Tianshan Grand Canyon is a natural scenic area located within Ürümqi County in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is a national forest park and also a 5A-level scenic spot in China.More than 40 kilometers from Ürümqi urban area, the total area of the scenic spot is 1038.48 square kilometers, the average altitude is more than 2000 meters, and the average annual temperature is 4-6 °C.
Geography Tianshan Grand Canyon is located in the middle of the Tianshan Mountains in the Northern Foothills of the Karavucheng Mountains, between Bogda Peak and Tanger Peak, the northern Junggar Basin, the average elevation of 2000 meters. Administrative divisions, Tianshan Grand Canyon is located in Ürümqi County, across Banfanggou Township, Tori Township and Shuixigou Township, about 48 kilometers from Ürümqi urban area. Tianshan Grand Canyon Scenic Area has a total area of 1038.48 square kilometers. The Grand Canyon is about 50 kilometers north–south, north of Banfanggou Township Forest Pipe Station, and south of Toksun County. It is about 43 kilometers east–west, 103 provincial roads to the east, and 216 national roads to the west.
The Grand Canyon has both high mountains and mountain basins. The land of the great canyon is complicated, that is, there are vertical and horizontal ravines, and there are ups and downs of the mountains. The Tianshan Grand Canyon is composed of three mountain ranges perpendicular to the main vein of Tianshan Mountain. It is composed of high mountains, low mountains and low hills in the south. The highest peak in the Grand Canyon is 5222.4 meters above sea level. It consists of metamorphic rocks such as gneiss, mica, quartzite, white square rock and magmatic rocks such as granite and granite porphyry. The Tianshan Grand Canyon belongs to the continental arid climate of the northern temperate zone. The sun is long, the temperature difference between day and night is large, and the water is rich. The average annual temperature in the Grand Canyon is 4 to 6 degrees Celsius, the average temperature in winter is about -15 degrees Celsius, and the average temperature in summer is about 21 degrees Celsius. The frost-free period is 150 to 160 days.65% of the annual precipitation in the basin occurs in spring and summer, while only 5% in winter. The average annual precipitation in the Grand Canyon is 330 mm to 600 mm. The annual evaporation of water in the Tianshan Grand Canyon is only 500 to 900 mm in the mountains, while the flat principle is as high as 1,300 to 1,500 mm.
The main source of surface water in the Tianshan Grand Canyon is glaciers and permanent snow in the Tianshan Mountains due to atmospheric precipitation. The main rivers in the Tianshan Grand Canyon are the Ürümqi River. The seasonal rivers formed by glaciers and snow flow north and south through the Grand Canyon. Within the Grand Canyon is a Ti-Hung trench, which rises at an altitude of 4,380 meters above sea level and is replenished by precipitation and 26 glacial meltwater. The area has glaciers covering an area of more than 8 square kilometres and water catchment area of more than 300 square kilometres. On the basis of this ditch, the Zhaobishan Reservoir, which has become the main water source in the downstream agricultural and pastoral areas, has been built. The total capacity of Zhaobi Mountain Reservoir exceeds 7.5 million cubic meters, and the design water level is nearly 1900 meters. The groundwater of Tianshan Grand Canyon is divided into mountainous groundwater mainly composed of bedrock fissure water and plain groundwater mainly composed of Quaternary pore water.
Biological resources The fertile land of the Tianshan Grand Canyon makes the vertical distribution of the area obvious. Brown calcium soil, mountain chestnut calcium soil, gray brown forest soil, black calcium soil and meadow soil are distributed from the foot of the mountain to the top of the mountain respectively. The vertical zone from the foothills to the top of the mountain includes shrubland belt, forest shrubland belt, subalpine forest grassland belt, subalpine meadow belt and alpine gravel meadow belt. The Tianshan Grand Canyon has more than 1,100 species of wild plants. The dominant tree species in the core area of the Tianshan Grand Canyon Scenic Area is the Schrenk's spruce. Additionally, coniferous plants in the area include Siberian larch, Xinjiang juniper, Changbai larch, Scots pine, Hami larch, and Chinese pine.
Below the conifers, secondary forests in the montane zone commonly feature willow family plants such as Salix alba, Populus davidiana, Salix viminalis, Salix xerophila, Salix pentandra, and Salix raddeana, as well as elm family plants like Ulmus laevis. In the low mountain belt, rose family plants are prevalent, including Spiraea hypericifolia, Rosa acicularis, Rosa spinosissima, Rosa laxa, Rosa beggeriana, Sorbus tianschanica, Cotoneaster multiflorus, and Crataegus species, along with honeysuckle family plants such as Lonicera hispidla, Lonicera microphylla, and Lonicera caerulea. Other plants growing in the canyon include Weigela middendorffiana, Ribes diacanthum, Caragana stenophylla, Caragana spinosa, and Clematis songarica. Common grasses in the canyon include Geranium pratense, Sanguisorba officinalis, Poa pratensis, Thalictrum minus, Fragaria species, and Rubus saxatilis. Additionally, wild medicinal herbs such as Plantago species, Saussurea involucrata, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, Ligularia sibirica, and Ephedra species grow abundantly in the subalpine and montane zones, as well as the shrub-steppe belt of the Tianshan Grand Canyon. The Tianshan Grand Canyon is home to 5 orders, 15 families, 26 genera, and 81 known species of lichens. The dominant family is Parmeliaceae, with 17 species across 4 genera. The dominant genus is Xanthoparmelia, with 12 species, followed by Rhizoplaca with 10 species and Hypogymnia with 8 species.
The Tianshan Grand Canyon is also a haven for many wild animals, including 32 species of mammals, 144 species of birds, and 181 species of vertebrates. Among them, six species are listed as national first-class protected animals, including the snow leopard, Siberian ibex, and golden eagle. Additionally, 24 species are listed as national second-class protected animals, such as the red deer, argali, steppe eagle, and griffon vulture.
Introduction
Tianshan Grand Canyon is a scenic area group primarily centered around Zhaobi Mountain Scenic Area. Within the scenic area are two lakes, three waterfalls, four streams, and eighteen valleys, with each attraction complementing the others. Zhaobi Mountain Scenic Area features eight main attractions: Zhaobi Mountain, Bilong Bay, Tianshan Dam, Tianshui Lake, Tianmen (Heaven's Gate), Qiaoya Grassland, Gasda Slope, and Twelve Linked Lakes. Reception facilities in the area include a visitor center, Tianshan Grand Canyon Hotel, Zhaobi Mountain Villa, reception hall, and several yurts.
Main attractions Zhaobi Mountain is a pyramid-shaped mountain with a northeast and southwest orientation and a height of about 400 meters surrounded by water on three sides. The south side of Zhaobi Mountain is a valley more than 10 kilometers long, with cliffs on both sides, and only a line of blue sky can be seen from the valley. Both sides of the valley are thickly wooded, and wild animals often haunt it. Because its steep mountains are affected by sunlight and reflected light from the river, they often appear golden and blue, similar to the walls of the ancient royal residence. There is also a myth and legend about the formation of the scenic Zhaoqi Mountain. On the way to the city, he met seven serpents. The serpent wanted to fight, and Wukong pulled out a piece of sweat and turned into a fairy fruit thrown here. When the serpent and the serpent set themselves apart, the serpent turned to the mountain. To the east of the wall is Gasdasaka. In the center of Gasdasaka is a crescent-shaped lake with an area of about 1 hectare.
Swan Lake is a lake located in a mountain meadow 2449 meters above sea level. Every summer and autumn, swans float in the lake. In 2018, four black swans were introduced from the city of Kuhler, where they often live. Legend has it that a Kazakh girl suffered for three days and three nights because her lover died in battle, and tears finally gathered to form Swan Lake. Swan Lake east is an area of nearly 30,000 acres of Qiaoya meadow, Qiaoya meadow more than 2,500 meters above sea level, is a subalpine meadow viewing area. Legend has it that the site once belonged to an elder named Joa, so this pasture is called Joa Grassland. The owners of this pasture are now Kazakh herders. In summer, the grass of Rheinland is covered with white felt houses and herds of cattle and sheep. In winter, it becomes the heaviest winter snow canyon in the Namsan area, and Joa Grassland becomes a better place for winter snow and ice tourism. The Sky Gate overlooks the entire Swan Lake and Joya meadow. Tianmen attractions at an altitude of more than 2700 meters, as the highest altitude in the scenic spot, here is also the most extensive scenic spot. From here, one can see the continuous snow mountain glaciers, and can also see the unique scenery of the Tianshan Cloud Sea in the Grand Canyon Scenic Area.
Tianshan Dam and Bi Long Bay are both scenic spots formed by Zhaobi Mountain Reservoir. The main structures of Zhaobi Mountain Reservoir are composed of a dam, a diversionary discharge sand cave and an extraordinary spillway. The dam type is asphalt concrete core wall rockfill dam, with a total storage capacity of 7.532 million cubic meters, Xingli Kuang is 5.5775 million cubic meters, the top elevation of the dam is 1902 meters, the maximum height of 71 meters. Construction of the Zhaobi Mountain Reservoir began in October 2003 and passed the water storage phase inspection in June 2007. The construction of Zhaobi Mountain Reservoir provides support for the population and livestock water in Banfanggou Township downstream. The seasonal water shortage in Banfanggou irrigation area is solved by reservoir regulation. In addition, the construction of the reservoir also solves the problem of flood control and soil erosion downstream. Tianshan Dam is the dam of the Zhaobishan Reservoir, which commemorates the designer's contribution to the construction of the dam for three years, so it is named Tianshan Dam. Bi Long Bay is named Bi Long Bay because when the reservoir is full, it resembles a Bi Long Bay. The top of the Tianshan Dam is the best place to see the scenery of Bi Long Bay and Zhaobi Mountain.
In 2015, the water conservancy project construction management station of Ürümqi County Hydro-forestry Administration began to renovate the river from the Wishan Reservoir to the south brigade base. The river itself is a drainage channel, and on the basis of ensuring its drainage effect, the landscapes on both sides of the river are beautified. The renovated drainage channel and 12 connected artificial landscape lakes together form the attraction of Twelve Lian Lake. Twelve Lian Lake runs through the entire Tianshan Grand Canyon Scenic Area, not only as an attraction. Seepage-resistant drainage channels and landscape lakes also mitigate potential hazards from river flooding.
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