Narat
1. Introduction
The Narat Tourist Scenic Area, also known as the Narat Scenic Area, is located in Xinyuan County, Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Situated in the heart of the Tianshan Mountains at the eastern end of the Ili River Valley, the scenic area was established in 1999 and covers a total planned area of 1,848 square kilometers. From south to north, the scenic area comprises the Alpine Grassland Sightseeing Zone, the Kazakh Folk Customs Zone, and the Tourist Living Zone. Major attractions include Tianjie Terrace, Nomadic Family, Tawusani (meaning "beautiful mountain valley" in Kazakh), Tianxian Terrace, Wolta Jiaota Viewing Platform, Snow Lotus Valley, and more. The area is home to the hospitable, song-and-dance-loving Kazakh people, known as the "children of the Tianshan," who still preserve their ancient, rich folk customs and profound grassland culture. The scenic area integrates grasslands, valleys, and forests, boasting high vegetation coverage and abundant wildlife resources. Due to its unique natural ecological and cultural landscapes, it is hailed as the "Green Island of Tianshan," "Green Homeland," and "Colorful Grassland."
2. Geographical Environment
2.1 Location and Territory
The Narat Tourist Scenic Area is situated in the heart of the Tianshan Mountains at the eastern end of the Ili River Valley, between 85°17′–85°28′ east longitude and 43°01′–43°15′ north latitude. The total planned area is 1,848 square kilometers.
2.2 Climate
The Narat Tourist Scenic Area has a temperate continental climate, with an average altitude of 1,800 meters, annual rainfall of approximately 880 mm, and average summer temperatures around 20°C.
2.3 Plant Resources
Narat Grassland is one of the world's four major grasslands, belonging to the subalpine meadow plant region. It features rich vegetation, including lush mountain meadows dominated by the slender-stemmed iris community. Other associated species mainly include rough sage, false gentian, sedge, wheatgrass, fescue, strawberry, thyme, and horsetail (Equisetum), which belongs to the Equisetaceae family of the Sphenopsida subclass.
2.4 Animal Resources
The Narat Tourist Scenic Area is rich in animal species, including snowcock, ring-necked pheasant (wild pheasant), otter, roe deer, lynx, fox, steppe polecat, egret, kestrel, ibex, snow leopard, wolf, golden eagle, rough-legged buzzard, and more.
3. Main Attractions
3.1 Valley Grassland
3.1.1 Grassland Tribe
"Where to find the ancient Wusun Kingdom? Herders point to the distant Ili River." The Grassland Tribe, established in June 2006, recreates the Wusun tribe from over 2,000 years ago. It is the world's first comprehensive attraction reflecting Kazakh history, culture, and folk customs. The Wusun Golden Dome Yurt within the tribe is known as the "First Yurt in Northwest China." Here, visitors can witness the grand scene of a Wusun king marrying a Han princess and experience traditional Kazakh cultural scenes such as wedding ceremonies and folk production and daily life.
3.1.2 Tawusani
Meaning "beautiful mountain valley" in Kazakh, Tawusani is the first stop into the Valley Grassland. It features one mountain with four distinct landscapes: snow-capped peaks, dense forests, rolling hills, and flat meadows, serving as a window to the vertical natural landscape zones of the grassland. The eastern slope resembles the ear of the Tianshan mother, listening to the sounds of the earth and silently guarding the Tianshan, earning it the name "Ear of Tianshan." The southwestern slope resembles a galloping horse with its head held high, symbolizing "immediate success and rapid advancement," and is named "Flying Horse Plain."
3.1.3 Wusun Ancient Relics
The Wusun were an ancient nomadic tribe in Chinese history, rising to prominence in northwest China between the 2nd and 1st centuries BCE. During the Western Han Dynasty, Zhang Qian was sent twice as an envoy to the Western Regions. To form a political alliance against the Xiongnu, the Han court arranged marriages with the Wusun tribe, sending two princesses to marry Wusun leaders, thereby strengthening ties between the Han Dynasty and the Western Regions. The Wusun are a primary source of the modern Kazakh ethnic group in China and form the main tribal component of the Kazakh people. According to incomplete statistics, there are over 200 Wusun ancient tombs scattered across the Narat Grassland. Based on the tomb's scale, it is speculated that this tomb might be the mausoleum of the Wusun King Liejiaomi. This royal tomb is massive, with a diameter of 46 meters and a height of 6.5 meters.
3.1.4 Yitigensai
Located at the crossroads of the Valley Grassland route, Glacier Landscape Road, and Panlong Valley Road, Yitigensai consists of the Ancient Wusun Tribe, Lianxin Lake, Kazakh Folk Culture Exhibition Area, and the Cattle Pen Bar & Restaurant. It is a centralized display area for Kazakh folk culture, where visitors can personally experience and participate in the diverse production and daily life of the Kazakh people, enjoying the simplicity and humility of grassland folk customs. Exiting the Yitigensai Folk Experience Area and heading west across the Lianxin Lake, where sky light and cloud shadows linger, leads to the "Wusun Tribe" nestled among vegetation. This area reflects the original living scenes of the Kazakh people, following the encounter of mountains, forests, grasslands, and riverbanks.
3.1.5 Daigelasi
Meaning "grassland reception hall" in Kazakh, Daigelasi was historically a place where grassland ethnic groups discussed important matters. It now serves as the comprehensive service area for the Valley Grassland route. It offers tourists entertainment experiences such as horseback riding, archery, ethnic costume photos, ancient road carriage rides, grassland motorcycles, as well as dining and accommodation services.
3.1.6 International Horse Racing Field
The Narat International Horse Racing Field features a standardized international track and natural grandstands, covering approximately 1,050 acres. The track is 1,450 meters long, situated on flat terrain with knee-high sturdy grass. It houses various high-quality horse breeds and serves as a centralized display area for horse culture. It has successfully hosted the National Speed Horse Racing Competition—Narat Station Open Race multiple times. It is also a gathering place for herders on the grassland, where traditional equestrian sports are held during major festivals: equestrian performances and folk performances on horseback (horse racing, goat snatching, girl chasing). A Kazakh proverb says, "Songs and fine horses are the two wings of the grassland people." Regardless of gender or age, people start learning to ride horses from the age of five and become skilled riders by around ten.
3.1.7 Na·Shuyuan (Narat Academy)
As a showcase for Narat Scenic Area's own high-end cultural image, Narat Academy serves as a cultural name card for Ili region and even the entire Xinjiang, targeting political, business, and artistic circles nationwide and globally. It is a high-end cultural academy integrating sightseeing, leisure, elegant gatherings, communication, solitude, and socializing—a cultural Eden for writers, painters, musicians... offering personal solitude, group gatherings, and delightful immersion.
3.1.8 Forest Park
Narat National Forest Park is located at the easternmost stop of the Valley route. It is a multifunctional tourist resort integrating sightseeing, vacationing, entertainment, recuperation, fitness, adventure, and scientific research. The forest coverage area is 100,000 mu (approx. 66.67 sq km), with an altitude ranging from 1,600 to 2,800 meters. The average annual temperature is below 20°C, and annual precipitation is 800–1,200 mm. With fresh air and high oxygen content, it is known as a "natural oxygen bar." The vertically stratified plant landscape forms a beautiful natural botanical garden, hailed as a living fossil exhibition hall for plants and a gene bank for wild Chinese medicinal herbs and vegetables. The park's tree species are mainly the nationally protected Tianshan spruce. It is a high-end leisure and wellness area focusing on ecological health preservation, leisure vacations, and forest wellness.
3.1.9 Tianying Terrace (Sky Eagle Terrace)
Tianying Terrace is one of the scenic area's hiking trails and the highest point of the Forest Park, at an altitude of 1,800 meters. Wandering through the primeval forest to breathe the best air, climbing the 2,779-step "cloud ladder" leads to the "Eagle Whirlwind." Viewing the grassland from an eagle's perspective evokes the feeling of "ascending the summit, dwarfing all surrounding mountains." Additionally, due to the convergence of cold and warm air currents here, a natural updraft forms. Every May, June, and July, eagles soar and circle the valley in search of food, lingering for long periods, making it the domain of eagles, hence the name "Sky Eagle Terrace."
3.2 Sky Grassland
3.2.1 Tianyun Terrace (Sky Cloud Terrace)
The clouds in the sky resemble flocks of white sheep surrounding the连绵的山峰, or galloping steeds驰骋在山谷间. When clouds and mist meet and intertwine, one feels置身于云海之中, hence the name Tianyun Terrace. Accompanying Tianyun Terrace is a large浮雕 of a grassland girl, showcasing the diligence and kindness of Kazakh women, as if saying, "Is it not a joy to have friends come from afar?"
3.2.2 Tianjie Terrace (Sky Boundary Terrace)
Tianjie Terrace is the watershed between the Valley Grassland and the Sky Grassland. Its name寓意 "the entrance to paradise, the boundary between heaven and earth," as it is the passage from the grassland to the sky. The凸起的山坡 on its east and west sides are referred to as a "saddle" in geography.
3.2.3 Tianmu Terrace (Sky Pasture Terrace)
In spring, as冰雪初融 and百草权舆, the frozen wild lilies bloom悄然 under the nourishment of雪水,奏响了开场曲 for the slumbering Sky Grassland. Tulips, wild poppies, and dandelions bloom漫山遍野,拉开序幕 for nomadic life.
3.2.4 Nomadic Family
Nomadic Family is located at the terminal station of the Sky Grassland and serves as the comprehensive service area for the Sky Grassland route. It offers tourists entertainment experiences such as horseback riding, goat cart rides, ethnic costume photos, and合影 with grassland camels. The sculpture矗立在广场中央 is a缩影 of herders' daily life, reflecting the traditional virtues and showcasing the智慧精髓 of the Kazakh people.
3.2.5 Tiancheng Terrace (Heavenly Success Terrace)
寓意 "Heaven's will brings顺成." Ascending the viewing platform allows one to遥望雪山飞鹰.#### 3.2.6 Celestial Terrace The Celestial Terrace is a secluded valley where one can look up to a sky as clear as if washed, with drifting white clouds and towering snow-capped mountains. Also known as "Snow Lotus Valley," its elevation of 3,000 meters makes it feel like dwelling among deities, purifying the soul in its sacred purity. It earns its name from an aerial view resembling a blooming snow lotus, with the surrounding rugged peaks like petals and the valley's exotic flowers like the pistils. The snow provides an ideal environment for the snow lotus, which blooms proudly and solitarily in July and August each year, whispering to the high mountains.
3.3 Dragon Coiling Valley Trail
3.3.1 Dragon Emerges from the Sea
Famed for its dark forest, the snow-fir forest gorge nestled between overlapping mountain ranges presents the most awe-inspiring scene along the trail. Towering, robust spruce trees stand like pillars stabilizing the sea or swords leaning against the sky, uniformly piercing through the winds, waves, and clouds. Drawing spiritual essence from the mountains and rivers and the essence of the sun and moon, they transform into countless roaming dragons that bring clouds and rain, embracing, guarding, nourishing, and beautifying the elegant streams and spiritual peaks of Dragon Coiling Valley.
3.3.2 Recumbent Ox Ridge
The ridge commands a high vantage point with an open view. From afar, it resembles an ox lying on the mountain grazing. Here, one can gaze upon the distant rolling mountains and the surrounding vast forests, as well as overlook the valley below, catching glimpses of the faintly visible Kazakh winter dwellings and the leisurely grazing cattle and sheep on the sloping pastures. The valley beneath Recumbent Ox Ridge is the most classic among the countless valleys in the Dragon Coiling scenic area.
3.4 Wolta Jiaota
3.4.1 Green Ingot
Named for its lush vegetation and mountain shape resembling an ingot embraced by forests, this area offers broad views and pleasant scenery, also known as "the land of hidden treasure, the place to seek treasure." Legend has it that during Genghis Khan's western expedition, his second son Chagatai, to lighten the load and pursue the enemy, ordered all the army's treasures to be buried here. When the troops returned after defeating the enemy, a dense fog enveloped the area, making it impossible to find the treasure. This place is filled with mystery and allure.
3.4.2 Wolta Jiaota
A romantic place full of poetic charm, it is the starting point of the Windmill Terrace love-themed route. Flowers and green grass cover the mountain fields, with clouds and mist swirling around the peaks... Such breathtaking scenes offer a different kind of poetry and distant horizon. It is also revered as the love sanctuary "I love her, I seek her" and the premier location for wedding photography. Integrating sloping valleys, winding mountain forests, and mountaintop views, it features multiple landscapes on a single mountain, each scene ever-changing. Visitors praise it as "experiencing four seasons on one mountain, with weather changing every ten li."
3.4.3 Celestial Immortal Terrace
Also known as "Yutasi," which translates from Kazakh as "stone house," the Celestial Immortal Terrace is primarily formed by massive rock clusters at the summit, creating landscapes such as the "Guardian Deity of the Western Regions," "Celestial Immortal Throne," and walking trails. It embodies the auspicious concept of "harmony between heaven and humanity, where merging with the mountain makes one an immortal." At an elevation of 2,800 meters, it stands at the head of the river valley. Its unique geographical conditions make it the preferred site for outdoor camping and the best vantage point for viewing the sea of clouds and sunrise. Under the vast sky and above the sea of clouds, one feels as if transported to a fairyland.
3.4.4 Windmill Terrace
A hiking route themed around love, it is the Champs-Élysées of the grassland. Accompanied by mountains full of flowers, walking up the Engagement Slope allows beautiful love to become as complete and fulfilling as the nine-leaf windmill atop the mountain, promising a lifetime together. As time passes, walking through the lush reeds, the most beautiful sentiments are hidden in the years, and the truest affections are imprinted in the heart. Let us encounter all love-related connections and experience the romantic journey from fate to fruition.
4. History and Culture
4.1 Origin of the Name
Legend has it that during Genghis Khan's western expedition, a Mongol army passed through Toksun and the Bayanbulak Grassland to assemble in the Ili River Valley. Struggling through the southern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains in midsummer, they encountered snowstorms and chilling cold. The Mongol soldiers, suffering from hunger and cold, were utterly exhausted. Unexpectedly, after crossing a mountain pass (called "daban" in Mongolian), the clouds parted, the sun shone brightly, and before them lay a vast plain with blooming flowers and murmuring streams, as if they had entered another world. The soldiers felt refreshed and exhilarated, and they couldn't help but shout in unison: "Narat, Narat..." In Mongolian, this translates to "the place where the sun is first seen," later phonetically translated as "Nalati," giving birth to this evocative geographical name.
4.2 Cultural Activities
4.2.1 Apricot Blossom Festival
Held annually from late March to mid-April when apricot blossoms are in full bloom, the Apricot Blossom Festival features various themed activities such as live concerts, apricot blossom flash camp experiences, "Traditional Attire in Spring" performances, and special product exhibitions. Leveraging the unique natural landscape of Nalati Apricot Blossom Valley, the festival combines open scenic viewing with experiential tourism, blending natural beauty with folk culture. It promotes high-quality apricot blossom-themed tour packages, showcasing the county's rich tourism resources and vibrant folk culture.
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