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Town in Northwest China thrives due to 'Mirror of the Sky'

Updated:April 07,2021 L M S

Chaka town in Northwest China's Qinghai province thrives due to the Chaka Salt Lake, a popular tourist attraction. Chaka means salt pond in the Tibetan language.

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The scenery of Chaka Salt Lake [Photo/cfp.cn]

With its snow-white lake bed and crystal-blue water, the lake has earned the moniker "the Mirror of the Sky." It attracted an average of more than 40,000 tourists daily during the peak tourist season in 2019.

Located at 3,100 meters above sea level in Ulan county, the oval-shaped lake is 15.8 kilometers long and 9.2 km wide, covering a total area of 105 square kilometers. The attraction is roughly a four-hour drive from Xining, the capital of Qinghai province.

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The scenery of Chaka Salt Lake [Photo/cfp.cn]

Chaka Salt Lake, along with Taer (Gumbum) Monastery, Qinghai Lake and Mengda Lake, represent the best-known tourist destinations in Qinghai.

The lake, an eastern gateway to the Qaidam Basin, also boasts one of the largest salt mines in the world.

Covering an area of 1,900 sq km, Chaka is a town with robust agriculture and animal husbandry industries. People from the Han, Tibetan, Hui and Mongolian ethnic groups live simple and natural lives there.

Relying on Chaka Salt Lake, the town has striven to develop its tourism industry in recent years. It has also actively promoted industries such as salt chemical engineering, catering and local culture.