China’s Most Beautiful Highway: The Unique-Kuqa Highway - A Journey to Be Taken Once in a Lifetime
China's most beautiful highways are numerous, today's editor will talk about the Unique-Kuqa Highway.
Unique-Kuqa Highway Overview
The Unique-Kuqa Highway is located in Xinjiang, it is a shortened name from Urumqi to Kuqa, it stretches across the Tian Shan Mountains north and south, with a total length of 561 kilometers, more than half of which is across the majestic Tian Shan Mountains and through deep canyons, but it connects many minority ethnic groups, and was named 'A Scenic Avenue along the Tian Shan Ridge' by 'China National Geography'.
In 1974, the State Council and the Central Military Commission decided to speed up the construction of the Tian Shan Highway, it was built by a joint effort. The construction workers of that year built the Unique-Kuqa Highway in seemingly impossible places, during the long 9-year construction process, 168 officers and soldiers sacrificed their lives, and you can still see their names in the Joelma Martyrs' Cemetery, their oldest was 31 years old, and the youngest was 16 years old.
It was completed and put into operation in September 1983, which shortened the distance between north and south Xinjiang from the original 1000 kilometers to 561 kilometers, it is a monument in the history of China's highway construction. The Unique-Kuqa Highway is divided into four sections, namely the section from Urumqi to Nalati, the section from Nalati to Bayinqao, the section from Bayinqao to Xiaolongchi, and the section from Xiaolongchi to Kuqa.
I fell in love with the Unique-Kuqa Highway on my first trip from Urumqi to Nalati,
The editor only finished running the entire Unique-Kuqa Highway twice, the first time was several years ago driving a MG Roamer from Urumqi to Nalati, the second time was in August 2019 driving a Camry and Ford F-150 from Nalati to Kuqa. The Unique-Kuqa Highway is beautiful in summer, but pay attention to not speeding, there are many mobile speed guns in many places.
The editor still remembers in August 2019, he was speeding by 22% in Bayinqao, he re-examined the traffic rules on his phone until he answered correctly with a score of 95 points (in a 100-point system), and then returned the driving license and ID card, but without deducting points or fines (this only applies to drivers from outside Xinjiang). A group of four people in the car answered nearly 3 hours, just 95 points, finally the police returned the driving license and ID card. This speeding incident made the editor understand many things, the beauty of Bayinqao grassland is not worth driving so fast, it's not safe and you don't have time to appreciate the beauty, it's the happiest thing to wander and enjoy the beauty of grasslands, snow mountains, streams and forests in summer, having picnics and camping with various fruits in Xinjiang on the Unique-Kuqa Highway,
Specifically, the section from Urumqi to Nalati is 220 kilometers long, with attractions such as Snow Corridor, Tiger Mouth and Hasiligen Dasa, and they are all free. Starting from Nalati, the Unique-Kuqa Highway begins with a winding mountain road, the road on one side is a steep and dangerous mountain, from Urumqi to Joelma, it twists and turns, and there is a dangerous section called 'Tiger Mouth', you must look at the road while looking at the falling stones to ensure safe passage,
The beautiful scenery from Nalati to Kuqa
The section from Nalati to Bayinqao is 60 kilometers long, with the beautiful Nalati Three-dimensional Grassland and the abundant wildflowers, especially Lavender is very fragrant and beautiful! There are also Snow Ridge Pine trees, you can see new landscapes starting from Nalati, after passing Joelma, the young green grassland and rivers gradually disappear,
The section from Bayinqao to Xiaolongchi is 120 kilometers long, with the famous Bayinqao Grassland and Xiaolongchi, it descends from the mountains, saying goodbye to the beautiful scenery of Ili, and then arrived at another new landscape on the Unique-Kuqa Highway – Bayinqao Grassland, it is the second largest grassland in China, smaller than the Mongolian Grassland,
The section from Xiaolongchi to Kuqa is 137 kilometers long, with the Kuqa Mysterious Canyon and South Xinjiang Culture and Tourism, the canyon is mainly composed of sedimentary rocks, under the influence of the Tian Shan Mountains' fault and the movement of the Earth's crust, after more than 1000 years of wind and rain erosion, the rock layers have undergone a series of wave-like bending and breaking, now, you can clearly see different folds and fractures on the canyon walls,
Kuqa One-Day Tour
Finally arrived in Kuqa, Kuqa was formerly known as Kucha, it was an important town on the Silk Road. For self-driving enthusiasts who want to drive the Unique-Kuqa Highway, because the Unique-Kuqa Highway has special terrain, many sharp bends and steep slopes, there are 280 kilometers of road sections with altitudes above 2000 meters, affected by the natural factors of Tian Shan Mountains' snowfall and freezing in winter, the Unique-Kuqa Highway is only open for 5 months a year, and it is under traffic control for 7 months from late September to early May, it is only open from May to September, drivers who want to drive the Unique-Kuqa Highway should not rush, rushing will not be able to appreciate the beauty, it's best to wander and enjoy the beauty of grasslands, snow mountains, streams and forests,
The editor has completed two trips on the Unique-Kuqa Highway, the first time was two days from Urumqi to Nalati, and the second time was from Nalati to Kuqa, driving on the car during the trip, he looked at the scenery, when the scenery was most beautiful, he would stop and take photos, it's a waste to drive and admire the scenery, it's the happiest thing to wander and enjoy the beauty of grasslands, snow mountains, streams and forests, during the summer, bring various fruits from Xinjiang on the Unique-Kuqa Highway for picnics and camping,
