Mori Poplar Forest and Mingsha Hill 木垒胡杨林与鸣沙山

About Mori Poplar Forest and Mingsha Hill

The park lies 160 kilometres north of the county town by road. One of its sights is the poplar forest, a stand of more than 30 square kilometres in which the trees and the sand depend on each other; about 30 kilometres from it is the park's other sight, Mingsha Hill — five yellow-brown dunes, the largest about 500 metres across with a vertical height of more than 100 metres, running south-west to north-east.

The sand is fine, and park staff explain that the hill "sings" only when the sand is set moving: the faster it moves, and the more people move it, the louder the sound.

Mori County sits at the meeting point of the ancient northern Silk Road route and the steppe Silk Road, and is known as "the eastern gate of the Tianshan and the guard town of Beiting"; its scenic areas include the Mingsha Hill–Poplar Forest area.

What to look for

• The poplar forest, a stand of more than 30 square kilometres in which the trees and the sand depend on each other
• The five dunes of Mingsha Hill, the largest about 500 metres across and more than 100 metres high
• The singing sand itself, which park staff say sounds when it is set moving

Location & getting there

Getting to Mori Poplar Forest and Mingsha Hill

Confirm the road and activity operator, weather and return transport. Stay on permitted routes and do not treat open land as unrestricted access.

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