Ulan County is also spelled as “Ulan Sok Dzong“, in short “Ulan Sok“; OR “Wulan” in Chinese pinyin. It is located in the central part of Qinghai Province on the northeastern edge of the Qaidam Basin and belongs to the Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai Province.
It is adjacent to Gonghe County in the east, Dulan County in the south, Delingha City in the west, and Tianjun County in the north. The county is 217 kilometers long from east to west and 112 kilometers wide from north to south. The total land area of the county is 12,858 square kilometers. There are many historical sites, such as Dulan Temple, Chaerhan Salt Lake, Devil City (Yadan Landform)
Best time to travel From July to September
Local climate Plateau continental climate
Most popular sites
Dulan Temple is located on Mount Tayan, 20 kilometers east of the county seat of Ulan County. It is a relic of the Qing Dynasty and was designated as a county-level cultural relic protection unit in 1988. It is a temple of the Gelug Sect (Yellow Sect) of Tibetan Buddhism. There are 46 monks, 87 houses, and 8 living Buddhas have reincarnated here. There are a large number of cypress trees in front of the existing 90 houses. Particularly eye-catching is the Bajinjin Hotogtu. There is a juniper tree in front of the meditation house. The crown of the tree is very like a heart. The breeze blows like the heart beating. The whole tree is verdant green. It is a holy thing for worshippers.
The Devil City is a group of Yadan landforms in the Nanbaxian and Yiliping areas of the Qaidam Basin in Qinghai Province. It is nearly 100 kilometers long and tens of kilometers wide. It is known as the “Devil City” because of its wind-eroded mounds in various poses. . “Yadan” is a Uyghur language, meaning “weathered mound group”. Tens of millions of years of wind and sand have created the mysterious and fantastic wind-eroded soil forest of the “Devil City”, making it one of the most attractive tourist attractions in the Qaidam Basin.
Chaka Salt Lake is located in Chaka Town. “Chaka” is Tibetan, which means salt pond, and also a sea of salt. The unique geological action of the plateau creates the unique natural scenery of Chaka Salt Lake. The Chaka Salt Lake scenic spot has developed into a new type of scenic spot that combines ecological tourism and industrial tourism, and it is now a national AAA-level tourist attraction.
Khalihatu National Forest Park is located in Khalihatu Mountain, 20 kilometers northeast of Ulan County, with a total area of 5170.5 square kilometers. It is one of the most concentrated and large virgin forests in the Qaidam Basin, with a forest coverage rate of 37.8%, forest and grass coverage rate reached 95%, maintaining a good forest and grassland ecological environment.
Gold Sea Mongolian means Gold Spring (Adong Mula Ancient Lake). The Sea of Gold is neither a sea nor a dead lake. It is a spring. It is located 80km southwest of Xiligou Town, Ulan County and covers an area of about 0.45 square kilometers, it is in a comb shape, with the comb back facing west and the comb teeth facing east.
Xiligou Mosque is located in Xizhuang Village, Xiligou Town, Ulan County. It is the most influential Islamic monastery in Ulan County. The temple was first built in the twenty-sixth year of the Republic of China (1937), but it was plundered several times and it was almost in ruins. In 1980, it was funded and reconstructed by local Islamic believers, covering an area of 1,330 square meters. The main hall is the main building in the temple and the main occasion for believers to gather for praying. The whole building faces to east, with length of 16 meters from north to south and 10 meters wide from east to west. It is a brick-wood structure. The hall can accommodate more than 200 people for praying. A Pagoda is to be built at the main entrance of the mosque with a square doorway inside and a hexagonal appearance. It has 6 floors and about 12 meters high.
Geography and Climate
Ulan County is 374 kilometers east of Xining City, and 139 kilometers west of Delingha City. It is surrounded by mountains, flat in the middle, with branches of Qilian Mountains in the north, 3692-4701 meters above sea level, and Kunlun Mountain in the south, 3132-5031 meters above sea level.
The terrain of Ulan County is high in the northwest and low in the southeast, forming a wavy, narrow and inclined trend, with an average elevation of about 4000 meters. The folds of the northern and southern mountains cut the county into three closed-flow mountain basins: Chaka Basin, Xisai Basin and Bulanggou Basin.
Ulan County is located deep in the hinterland. The climate is controlled by the high-pressure westerly wind and the Mongolia-Siberian anticyclone. The climate is extremely dry, showing the characteristics of a typical dry continental climate. The westerly wind is strong all year round. Only the eastern region can be affected by the southeast monsoon. The climate is slightly humid.
The annual average temperature is 3.5℃, the highest monthly average temperature (July) is 14.4℃, the lowest monthly average temperature (January) is -12.4℃, the extreme highest temperature is 34℃, and the extreme lowest temperature is -27.7℃.
It is the second warm area in Qinghai Province after the Hehuang Valley. The annual and daily temperature ranges are both large, 16.4℃ and 27.2℃ respectively. The county seat is 2960 meters above sea level, the annual average air pressure is above 650mm, and the oxygen content is about 2/3 of sea level. Annual sunshine hours are as long as 2869～3113 hours
Population and Ethnic groups
As of 2010, the total population of Ulan County was 36,555, a decrease of 0.56% from 2009. Among them, the minority population is 15,956, accounting for 43.65% of the total population. Mainly Han nationality, Mongolian nationality second, and 17 nationalities including Tibetan, Hui, Tu and Salar…etc,
Brief History
During the Zhou and Qin dynasties, the Ulan area was the grazing land of Qiang people outside the Great Wall.
At the beginning of the 4th century AD, the Ulan area was the Tuyuhun territory.
From the 3rd year of Emperor Xianzong of Yuan Dynasty (AD 1253), it was under the jurisdiction of Tubo kingdom.
In the 38th year of Emperor Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty (AD 1559), many Mongols moved to Qinghai, and the number of Mongols in Ulan area has increased year by year.
In the 1st year of Emperor Yongzheng in the Qing Dynasty (AD 1723), Chinese Han farmers were recruited to carry out farming in the Ulan area and taught the local herdsmen farming techniques.
In January of the 18th year of the Republic of China (AD 1929), Qinghai was formally established as a province, the Ulan area was under the jurisdiction of Qinghai Province.
In the 23rd year of the Republic of China (AD 1934), farmers from other areas moved to the Ulan area.
In 1959, With the merge of the first district of Dulan County and Chaka District, Ulan County was officially established
