Kanas Lake is a long, deep glacial lake in the Altai Mountains of northern Xinjiang, close to the borders with Kazakhstan, Russia and Mongolia. Surrounded by taiga forest of larch, spruce and birch — rare in China — it drains through the Kanas River to the Irtysh, which flows to the Arctic Ocean. The valley is a national nature reserve and home to villages of the Tuvan people.
- National nature reserve (Kanas)
- National geopark
Key facts
Overview
Kanas lies in Burqin county of Altay prefecture, in the far north of Xinjiang. The lake fills a winding valley for about 24 km below the glaciers of the Altai, and its water changes colour through the year — milky with glacial flour in summer, green and blue in autumn. The forests around it are a southern outpost of the Siberian taiga and look quite unlike anywhere else in China.
The valley and its neighbours, Hemu and Baihaba, are home to Tuvan communities, alongside Kazakh herders. Their log-built villages, horses and pastures are part of what visitors come to see, and tourism has become an important — and at times difficult — part of their livelihood.
How the landscape formed
Kanas is a glacial trough lake: glaciers flowing down from the Altai carved a deep U-shaped valley and left a moraine that dammed it when they retreated. The lake is roughly 24 km long and nearly 190 metres deep at its deepest, with a surface at about 1,370 metres. Upstream, the Kanas River rises in glaciers around Youyi Feng (Friendship Peak), the highest point of the Chinese Altai on the border tripoint. Below the lake the river winds through meanders, gorges and bays — Moon Bay and Crouching Dragon Bay — before joining the Burqin River and the Irtysh.
Highlights
Moon Bay
月亮湾
A crescent-shaped meander of the Kanas River below the lake, its colour changing with the light.
Crouching Dragon Bay
卧龙湾
A bend of the river with a wooded island likened to a sleeping dragon.
Fish-viewing Pavilion
观鱼台
A lookout on a summit above the lake with views over its length and the Altai peaks.
Hemu
禾木
A Tuvan and Kazakh village of log houses in a wide valley south of the lake.
Baihaba
白哈巴
A village near the Kazakhstan border, with log houses among larch and birch.
Plants and wildlife
The Kanas area holds the only southern Siberian taiga in China, with many plants and animals found nowhere else in the country. It is a key habitat for species of the boreal forest and alpine tundra. The lake is famous for its “lake monster”, sightings that scientists generally attribute to large taimen, a salmonid fish that can grow very large.
Plants
Siberian larch
西伯利亚落叶松
Larix sibirica, the dominant tree, turning gold in autumn.
Siberian pine
西伯利亚红松
Pinus sibirica, a stone pine of the upper forest.
Birch
白桦
Silver-barked birches grow in the valleys around the villages.
Wildlife
Taimen
哲罗鲑
Hucho taimen, the largest salmonid, suspected source of the lake monster legend.
Eurasian beaver
河狸
A small population lives along the Ulungur and Irtysh river systems of the Altai region.
Sable
紫貂
A small carnivore of the taiga forest.
Culture and legend
The Tuvans of Kanas, Hemu and Baihaba are a small Turkic-speaking community, related to the people of the Republic of Tuva across the border in Russia. In China they are officially classified as part of the Mongol nationality. They traditionally herd horses, cattle and sheep, hunt and live in log houses; they follow Tibetan Buddhism alongside older shamanic practices, and are known for throat singing and for an end-blown reed flute, the suer. Many Tuvan families now run guesthouses, and their traditions are shown to visitors, but they remain living communities rather than attractions.
Tuvans
图瓦人
Turkic-speaking herders of the Kanas valleys, classified in China within the Mongol nationality.
Khoomei
呼麦
Throat singing, in which a single singer produces two notes at once, practised by Tuvans and Mongols.
Suer
苏尔
An end-blown reed flute of the Tuvans, made from a hollow plant stem.
History
1980
Nature reserve established
Kanas becomes a protected area, later raised to a national nature reserve.
2000s
Tourism grows
Roads, an airport and visitor centres open the area; Tuvan villages adapt to large numbers of visitors.
Through the seasons
Spring
Late and short; snow lies until May, and the valley greens in June.
Summer
Green meadows and wildflowers; the lake is milky with glacial meltwater. Cool nights.
Autumn
The most famous season: from mid-September the larch and birch turn gold for a few weeks, and the lake is at its clearest.
Winter
Long and very cold, with deep snow; the region is known for its snow and for traditional skiing on fur-soled skis in the Altai.
Routes and ways in
Lake and river boardwalk
Boardwalks follow the Kanas River from Crouching Dragon Bay past Moon Bay to the lake, a walk of several hours.
Fish-viewing Pavilion
A long stair climb to the lookout above the lake.
Hemu–Kanas trek
A two-day hiking route over the hills between Hemu and the lake, with pastures and forest; best with a local guide.
Practical notes
- The area is close to international borders; visitors need to carry identification, and border permits may be required for some villages such as Baihaba.
- Autumn colour lasts only a few weeks and draws very large crowds; accommodation fills up.
- Nights are cold even in summer; bring warm layers.
- The nearest airports are Kanas (Burqin) and Altay, with flights from Urumqi, the main gateway to northern Xinjiang.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Altai Mountains — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Kanas Lake — Wikipedia (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region People's Government — Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
More mountains and nature in Xinjiang
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- GrasslandNalati Grassland那拉提草原Mountain pastures of the Kazakh herders in the Ili valley
- LakeSayram Lake赛里木湖The largest alpine lake of the Tianshan, on the road to Ili
- DesertTaklimakan Desert塔克拉玛干沙漠The sand sea of the Tarim Basin, ringed by Silk Road oases
- Lake · 5,445 mTianchi and Bogda Peak天山天池A mountain lake beneath the glaciers of the eastern Tianshan