Sayram Lake

Background

Sayram Lake lies in the northern Tianshan Mountains in Bortala Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang, less than 50 kilometres from the border between China and Kazakhstan; to the south, the Guozigou Valley leads down to the Ili Valley. The lake sits 2070 metres above sea level and covers 458 square kilometres, making it the largest and highest alpine lake in Xinjiang. It is fed mainly by glacial meltwater, along with precipitation brought by the Eurasian westerlies, runoff from the surrounding mountains and a little groundwater from springs. The lakeside grassland is set against snowy peaks, wildflowers cover the ground in summer, and whooper swans and mallards can be seen in the wetlands. The name Sayram is said by some to come from Kazakh, meaning "blessing"; the lake is also called Santai Haizi and was known in the past as the "Clean Sea". It lies along the northern branch of the old Northern Silk Road, and around it are rock art, tombs, temple ruins, ovoo cairns, steles and post-station remains from various dynasties. The Taoist Qiu Chuji, travelling west, described the lake as about 200 li around and ringed by snowy peaks, calling it a "heavenly pool"; Yelü Chucai, Lin Zexu and others also left descriptions of it.

Local customs

• Drive or cycle around the lake on the ring road and watch the water shift from blue to green
• in summer, see wildflowers and herds of horses on the lakeside grassland
• climb a lakeside viewpoint for a panorama of the whole lake
• watch the sunset over the water in the evening.

Travel tips

• A visit takes half a day to a day
• ticket and shuttle prices are as officially announced by the scenic area. The lake area is windy with large temperature swings, so please bring windproof, warm clothing
• the summer sun is strong, so you will need sun protection.
• From Urumqi, head west along the Lianhuo Expressway
• from Yining, go north through the Guozigou Valley to the lake. The ring road around the lake was completed in 2005 and is about 79 kilometres long. Summer, when flowers bloom by the lake and the grassland is green, is the best time to visit
• in winter the lake freezes and the snowfields are vast, but temperatures are extremely low.