Overcast Kalajun, the vastness faintly visible

“Kalajun” means “black prairie” in Kazakh. Known as the “King of the Grasslands” for its vast and layered scenery, it perfectly embodies the beauty of Yili. It was also one of my husband's biggest expectations for this trip. Unfortunately, the weather was uncooperative; the two days we planned to visit Kalajun were either cloudy ☁️ or rainy 🌧️. So on the first day, when it was cloudy, we made sure to “get up early” (actually around 10 a.m. haha 🤣) and drove from Tekesi... Even though it wasn’t peak season and the weather was not ideal, the number of people and cars was still considerable. Therefore, we kept moving and only visited the two main destinations for the day: Xianhuatai and Lieyingtai. There is a shuttle bus between the two, or you can choose to hike about 5 kilometers. Since private cars can only drive to the shuttle bus departure point, we took the sightseeing bus to Xianhuatai first. We arrived at Xianhuatai around 1 p.m. and then walked along the boardwalk. Friendly reminder 🔔: if you’re not confident in your hiking ability, it’s recommended to ride a horse for this section. Compared to the horse riding spots at other scenic areas we saw later, Kalajun’s horse teams are more professional. Almost all the horses are ridden by young men from Xinjiang sitting on cushions behind the saddle, while tourists can comfortably sit in front and leave the reins to them. Also, probably because it’s flat here, the grassland terrain feels gentler. Near Xianhuatai, there are two popular swing spots. One is right next to the boardwalk and often has a queue, while the other is less crowded and the horse teams often take visitors directly there. I walked from the first to the second swing, and then I was completely exhausted. After resting for half an hour, with the wind picking up and dark clouds covering the distant peaks almost completely, we had to give up on Lieyingtai. We hurried straight down the mountain. On the second day, due to heavy rain, we slept in naturally. After a hearty meal in Tekesi, we set off leisurely for Kuerdening~ 📍Address: Tekesi County, Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture. Just search “Kalajun Scenic Area” on your navigation. Driving time is about 40 minutes. 🕰Hours: Open 08:00-20:00, last entry at 17:30. 🎫Tickets: 160 RMB per person for a 48-hour self-driving ticket. 🏨Hotel: Orange Hotel in Tekesi City, very new, affordable, convenient location, highly recommended!