Golmud's second stop - Chaka Salt Lake

"Chaka" is Mongolian, meaning "King of Salt Lakes". The salt lake is formed by the sedimentation of ancient seabed minerals. Once Qinghai was a vast ocean, but as the earth's crust changed, the terrain around the sea area kept rising until the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was formed, and the seabed minerals became today's dry salt lake - Chaka Salt Lake. Chaka Salt Lake is the lowest and most central area of the Qaidam Basin, and it is the largest soluble potash-magnesium salt deposit in China, the first in Asia, and the second largest salt lake in the world. The climate of Chaka Salt Lake is hot and dry, with long sunshine hours, and the evaporation is 2 to 3 times the precipitation. The climate has created a magical landscape, where the entire surface of the salt lake looks like freshly tilled fertile soil, with fish-scale-like ripples rolling to the horizon. Due to the concentration of brine, different salt fields have different water colors, and even the same salt field can vary, presenting different colors under the sun in the morning, noon, and evening. The Qinghai-Tibet Highway and Qinghai-Tibet Railway pass through the salt lake, with the roadbed entirely paved with salt, stretching 32 kilometers, known as the 'Salt Bridge of Ten Thousand Zhang' and 'Steel Rainbow'. On the high-speed train from Xining to Golmud, one can first glimpse the vastness of Chaka Salt Lake. The second stop in Golmud is to visit the Salt Lake Museum, followed by a direct bus ride to the central scenic area of the salt lake, with only 40 minutes reserved. If you are a free traveler, be sure to leave plenty of time, at least 3 hours or more, and remember to wear bright and flowing clothes for good-looking photos. Sunglasses and sunscreen are essential. Due to our tight schedule, we took a round-trip electric car for 30 yuan. If you have a tour guide with an itinerary, remember to open the ticket at the entrance of the scenic area to waive the electric car fee. If you are short on time, it is recommended to take a one-way electric car to the deepest part first, then take photos along the way as you walk out. Business hours: April 1st to June 30th 8:30--18:30 July 1st to October 31st 8:00--20:00