Karamay (Urho Devil City)

Karamay, the 'City of Oil', with the yardangs of Urho World Devil City, Heiyou Mountain and the Baiyang River Grand Canyon – the surreal wind-eroded landscape stop on the northern Xinjiang loop.

Karamay lies in northwestern Xinjiang on the western edge of the Junggar Basin. It is a city born of oil – 'Karamay' means 'black oil' in Uyghur. When Well No. 1 struck oil in 1955, it became the first major oilfield of the People's Republic, and the city rose from the Gobi. It has four districts: Dushanzi, Karamay, Baijiantan and Urho. Dushanzi is the northern starting point of the G217 Duku Highway (with the Dushanzi Grand Canyon, carved by the Kuytun River, nearby), while Urho is famous for the yardangs of World Devil City and is a must-pass stop on the grand northern Xinjiang loop from Urumqi to Burqin and Kanas.

Best time to visit: May–Oct. Summer days are hot (over 35°C) but dry, with cool mornings and evenings; in Sep–Oct the desert poplars around Devil City and along the Baiyang River turn yellow and the light is soft – the best time for photography. Winter is bitterly cold and windy, so Devil City is not recommended then.

Areas to explore: ① City, half to full day – Heiyou Mountain and the Karamay Museum, Well No. 1, the Karamay River and Jiulong Pool, to learn the oil city's history; ② Urho (about 100 km from the city) – sunset at World Devil City, the Baiyang River Grand Canyon and the Urho desert poplar forest; stay overnight in Urho for the sunset.

Getting there: Karamay Guhai Airport has flights to Urumqi and other cities; Karamay and Urho stations on the Kuytun–Beitun Railway have train service. It's about a 4-hour drive from Urumqi to the city. Taxis are easy in town, but Devil City requires driving or hiring a car. Suggested stay: 1–2 days.

Tips: UV and wind are strong on the Gobi, so bring sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat; drink plenty of water in summer; do not enter oilfield production areas; in Xinjiang, hotels and some sights require ID, and sights run on Beijing time but keep later hours than inland China.

Top sights

• Urho World Devil City (Yardang) – One of China's most typical yardang landscapes, where wind-eroded mounds stand like castles. The wind howls like crying ghosts, and at suns…
• Heiyou Mountain – The hill that gave Karamay its name, a natural asphalt mound where crude oil still bubbles from springs at its base, a rare surface oil see…
• Karamay Oil Well No.1 – The discovery well of China’s first major oilfield, which gushed commercial oil in 1955. The “Big Oil Bubble” sculpture beside it is a city…
• Karamay River & Jiulongtan – An artificial river that runs through the city, carrying water diverted from the Irtysh. The start point of the Jiulongtan Waterfall and gr…
• Baikouquan–Urho Oilfield Pumpjacks – Along the G217 from Karamay to Urho Yardang, rows of pumpjacks nod up and down across the Gobi day and night, a roadside view that only an…
• Baiyang River Canyon – A canyon carved through the Gobi by the Baiyang River, west of Urho. Green trees grow beneath red-brown cliffs, and the riverside poplars t…
• Urho Populus Euphratica Forest – Natural Populus euphratica forest along the lower reaches of the Baiyang River, with trees glowing gold in autumn, set against the Gobi and…
• Ailike Lake – A saline lake in the Gobi south of the Yardang, with blue water framed by yardangs and reeds, and a scenic stop along the G217.
• Karamay Century Park – A city-center park on the banks of the Karamay River, with green spaces, a lake and a musical fountain, reflecting the city’s image as an o…
• Karamay Science and Technology Museum – A city science museum with a petroleum focus, where you can learn about drilling, oil extraction and refining. It has many interactive exhi…
• Karamay Museum – A city museum that tells the story of the discovery and development of the Karamay oilfield. Drilling rigs, core samples and old photograph…

Itineraries

• North Xinjiang Grand Loop: Kanas, Ili & Duku Highway – Depart from Urumqi to loop through Altay, Sayram Lake, and Ili, returning via the northern section of the Duku Highway