Taklamakan Desert

Taklamakan Desert means the place you can go in but you will never come out in Uigur language. It is often regarded as the desert of death. Covering an area of 337,600 square kilometers, Taklamakan Desert is the biggest desert in China as well as the second largest shifting sand desert in the world, which following with the Sahara Desert in Africa. It is located in the center of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region with a length of 1,000 kilometers and a width of 400 kilometers. It is crossed at its northern and at its southern edge by two branches of the Silk Road. There is no water on the desert, and it is hazardous to cross.

About the Legend

Long long ago, people at that place eager to lead the snow water of Tianshan Mountain and Kunlunshan Mountain to irrigate the arid Tarim Basin. A beneficent fairy was moved by their sincerity and she gave her golden axe to Kazak people for them to split the Altai Mountain and her golden key to Uighur people for them to open the treasure house of Tarim Basin. Unfortunately, the golden key was lost by the fairy’s little daughter. From then on, the central part of Tarim Basin became a desert, that is Taklamakan Desert.

Taklamakan Desert is the most mysterious and the most attractive desert in the world. In 1998, China’s first desert highway was completed and opened to traffic. It runs across the Taklamakan Desert from south to north with a whole length of 552 kilometers. Riding in the desert highway looks like shipping in the ocean. The boundless desert makes you feel tiny. With a variety of shape, rich psammophyte, arid climate, the rare desert, the oasis, and the wild animals and birds in survival, Taklamakan Desert attracts many people to explore.

Continuous sand dunes in Taklamakan Desert are usually over 100 meters high and some are even higher than 300 meters. The strong wind can blow the sand wall to a height of its three times. Being influenced by the wind, the sand dunes are always moving forward. It is estimated that the sand dunes moves about 150 meters every year, which is a big threaten to the existence of the oasis and the survival of the local people.

From autumn to the next spring, the leaves of the populus diversifolia in the desert grow into a sea of golden. Walking in this picturesque place, you will have a rich and colorful experience. It is the best time to travel across the Taklamakan Desert.