Mingsha Shan & Yueya Quan
When Aurel Stein settled down by the spring to churn out his memoirs, he opined, "It lay hidden away amidst high sands beyond the southern edge of the oasis and about three miles from the town. For the desert wanderer there could be no more appropriate place of rest, I thought, than this delightful little pilgrimage place enclosed all around by sand-ridges rising to over 75 meters in height. There was a limpid little lake, of crescent shape and about a quarter of a mile long, which has given the locality its name and its sanctity."
Stein's peaceful temple was razed during the Cultural Revolution and is now a souvenir shop. The limpid "lake" is a fenced-off muddy pond reduced to half the original size, a result of the ongoing exploitation of underground water. The pilgrimage is marked by a gauntlet of stalls selling stuffed toy camels, batik, and glow-in-the-dark cups, culminating in a ticket office charging ¥120 to see a naturally formed attraction. Inside the entrance are carts (¥10) to take you to the lake, and toboggans (¥20) to take you down the sand dunes, which make for a fun, if sandy experience. To get deeper into the dunes you can hire a camel (¥120 for 90 minutes) or a jeep (¥260 for up to 4 people for an hour). If you've never seen desert dunes, it's worth the effort, especially just before sunrise or sunset, when the delicate contours and colors of the dunes are beguiling. The best way to avoid the crowds is to hike up the wooden stairs near the toboggan for ¥20 and then find your own way down, following a ridge.
When Aurel Stein settled down by the spring to churn out his memoirs, he opined, "It lay hidden away amidst high sands beyond the southern edge of the oasis and about three miles from the town. For the desert wanderer there could be no more appropriate place of rest, I thought, than this delightful little pilgrimage place enclosed all around by sand-ridges rising to over 75 meters in height. There was a limpid little lake, of crescent shape and about a quarter of a mile long, which has given the locality its name and its sanctity."
Stein's peaceful temple was razed during the Cultural Revolution and is now a souvenir shop. The limpid "lake" is a fenced-off muddy pond reduced to half the original size, a result of the ongoing exploitation of underground water. The pilgrimage is marked by a gauntlet of stalls selling stuffed toy camels, batik, and glow-in-the-dark cups, culminating in a ticket office charging ¥120 to see a naturally formed attraction. Inside the entrance are carts (¥10) to take you to the lake, and toboggans (¥20) to take you down the sand dunes, which make for a fun, if sandy experience. To get deeper into the dunes you can hire a camel (¥120 for 90 minutes) or a jeep (¥260 for up to 4 people for an hour). If you've never seen desert dunes, it's worth the effort, especially just before sunrise or sunset, when the delicate contours and colors of the dunes are beguiling. The best way to avoid the crowds is to hike up the wooden stairs near the toboggan for ¥20 and then find your own way down, following a ridge.
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