Atlas of China

Qarhan Salt Lake 察尔汗盐湖Chá'ěrhǎn Yánhú

4A scenic area · Haixi, Qinghai

Qarhan Salt Lake (察尔汗盐湖)
Photo: Topographic Center of the United States Defense Mapping Agency, Public domain
Time needed
2–3 hours
Days to budget
Half a day
City
Haixi
Region
Qinghai
Type
Nature
Listed as
4A scenic area

About Qarhan Salt Lake

Qarhan is a vast salt flat in the southern Qaidam Basin, much of it worked for potash and other salts; the Golmud government gives its area as 5,856 km². The visitor area is built around a central wharf (really an industrial brine-pumping station), the 32 km 'Wanzhang Salt Bridge' where the Golmud–Dunhuang road and the Qinghai–Tibet railway run over the salt crust, and fields of 'thousand-island' salt flowers.

How to get to Qarhan Salt Lake

About 60 km from Golmud by road; the Golmud–Dunhuang road crosses the lake.

On the map

Open Qarhan Salt Lake on the illustrated map to see the terrain around it and what else is close, and to add it to a trip.

Open Qarhan Salt Lake on the map

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