Heavenly Lake, Xinjiang

The Heavenly Lake (Tianchi Lake) is situated to the east of the Tianshan Mountain range, north of Bogda Peak, 97 km south of Urumuqi. Known as Yaochi in ancient times, the lake surface elevates 1,910 meters above sea level, with an average depth of 60 meters. Surrounding the Heavenly Lake are snow mountains, glacier forests and grassland alpine lakes, featuring a vertical natural landscape belt. The snow line of Mt. Bogda is 3,860 meters above sea level, making it rich in glacier resource. Numerous super-glacial rivers formed by the melting snow and ice, ice bridges, ice mushrooms and ice fountains can be seen on the glaciers. There are many super-glacial lakes and moraine lakes scattered in front of the glaciers. The vast expanse of mountain land and forests at the foot of Mount Bogada are also rich in plant and animal resources.