulak that there was no bus to Kuche. We could have hired a car, but locals urged us that the roads were bad and the only willing driver would not budge on the steep price he was asking. If someone will not bargain even a little in China, it probably means they are not very interested in selling. So, we boarded a bus that backtracked a little and then turned east to Korla, where we boarded a night bus that had us in Urumqi in the morning.

Hiking Heavenly Lake

Surprisingly, our best hiking of the trip was in the Heavenly Lake (Tian Chi) area just outside of Urumqi. One of the biggest tourist spots in Xinjiang, we had been avoiding it, as we had heard how large and unpleasant the crowds were.

The hordes were indeed big, even at the end of the tourist season we were traveling in, but like the other places we visited, a few steps off the paved paths was all it took to find peace and quiet.

Heavenly Lake was nice because of the great views of the nearly 18,000-foot Bogda Peak. We took several nice hikes that gave different vistas of snowy peaks and the sky-blue lake.

After two nights at Heavenly Lake, we found a ride back to Urumqi and the next day boarded a plane to Nanjing, to start the vastly different second half of our trip in eastern China.

Final Thoughts on Hiking in Xinjiang

All in all, our experience in Xinjiang was very enjoyable. We were able to visit several beautiful places, each of which showed a slightly different side of the Tian Shan range. Considering the time we had available, our Chinese skills, and the tourism environment and infrastructure, I think our trip was quite successful.

If I were to return to Xinjiang, and if my goal was to do more hiking in the Tian Shan, I would probably bring full backpacking gear, stock up on food, head to Heavenly Lake, and start hiking upstream.

From what I saw and heard, I think this would soon have me walking at the base of the white giants that were distantly visible from the lake. Doing the same in the Nalati Grasslands would also probably have been enjoyable.

As I have said repeatedly, I believe the main barriers to trekking in the Tian Shan are the difficulty of access and paucity of information. Currently, there seems to be little motivation for the locals to develop such infrastructure.

In every place we visited, there were plenty of tourists, nearly all of them Han Chinese from the eastern provinces. These are the customers whose desires determine what is for sale in terms of nature experiences in the Tian Shan. At present, they seem content to buy their brand-name (or knockoff) hiking outfits in Beijing or Shanghai, board crowded buses, and be shuttled around to predetermined spots, only alighting for brief photo opportunities. Eventually, some of this crowd will tire of the beaten path and start looking for ways to have a more intimate natural experience.

About the Author:

JoAnn Hanson, Eric Stimson and Carl Stimson traveled to Xinjiang in September 2011. Carl lived and worked in Beijing for a year in 2007-2008 and traveled for several months around China in 2002. Carl currently lives in Japan. Eric and JoAnn had never been to China before. They live in Montana, USA, and are retired from careers in geology and computer programming, respectively.

When you think of China’s richest cities, no doubt visions of Beijing’s grandeur, Shanghai’s skyline and Hong Kong’s beauty come to mind. According to the latest research, however, those visions would be incorrect. In fact, you’d be on the wrong side of the country.

Try looking west toward Xinjiang, China’s largest – generally unknown – region. Welcome to Karamay, China’s richest city in 2012.

Karamay, aka “Black Oil”

Located about 4 hours northwest of Xinjiang’s capital of Urumqi and less than 230 kilometers (~140 miles) from the Kazakhstan border, Karamay (قاراماي, 克拉瑪依 or Kèlāmǎyī) is a city literally in the middle of nowhere. Were it not for the resource commonly known as black gold, this desert dwelling wouldn’t even exist.

Karamay was my home for almost 4 years and I can say with confidence that I love it. I’ve traveled all over China and no other city is as clean, accessible, and friendly as Karamay.

Nobody told me when I first arrived in Karamay back in 2006 just how wealthy the town really was. One thing I knew for sure: this town ran on oil. Almost everybody I knew worked for the petrol company, including my friend Sam (read more of his story) who once shared with me:

If the mayor of Karamay and the leader of the oil company are at the same dinner table, the oil exec gets the honored seat at the table.

As a quick side note, when most Chinese refer to “Karamay”, they actually refer to the Karamay district, not only the city. This district includes Baijiantan, Urhe (home of the famous Ghost City) and Dushanzi, the town where most of the oil refinery happens.

Karamay’s Telltale Signs of Wealth

For those who just pass through Karamay it may be hard to pinpoint what makes this city special. It’s actually quite small when you consider that I can ride my bike around the entire city limits within an hour (that”s a bicycle, not a motorcycle!).

In fact, it’s my opinion that the small size of Karamay is what has allowed it to top the list of China’s richest cities. The GDP per capita skyrockets when you’re dealing with only 450,000 citizens!

But what are a couple signs that this tiny town is wealthy?

• A Massive City Park: this multi-million dollar park comes complete with a water show, a small mountain and a skate park.
• A Golf Course: a driving range and a full 18 holes decorated with fake oil rigs.
• A Gorgeous Olympic-Size Pool: as well an an indoor water park with slides, concessions and a wave pool for kids (and kids at heart…like me)
• BMW, VW, Honda and quite a few Chinese brand cars have major dealerships in the city displaying various models of luxury sedans.

Of course these can be found in many cities around China, but with a population under half a million, Karamay is barely a blip on the Chinese map.

Who Owns the Wealth?

60 years ago Karamay didn’t exist. The land was absolutely uninhabited – neither by Chinese or by the locals.

Those who were first sent out to help drill for oil slept in tents on the desert ground and drank rationed water trekked in on the back of a camel.

Karamay’s first citizens (Karamay Museum)

While 75% of Karamay’s inhabitants are Han, the other people groups – primarily Uyghur and Hui – have a strong presence. Unlike many other cities in Xinjiang I saw no major income gap between people groups and in fact met many Uyghur who owned very nice cars.

So while the majority of Karamay’s citizens would be considered middle class, the small percentage of super wealthy is slowly growing and commanding nice, new offices. Consider the road that acts as an entrance to the city. When I first arrived it was barren land. Now there’s a train station and beautiful highrises built by the government, the oil companies and the telecom industry.

A Few More Karamay Pictures

The gorgeous government building

The Karamay Airport (1 flight daily)

A reminder of just how remote Karamay is

More Karamay Resources

• The official Karamay government website (Chinese)
• Details of the 1994 Theater Fire – Karamay’s most famous and deadly event
• A Map of the Northern Xinjiang Railroad

What is a yurt? If you’re traveling to Xinjiang (China), Mongolia, Kazakhstan or any other Central Asian country, it’s more than likely that you’re going to run into one of them.

Technically, a yurt is a portable housing structure constructed with a wooden frame and wool covering. They are traditionally used by Turkic nomads who make their living herding sheep in the rich grasslands.

For the majority of us, however, a yurt is something completely different. A yurt is an experience. It is a replacement for a hotel and a glimpse into another culture.

Simply put, a yurt is an adventure.

My wife and I stayed in the yurt you see above along the Karakul Lake in Xinjiang, China. We could have opted for a small building that barely passed as a “hotel” or perhaps brought our tent, but we decided to experience a yurt.

I’m so glad we did.

The Making of a Yurt

From the outside, the outer wool skin hides the inner workings of a yurt. When I first stepped inside I thought it all looked quite complicated, but I was told by the owner that it only takes about 2-3 hours to set up and tear down.

It all begins with a circular, wooden frame that is usually constructed as a lattice wall and meets at the frame of a door. The roof runs from the tops of this lattice to the center where they support the crown of the structure.

To complete the process, several layers of wool are laid across the entire frame and tied down with rope. The end result, as I found out one cold October night, is surprisingly warm!

Inside a Yurt

The floor of our yurt was covered with carpets with only a few bare patches of dirt. Large blankets were stacked on one side of the yurt while a makeshift “kitchen” occupied the opposite wall.

“Where are the beds?” was the first naive question that I asked our host. It wasn’t till later that evening that I realized that all those large blankets would be laid out into what would become an incredibly comfortable bed.

“Inside a Yurt” by FWC Facebook fan Candy Leow

As I slept through the night snug next to my wife, it was interesting to imagine that explorers like Sven Hedin had slept in similar accommodations when he was making his historic journey along the Silk Road.

How to Stay in a Yurt

The best part about staying in a yurt is that it’s more than just a place to sleep. Our host was a husband and wife who spent time talking with us and hanging out. The wife cooked us great Kirghiz meals while the husband – ever the businessman – attempted to sell us carpets and camel rides.

The whole trip began with a local travel guide who connected us with his friends who rented out their yurt. We came to an agreement of 50 RMB per person (we had 4) which included one of the meals.

On other trips, such as one to Salimu Lake, “tourist yurts” were lined up along the shore and rented out hostel-style.

In Xinjiang, there are three primary places to experience a yurt:

• Along the Karakoram Highway, primarily at Karakul Lake
• In the Yili region, including Salimu Lake
• Within the Altai region, including Kanas Lake

Be warned: the yurts that you find at Urumqi’s Heavenly Lake are mostly tourist traps. Perhaps you might consider all of them tourist traps, but the closer you get to the western border of Xinjiang, the more authentic they are.

Photo courtesy of Scott at Abdul Wahab Tours

Yurts at Salimu Lake by FWC Facebook Fan Madelein Ghozzi

More Resources

• 5 Tips for Xinjiang budget travel
• How to do a Uyghur homestay in Xinjiang
• How to Build Your Own Yurt
• [Video] Watch a Yurt being Built

Have you stayed in a yurt? What advice would you give?

For most people who travel to Xinjiang and around China, there are two concerns that direct how they plan their entire journey: time and money. There’s not much I can do about your time, but what if I could help you with some simple yet very effective ways to save you money?

Many of these tips can generally be applied to travel all across China, but there are a few “tricks of the trade” I’ve learned during my years in Xinjiang that I hope you’ll find useful.

Tip #1: Travel at Night

There is nothing I hate worse than wasting daylight hours traveling in a bus or train – yet I have done it more often than I care to admit! If you’re like me, you’ve probably been torn between the higher cost of airfare vs. the time lost in transit.

The reason this is so important in Xinjiang is because this region is so much larger than you realize! Larger than Texas and California combined. A trip between two cities that look close on the map could take you 8 hours…easily.

How will this save you money traveling by night? Simple. You save the cost of a hotel.

Tip #2: Travel by Train

Airplanes and private taxis are a luxury and not an option for real budget travelers to Xinjiang. The only other options are buses and trains.

Buses aren’t a bad choice – and often they can be your only option – but if you can, I recommend the train.

Why the train? First of all, it’s much more reliable. I can’t tell you how many buses I’ve traveled on that have either broken down or been indefinitely stopped by police at a checkpoint. This doesn’t happen on a train.

Second, if you’re taking my advice on point #1, it’s much more comfortable sleeping on a train than on a bus – even if it’s a sleeper bus. This is particularly true for those of us who are tall.

For help on train travel in Xinjiang, see Traveling by Train from Urumqi Station

Tip #3: Team Up

One of the easiest and most fun ways to save money while traveling in Xinjiang – and pretty much any part of China – is to find a group of people who are interested to do/see the same things you are and then go together.

You’ll see the largest savings by sharing services and splitting the cost. Take, for instance, a trip along the Karakoram highway. The best mode of transportation is – in my opinion – a rented taxi which costs about 400-500 RMB regardless the number of passengers. Fill the car with three other people and you just cut your costs by 75%.

It may seem like an idea unfit for a budget traveler, but it’s definitely worth considering: Should I join a Xinjiang tour group?

Perhaps your group doesn’t need to be THIS big!

Tip #4: Taste the Appropriate Local Flavor

It seems like a no-brainer to remind people that “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”, but you’d be surprised at how many people don’t do this. They’ll buy some kebabs or Uyghur bread, but when it comes meal time you’ll find them at a restaurant with a picture menu (usually more expensive) or worse…at KFC (gasp!).

I find that the #1 reason people don’t eat locally is that they don’t know what to order. I completely understand. That’s why I’ve compiled a list of great Xinjiang foods – try every one on the list.

FINALLY (and most importantly), I strongly suggest you try what I like to call “hole-in-the-wall” restaurants. They’re usually on a side street and don’t have a big sign. The reason I say this is because most people interpret “local” to be “street food”, and while I do love food bought from a street vendor, I also know that 75% of the time I will walk away…actually, race away…to the nearest bathroom 5 minutes later.

Get some kebabs and bread from a street vendor, but get a reasonably-priced meal in a restaurant.

Tip #5: Take Advantage of Atypical Accommodations

If you’re traveling in Xinjiang it’s a given that you like adventures. You think 5-star hotels are for sissies and air conditioning is for the physically weak.

That’s perfect. The best thing you can do while traveling in Xinjiang is to take advantage of cheaper lodging that some might consider “roughing it”. What am I talking about?

• Yurts: whether you’re at Salimu Lake, Karakul Lake or a host of other destinations nearby the Kazakhstan or Tajikistan border, you have to try a yurt. They usually only cost about 50RMB per person and typically come with a meal or two.
• Uyghur Homestay: why stay in a hotel when you can enjoy a night in the hospitable home of a local Uyghur? These are often cheaper than a hotel and set up through a good travel agency. *Read more about How to do a Uyghur homestay*
• Tent Camping: You can purchase camping equipment in Urumqi or you can just bring your own. Either way you’re in for a treat when you hike away from everything else and enjoy the natural beauty that Xinjiang has to offer.

Photo courtesy of NotesfromXian

Any other suggestions you might add?

On Tuesday, February 28th in the Yacheng county of Kashgar, Xinjiang, a riot and/or public demonstration ended in the deaths of over 20 people.

As expected, local news portals make little-to-no mention of the incident and had you picked up a copy of the local Kashgar newspaper on February 29th, you’d think that everything in the city was absolutely perfect:

On Xinhua, China’s official press agency, the following headline displayed an article not about unrest, but rather about the great economic development that was happening around the city:

Of course, the reality of what was happening in Yecheng (a county 248 km NW of Kashgar) looked a little more like this:

(*note: this is NOT an actual photo of the Kashgar riots)

What Happened in Kashgar?

Because getting a truly accurate picture of Xinjiang events from a single source is practically impossible, here’s a quick survey of reports coming out about the riot:

• Xinhua and The Global Times – both state-run news agencies – ran vague stories about the deaths of 10 people in a riot in Kashgar. These articles have now apparently been taken off both of the websites and can’t be found.
• International news agencies such as CNN, BBC, Wall Street Journal and many others picked up on these stories and published variations of the following which by this time had upped the number from 10 to 13 (from Rueters):

“Nine violent terrorists suddenly surged into the crowd and stabbed to death innocent people with their knives, causing 13 innocent people to die and injuring many,” it said in a statement on official news portal www.tianshannet.com. ”Police rushed to the scene, handled the situation with resolution and shot dead seven violent terrorists, capturing two,” it added. The regional government did not identify any of the attackers or give their ethnicity. Nor did it identify the ethnicity of their victims.

• By late Wednesday all of these reports were again updated to say that 20 people had died – 13 police/civilians and 7 “assailants” (see The Wall Street Journal for example)
• The Voice of America (which apparently thinks that “Taklamakan Desert” is spelled “Paklamakan”) noted that China blamed the riots on terrorists, a hot topic right now with the city’s close proximity to Pakistan. (for more on China’s use of the word “terrorist”, see this interesting article by Xinjiang Source)
• Radio Free Asia later published a piece claiming that the riot was “ fueled by a mass migration of Han Chinese to a largely Uyghur county, stoking ethnic tensions amongst the area’s unemployed youth”.

Is It Possible to Add MORE Security?

Although China is continually adding more cameras and officers to maintain stability in Xinjiang, it seems like there’s always an opportunity to add more.