Travel Notes #伊犁
Nalati Grassland: The "Sky Prairie" Hung on the Tianshan
At the eastern end of the Ili Valley and above 1,800 m, Nalati is called the "Sky Prairie". From June to September green waves roll and wildflowers carpet the ground, while Kazakh herders have grazed here for generations. Drive from Yining or fly to Nalati airport.
Xinjiang: 1.66 Million Square Kilometres, from Kanas to Kashgar
The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region covers 1.66 million square kilometres in China's far northwest, the largest province-level area in the country. Three mountain ranges holding two basins string together glaciers, grassland, desert oases and Central Asian old towns along one route. Locals divide it simply: nature in the north, people in the south, the Silk Road in the east. Kanas Lake and the timber houses of Hemu, the layered grassland of the Ili valley and Sayram Lake, the lanes of old Kashgar and the Pamir plateau, the jade bazaar at Hotan and the Taklamakan highway, the Flaming Mountains and the karez wells of Turpan.