7 Days in Zhangye

The 1098 temple with its 34.5 m reclining Buddha, the Zhenyuan drum tower in the middle of town, and the wetland boardwalks for the evening.

1. zhangye giant buddha temple
2. zhangye zhenyuan tower
3. zhangye wetland park

Afternoon out west — the ¥75 shuttle loops four platforms and the fourth catches sunset; the Danxiakou village beside the gate stages evening performances in season.

1. Zhangye Danxia Landform (Rainbow Mountains)
2. zhangye danxiakou town

The window-and-palace pillars of Binggou lie west of the rainbow hills; continue into Sunan County town, seat of the Yugur Autonomous County, for the night.

1. zhangye binggou danxia

The "Thirty-Three Heavens" grottoes first, then the Kangle pastures around 3,000 m where Yugur herders summer their flocks in the Qilian foothills.

1. zhangye matisi
2. zhangye kangle grassland

Honest note — 56 km northeast, the opposite direction from the danxia; red ramparts and slot gorges for a full walking day, skip it in rain.

1. zhangye pingshanhu canyon

The 121 BC ranch runs to some 100 km southeast of town; Yanzhi Mountain, the Han-era horse country beside it, adds a forested ridge walk above the pastures.

1. zhangye shandan horse ranch
2. zhangye yanzhi mountain

Honest note — Jiayuguan is a separate city in Gansu; the HSR from Zhangye West takes about 40-50 minutes, and the 1372 pass, the Overhanging Wall and the First Beacon close the corridor's story.

1. jiayuguan pass
2. jiayuguan overhanging wall