Atlas
Bayinbuluke
Alpine wetlands deep in the Tianshan, formed by the nine bends and eighteen meanders of the Kaidu River — the swans' homeland and the nomadic high-altitude liquid pasture.
Prefecture: Bortala
Province: XinjiangShepherds guide a flock across Bayinbuluke’s green wetlands, where swans dot the many bends of the Kaidu River beneath the Tianshan at sunset.
Natural Wonder3
- Bayinbuluke Swan Lake National Reserve
Ringed by snowy peaks, the plateau marshes of Bayinbuluke form China's largest breeding ground for wild whooper swans.
- Baxilike Alpine Grassland & Torghut Village
Heartland of Torghut Mongol nomadic culture, the Baxilike grassland is a rich pasture where black-headed sheep graze and Yanqi horses run.
- Gongnaisi Pass Tianshan Forest Park
Deep in the Tianshan, Gongnaisi shelters a spruce-filled alpine gorge with babbling streams, a scenic highlight where the Duku Highway crosses the pass.
Temple1
- Kaidu River Nine Bends Sunset Platform
Said to have inspired the Tongtian River of Journey to the West, the winding Kaidu reportedly mirrors up to nine setting suns at once.
In its history1
- Ubashi Khan1744–1774 CE
Part of Bayinbuluke's history: Torghut Migration. Torghut Mongol Khan who led 170,000 of his people on their epic 1771 eastward return journey from the Volga River to China.
Qing3
- Torghut Migration
In 1771 Ubashi led a Kalmyk-Torghut migration from the Volga toward the Qing frontier; the deadly movement was later incorporated into competing national narratives.
- Torghut Migration to the Qing Northwest1771 CE
In 1771 Ubashi led the Kalmyk-Torghut migration from the Volga region into the Qing northwest; this record avoids presenting one later national narrative as the event's sole meaning.
- Torghuts Settle at Bayinbuluk1771 CE
After the Torghut return in 1771, the Qing court divided and resettled the communities, including a group in today's Hejing and Bayinbuluk region.
Modern1
- Bayinbuluke Joins Tianshan World Heritage2013 CE
In 2013, Bayinbuluke was inscribed as one of the four components of the Xinjiang Tianshan natural World Heritage property.