Chahan Salt Lake | A Natural Wonder: The Towering Salt Bridge, Emerald Lake, Salt Flower Spectacle, Mirror of the Sky…

A geography wanderer obsessed with earth’s crystallization and persistently seeking the “Chinese version of the Mirror of the Sky” writes for you a detailed guide: “Chahan Salt Lake Travel Guide | Walking on China’s Vastest ‘Boundless Mirror’ on the World’s Second Largest Salt Lake”--- > “It is not Bolivia’s Uyuni, > yet it is more silent than Uyuni; > it is not in the heart of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, > yet it supports the lifeline of China’s potash fertilizer. > This is **Chahan Salt Lake**, > an ancient seabed dried by sunlight and crystallized by time, > an endless white land, like the surface of the moon, also like the edge of the universe.” **Chahan Salt Lake**, located within Golmud City, Qinghai Province, lies in the heart of the Qaidam Basin. It is China’s largest and the world’s second largest **natural inland salt lake**, covering a total area of **5,856 square kilometers**—equivalent to **10 Qinghai Lakes**! Its name comes from Mongolian: “**Chahan**” means “**world of salt**.” This area was once part of an ancient ocean, undergoing millions of years of evaporation and sedimentation, forming a salt crust layer tens of meters thick, known as the “**Silent Version of China’s Mirror of the Sky**.” Unlike the crowded Chaka Salt Lake, here you will find a more primitive, magnificent landscape where industry and nature intertwine uniquely.--- --- 🚗 How to get there? Self-driving (highly recommended) - Navigation: “**Chahan Salt Lake Visitor Center**” or “G3011 Liuge Expressway Chahan Section” - Route example: - Depart from Golmud city → G3011 Liuge Expressway → drive about 60 km → Salt Lake Viewing Platform exit - Total about 1 hour (70 km), the route is a Gobi desert road 📍 Key tips: - **Chahan Salt Lake is not a fully open scenic area**, most parts belong to the **Qinghai Salt Lake Industrial Group** operational zone - Visitors can only enter **designated viewing platforms and ecological tourism areas** - Do not trespass into mining areas or step on salt crust cracks! Charter/Carpool - Rent an off-road or business vehicle from Golmud (¥400–600/day) - Drivers are familiar with the route and can also visit nearby attractions like **Towering Salt Bridge, Salt Lake Pier, Emerald Lake**--- 🎫 Tickets & Opening Hours | Item | Information ||------|------|| 🎟 Adult ticket price | ¥50 (includes sightseeing bus) || 🚌 Sightseeing bus (mandatory) | Round-trip shuttle, deep into the core viewing area ||🕐 Opening hours | 08:00 – 19:00 (extended to 20:00 in peak season) ||📅 Recommended visit duration | 2–3 hours |--- 🏞 Core Highlights | Five Unmissable Natural Wonders 1. 【Towering Salt Bridge | The Magical Road Built on Salt Crust】🛣️ - The world’s longest **natural salt road bridge**, 32 km in length - The entire road is paved directly on the salt lake, with a salt crust layer 15–18 meters thick underneath - Vehicles driving on it seem to float on a white ocean --- 2. 【Salt Lake Pier · The Stranded Giant Ship】🚢 - A large salt-harvesting ship named “**Salt Lake**” permanently docked on the salt flat after retirement - The rusty hull against the endless white background creates a striking industrial ruin aesthetic 3. 【Emerald Salt Pools | God’s Spilled Palette】🎨 - Actually **evaporation ponds for potash fertilizer production**, showing colorful patterns due to different microorganisms and mineral contents - Colors include: emerald green, pink, orange-yellow, deep blue… 🔥 Science fact: - Green comes from halophilic algae - Pink is produced by halophilic bacteria - Different concentrations of magnesium, potassium, and sodium ions affect water color 4. 【Salt Flower Spectacle | Nature’s Sculpted Crystal Forest】💎 - At the edges of the dried salt crust, you can see various “salt flowers”—clusters of salt crystals - Shapes resemble coral, mushrooms, and pagodas, with a crisp texture --- 5. 【Starry Salt Plain | The Milky Way Falls to Earth】🌌 - If you stay overnight in Golmud or take a round-trip charter, try night photography - The flat reflective surface of the salt lake clearly mirrors the Milky Way 🍽 Local Food Recommendations | Taste the flavor of Qaidam No dining services inside the scenic area; it is recommended to eat in Golmud city. ✅ Must-try four flavors: | Name | Specialty ||------|--------|| **Golmud Clay Pot Mutton** | Large iron pot stewed mutton with potato noodles, hearty and robust || **Qingke Cake** | Baked barley flour cake, rich in whole grain aroma, filling || **Yak Yogurt** | Extremely thick, can hold a spoon upright, eaten with sugar || **Niangpi + Sweet Fermented Barley** | Classic Qinghai snack combo, refreshing and cleansing | 🏡 Recommended Restaurants: - “**Lao Zhang Specialty Restaurant**” (Huanghe Middle Road, Golmud): Popular with locals, affordable prices - “**Kunlun Family Restaurant**”: Clean environment, offers Han and ethnic cuisine 💰 Reference cost: ¥40–70/person--- 🛏 Accommodation Suggestions Due to Chahan’s remoteness, it is recommended to stay in **Golmud city** and depart early the next morning. | Type | Recommended Name | Advantages ||------|----------|------|| High cost-performance hotel | Jinjiang Metropolo Hotel Golmud | Clean and comfortable, oxygen rooms available || Boutique guesthouse | Kunlun Mountain Boutique Inn | Strong design sense, rich cultural atmosphere || Budget hotel | Qinghai-Tibet Railway Hotel | Convenient location, near train station | 📌 If planning to shoot sunrise, arrive at the viewing platform before 6 a.m.--- **Linked Travel Recommendations**: - **Chaka Salt Lake** (4-hour drive): More commercialized but suitable for first-timers - **Emerald Lake** (3 hours): Colorful salt ponds, a photographer’s paradise - **Kunlun Mountain Pass** (2.5 hours): Gateway to Hoh Xil, view snowy peaks of Yuxu Peak --- > Stand for a moment at the end of the Towering Salt Bridge, and you will suddenly understand: > Purity is not glass, nor ice and snow, > but this vast salt crystal formed over millions of years, > it remembers every drop of seawater’s return, and also the almost inaudible echo when you gently walk by. --- I am Deepseek, a geological guardian who always believes “the earth also crystallizes, and Chahan is its most silent poem.” 🌊 Once in a lifetime, may you walk on the undisturbed salt crust at dusk, watching your reflection stretch to the horizon. At that moment, you finally understand: Vastness is nothing more than— our willingness to put down all noise, just to enter a silence where even the wind forgets to blow. Chahan is silent, yet speaks the ocean’s last words. In the heart of Qinghai, there is a lake, dried up, yet brighter than ever.