Zhangye National Wetland Park

Zhangye National Wetland Park is located about 3 kilometers north of Zhangye city center and is one of the largest urban wetland parks in the northwest region. The park features clear lakes, large reed marshes, lush trees, and lawn gardens, which are quite rare in the northwest area. The area of Zhangye National Wetland Park is vast, stretching approximately 4-5 kilometers in length. There are many entrances to the park connected to the surrounding roads, allowing access from various directions. Wooden walkways are built within the park to connect these entrances with scenic areas. Most visitors come to the park for leisurely walks, strolling along the walkways or riding bicycles at their own pace, enjoying the relaxing environment without the need to traverse the entire park. A visit of 1-2 hours is usually sufficient. Some visitors come for recreational activities, touring the park by sightseeing car or on foot, while others come to photograph birds, reeds, flowers, lakes, etc., and may spend half a day or even longer. The park offers a rich variety of sights to see, with birds migrating in spring, lotus flowers in summer, golden reeds swaying in autumn, and beautiful snowscapes in winter. The landscape of Zhangye National Wetland Park is dominated by reed marshes, with several clear streams crisscrossing the park and a few emerald lakes situated in the center of the river channels. Along the banks of the streams and lakes are lush reed marshes, which are beautifully green in spring and summer and golden in autumn and winter, making them great scenes for photography. In addition to reeds, there are many trees in the park, creating an elegant wetland landscape that is rare and unique in the rugged northwest. Walking along the wooden walkways is very soothing. Every spring and summer, many birds migrate to the park, including swans and wild ducks, which are suitable for bird-watching enthusiasts. The wetland vegetation in Zhangye National Wetland Park is complex and diverse, mainly consisting of temperate desert vegetation. There are four vegetation types, eight vegetation forms, and nineteen communities, including deciduous broad-leaved forest wetland vegetation, deciduous broad-leaved shrub wetland vegetation, halophytic shrub wetland vegetation, sedge wetland vegetation, grass wetland vegetation, miscellaneous grass wetland vegetation, floating and submerged wetland vegetation. The soil types in Zhangye National Wetland Park mainly include meadow soil, fluvo-aquic soil, stream alluvial soil, meadow saline soil, and swamp soil. Most of them are lacustrine deposits, yellow-brown or gray-green silty soil, with sporadic distribution of yellow clay or humus-rich silt layer on the surface. The soil is rich in moisture, which hinders the activity of aerobic microorganisms and is not conducive to the mineralization of organic matter, affecting the direction and process of soil formation, resulting in natural soils dominated by meadow soil and cultivated soils dominated by fluvo-aquic soil. These natural elements create an excellent systemic and holistic environment for biodiversity conservation within the same area, vividly embodying the harmonious coexistence of humans and nature! Inside Zhangye National Wetland Park, there are tourist facilities such as viewing pavilions, bird-watching pavilions, landscape bridges, sanitation, guide signs, and a visitor service center, Ganquan Mansion, ecological fishing garden, red-crowned crane breeding center, avian protection area, wetland waterway, thrilling rafting, pleasure boats, reed pond fishing, ice skating, fun bicycles, leisure carriages, and other projects, making it an excellent place for leisure and entertainment in Zhangye city area.