Kanas Lake Nature Reserve Travel Guide

Kanas Lake Nature Reserve is one of the most remote protected areas in China, located as it is up in the wilds of Xingjian and lying on the Kazak, Russian, and Mongolian borders. The Kanas Lake Monster (China’s Nessie) lives here.

Kanas Lake Nature Reserve is a striking area of pristine lakes, rivers and forests, and also comes with grasslands, mountains and glaciers. Despite its remoteness, Kanas Lake Nature Reserve is wholly accessible from nearby Altay City by air, as well as from the provincial capital, Urumqi, direct by bus.

The big attraction in Kanas Lake Nature Reserve is the sky-blue finger lake, Kanas Lake. It lies amid incredible scenery of spruce, birch, and elm forests, best seen in the fall. Other attractions worth seeing in Kanas Lake Nature Reserve include Duck Swamp Lake (Yaze Lake), Double Lake, and Friendship Peak Glacier.

Visitors are able to spend the night near Kanas Lake camping, with locals in Hemu Village, or in Kanas Shanzhuang. The latter has the best choice of accommodation.

Getting There & Away

The most convenient option for getting to Kanas Lake Nature Reserve is to fly to Altay City, about 250kms to the southeast. Buses then run to the reserve as well as from the closer Burqin County, 150kms from the park. Most people get on a multi-day tour from the capital Urumqi, which has frequent air links to Beijing (2 hours, 45 minutes).