Kanas & Hemu

The “God’s back garden”: the three bays of Kanas Lake, Hemu and the Tuvan village of Baihaba, with golden autumn birches and a winter snow village.

Kanas and Hemu lie in the north of Burqin County in Xinjiang’s Altay Prefecture, on the southern slopes of the Altai Mountains where China, Mongolia, Russia and Kazakhstan meet, and are known as “God’s back garden”. This is China’s only South Siberian taiga ecological zone, where glaciers, lakes, river bends, meadows and birch forests intermingle, and where Tuvan people and Kazakh herders live. The destination has three parts. First, the Kanas Lake scenic area: take the shuttle bus from the south gate at Jiadengyu, passing in turn along the Kanas River Camel Neck Bay, Sleeping Dragon Bay, Moon Bay, Fairy Bay and Yaze Lake to Kanas Village at the lake’s outlet; you can take a boat on the lake and climb to the Fish-viewing Pavilion for a view over the whole lake. Second, Hemu Village, with Tuvan log cabins and birch forests, where at dawn you climb to a viewpoint to see morning mist and cooking smoke, and which in winter becomes a snow village and the Jikepulin powder-ski area. Third, Baihaba Village on the China–Kazakhstan border, the “first village of the northwest”. There are also deeper hiking routes, such as to White Lake, that require a guide. The best season is mid to late September, when larches and birches turn golden; July–August is the summer-escape peak, with meadows in flower; December to March is best for Hemu’s snow village and skiing; in May and after late October there are fewer visitors but some activities are closed. Getting there: fly into Altay Xuedu Airport or Kanas Airport (Burqin); it is about 150 km from Burqin town to Jiadengyu. Shuttle buses are required within the scenic area, and also link Kanas, Hemu and Baihaba. Allow 3–4 days: 1–2 days for Kanas Lake, 1 for Hemu and 1 for Baihaba. Notes: in peak season guesthouses fill up, so book ahead; temperatures swing widely between morning and evening, and autumn mornings can fall below freezing; border areas such as Baihaba require a border pass; ticket and shuttle prices are as per official announcements; trampling the meadows and feeding animals are prohibited in the reserve.

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