Qinghai Lake and Kanbula National Park

Qinghai Lake and Kanbula National Park

Qinghai Province has only 5.5 million people yet it’s size, at 722, 300 square kilometers, is bigger than Myanmar, France, or Afghanistan as individual nations. There is a lot of room here and a lot of open space for discovery. See two of Qinghai’s greatest natural treasures in one amazing trip: Qinghai Lake and Kanbula National Park!

Qinghai Lake

As the largest saline lake in China, Qinghai Lake, historically known as Koko Nor, is situated in the northeast corner of Qinghai Province. The names “Qinghai” and “Kokonor” both reflect the vast beauty of the lake and both mean “Blue Sea” in Standard Mandarin and Mongolian respectively. Twenty-three rivers and streams empty into Qinghai Lake, most of them seasonal. Five permanent streams provide 80% of the total influx.

Situated in the Northeast of Qinghai Province and with an area of 4,489 sq.km (988 ac.), it is twice as large as the famous Tai Lake. It is a beautiful lake not only for its scenic spots, vast views, and beautiful islands and but also for the lively Tibetan culture surrounding the lake shore. Located in the northeast of 4,500-meter-high (14,764 ft.) Tibetan Plateau, Qinghai Lake can look like a bright reflective mirror calmly seated between the vast grasslands and surrounding snow mountains.

Qinghai Lake is an important place in history which has been the traditional meeting place between Mongolian and Tibetan cultures. Despite its salinity, Qinghai Lake has an abundance of fish but most of these species are illegal to catch and fish. Sadly, the lake is shrinking at a rate of 10 cm a year as there is no permanent outflow and the inflow has decreased with increased water usage. Most of the rivers and lakes that used to feed into the lake are drying up due to a combination of over grazing, farming downstream, water diversion for crop irrigation, and damming.

The lake has a number of attractions that draw travelers in this region in, but many of these spots, including Sand Island and Bird Island, have been closed as of Fall 2017 to help protect the sensitive environment of this fragile region.

Kanbula National Park

The Kanbula area is famous for its unique sandstone Danxia landforms. This scenic area has abundant rainfall and a cool and moist climate and, unlike most barren places in Qinghai Province, there are prolific evergreen forests here; the forest coverage rate is about 28% and its plant resources are extremely rich with some of the best wildflowers in all of Qinghai Province. Some of the tree species represented in Kanbula National Park are the Qinghai spruce, chinese pine, white birch, and various species of azaleas and honeysuckle. Other species include Ulmus glaucescens, Prunus sibirica, Salix oritepha, and Spiraea alpina. Kanbula also hosts a number of rare birds (including larks and cuckoos) and fauna like blue sheep, argali.

Buddhism here has a long history and this park is known for its meditation caves situated high above the park where monks and nuns silently retreat for periods of 2 months to 2 years eating only a simple diet with a singular bowl of rice per day. This is a ritual and discipline that is part of the practice of Tibetan Buddhism and is thought to help the practitioner release themselves from the attachments and distractions of the world. The hermitage caves are a short 45 minute hike up wooden steps just above the Aqiong Namzong Temple and are located on a 20 minute ride down a bumpy dirt road that leads off the main paved park road.

Itinerary
Reviews

Day 1 → Xining to Qinghai Lake

8:30am - Pick up in Xining, China (probably at your hotel or hostel).

9:30am - Drive 2.5 hours (150km) to Qinghai Lake. At 3260 meters in elevation, this is the largest saltwater lake in China. Stop along the drive to view the high grasslands and Tibetan Prayer flags overlooking the lake.

12:30pm- Enjoy the icy shores of the frozen high altitude lake.

2:00pm- Drive from the lake to day hike to get a view of the lake below.

4:30pm - Finish the hike

5:00pm - Early dinner near Qinghai Lake

6:00pm- Driver 2.5 hours back to Xining

8:30pm- Check into hotel in Xining, rest

Day 2 → Kanbula National Park and Homestay

8:30am - Eat breakfast at hotel in Xining

9:00am - Drive 2.5 hours to entrance of Kanbula National Park, a beautiful park filled with red rock canyons and dramatic cliffs

12:00 noon - Depart park entrance to drive through beautiful canyons and rugged mountains. Picnic lunch along the way in the park.

2:00pm - Arrive Namzong Nunnery, day hike on to a Buddhist hermitage for incredible views of the park and the Yellow River

5:30pm - In the afternoon, drive 30 minutes to a quaint homestay in Kanbula National Park

6:00pm - Arrive in Tibetan homestay, local dinner

8:00pm - Sleep in homestay in Kanbula National Park with an amazing view of the Red Rock formations

Day 3 → Kanbula National Park to Xining

9:00am - After a nice local breakfast in the homestay, spend the morning exploring the villages and hikes of Kanbula National Park

1:30pm - After lunch, depart park entrance to drive 3 hours back to Xining

4:30pm - Arrive Xining. Tour officially ends as we drop you off at your hotel or hostel for the night.

Please let us know if you would like us to schedule a local Tibetan dinner or if you would like to see the night markets of Xining. We can also help you arrange lodging in Xining.

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Brief Itinerary

Day 1

Depart Xining in morning (around 8am or 9am)

Drive 2.5 hours to Qinghai Lake, Eat lunch near the lake

Spend the afternoon near the lake, relaxing by the Lake shore

Take a hike above the lake shore or spend the afternoon with Tibetan nomads drinking tea

Sleep in a hotel near Gonghe

Day 2

Drive 3 hours to Kanbula National Park

Lunch along the way to Kanbula

Afternoon to hike and Explore Buddhist hermitage caves Near Aqiong Namzong Nunnery

Sleep in a Tibetan homestay or guesthouse in a local Tibetan farming village with a great view of the park

Day 3

Morning to explore hikes and red rock formations in Kanbula

Lunch in the park

Drive back to Xining

Arrive in Xining by dinner time. Tour officially ends in Xining.

Tour Fare

The price includes:

2 nights of lodging (1 night in a Tibetan homestay, 1 night in a simple guesthouse)
All meals from lunch on Day 1 to lunch on Day 3
Professional English speaking guide
Private vehicle and all transportation for 11 days
Pickup in Xining on Day 1
Airport dropoff in Chengdu on Day 11 morning
All entrance tickets to Qinghai Lake and Kanbula National Park
A visit with Tibetan nomads
All meals, lodging, and tickets for your guide
All bottled water

The price does not include:

Tips for your guide (recommended if service is good)
Travel insurance (we require all travelers to provided their own travel insurance for the duration of the journey. We recommend www.worldnomads.com and this is fairly cheap)
Flights or trains to and from Xining or Chengdu
Specialty or alcoholic drinks
Visa or passport costs

Reviews & Testimonials

Qinghai Lake Day Trip

I absolutely loved the trip to Qinghai Lake. It was supposed to be me, my wife and our 15mth old son but was wife was ill so I ended up going without her. It was my first time going out all day with my son without my wife and I was a little unsure how it would go. It ended up being an amazing day and Ben was amazing, happy to ‘go with the flow’ and spend the day in a way that best suited my son. My little boy absolutely loved playing in the wide-open spaces, playing with the locals and we even went on a fun speed boat. We had a great little picnic on the beach, with a breathtaking view of the lake. Although I can speak some Chinese, it was super relaxing not having to worry about anything as Ben did all the hard work and I simply got to relax and enjoy the day with my son. I cannot recommend Elevated Trips enough!

Sarah Margaret H., Perth - Australia

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