Several years ago there was a frenzy of expeditions to the western part of China, especially to areas like Kekexili in Northwest China's Qinghai Province, the northern plateau of Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, and the Taklamkan desert. Today, however, Wuerhe in the northwest part of the Zhungger basin in Northwest China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region is attracting visitors from home and abroad.

In this area there is not only the famous Genghis Khan Mountain Range with its natural emerald-colored scenery, but more importantly, at the heart of the desert stands a mysterious "castle." Geologists call it the "Wind Devil Castle" while the Kazakhs call it the "Ghost Castle," and the dictionary, "Wind Castle". So what kind of castle is it?

The Beautiful Wuerhe Basin

The name "Xinjiang" has always synonymous with the vast Gobi and boundless desert. Besides, there is also the Wuerhe basin, known as the "emerald" in the western desert with its colorful flowers, green trees, and beautiful scenery.

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Entering the Mysterious Wind Devil Castle

A group of small hills near the oasis are the site of the famous Wind Devil Castle. There are many tales about this place. According to the local people, once there was a magnificent castle surrounded by clear water, green fields, and households. Then one year, a sandstorm suddenly hit the place, lasting for more than dozen days and destroying the castle and the fields, leaving only dunes of all sizes. Even now, people can still hear howling wind at night.

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Treasures

According to tour guides, the stones are not only strange in shape but also contain treasures inside. Hundreds of millions of years ago, there was a big freshwater lake, with mild and wet weather. Fish and dinosaurs lived in this paradise. However, the Ice Age and the diastrophism (the breaking up of land into continents and bodies of water) since then turned the lake into the boundless Gobi desert, which buried the dinosaurs deep under its yellow sand. In 1964, a complete set of dinosaur bones with a total length of more than 6 meters were uncovered and named "Zhungeer pterosaur." Later, other dinosaur fossils like the Kelamayi dinosaur and the Wuerhe dinosaur were uncovered. These fossils of the "ancient castle dwellers" are indeed rare treasures.

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Author: Lin Yunfan and Xie Liang

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