No strangers entering! How dangerous are the four major unmanned areas in China? Lop Nur | No Man's Land | Living People
Recently, the incident of multiple people losing contact when a self driving convoy entered the unmanned area of Lop Nur has attracted attention from the entire network. According to the Yangcheng Evening News on July 29th, the missing person who drove into Lop Nur has unfortunately died.
On the 28th, the police reported that on the 22nd, a self driving convoy departed from Dunhuang City and crossed the protected area within Ruoqiang without approval. On the 26th, one vehicle with four people lost contact was discovered on the 27th. Three people had no vital signs, and one person was missing. Industry insiders say that the Luobupo National Wild Camel Nature Reserve in Xinjiang has high temperatures in summer, with the highest surface temperature reaching around 70 degrees Celsius.
▲ Police report.
In recent years, with the popularity of household vehicles, self driving has become a popular way of travel and exploration. The unknown journey in uninhabited areas has attracted many outdoor enthusiasts seeking excitement and challenges. However, due to the varying professional abilities of organizers, accidents and even fatalities occur during the journey.
In the outdoor community, there has always been a saying about the "four major uninhabited areas in China". How dangerous are they? According to statistics, as of now, many people have died or gone missing.
Lop Nur
Peng Jiamu and Yu Chunshun died here
According to public data, Lop Nur is located in the east of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang, China, the easternmost edge of the Taklimakan Desert, the largest desert in China, and the north of Ruoqiang County. It is a world famous drought center with an altitude of about 780 meters.
In the 1960s, before the complete drying up of Lop Nur, China's first atomic bomb and hydrogen bomb were successfully detonated in the Lop Nur area. The reason for choosing this place is because Lop Nur and its surrounding areas are uninhabited areas.
▲ Lop Nur data chart.
After the drying up of Lop Nur, the surrounding ecological environment underwent tremendous changes, with all kinds of plants dying. Soon, Lop Nur merged with the Taklamakan Desert and became extremely dry, becoming a barren land known as the "Sea of Death".
For decades, the disappearance of biologist Peng Jiamu, the death of Chinese hiker Yu Chunshun, and the rendering of a series of works such as "Ghost Blows the Lamp", "The Mystery of Lop Nur", and "Twin Fish Jade Pendant" on Tianya Forum have made the already mysterious Lop Nur even more mysterious.
Senior outdoor expert Luo Yu said in an interview with Orange Persimmon Interactive that the danger of Lop Nur mainly comes from two points: first, sandstorms, which can cause people to lose their direction; The second is quicksand, once the car gets stuck, it will be very troublesome and can only wait for rescue. As for wolf packs and so on, Lop Nur is not as rare as Kekexili. "Tibetan antelopes are a long-term meal ticket for wild wolves. Apart from the Gobi, Lop Nur is also a desert, and animals are rarely seen except for wild camels."
In addition, there were various accidents. Luo Yu said, "On such hot days now, if a vehicle is in danger, it can't stay in the car anymore. We need to find a place to avoid sunlight, otherwise the human body will evaporate a lot of water, and it is easy to die after dehydration." He said, "In recent years, more people have gone on self driving trips to Lop Nur, and there is no reverence for nature. Some things have happened, which may be due to these reasons. Later, Lop Nur was banned from entering."
Qiangtang uninhabited area
The nature reserve with the highest altitude and largest area
In March 2019, Feng Hao, a young man born in the 1990s in Hangzhou, accompanied by his girlfriend Lin Xi and hiking enthusiast Li Zhisen, prepared to hike through the Qiangtang Unmanned Area, a national nature reserve spanning over 1500 kilometers. After entering the unmanned zone for 10 days, Feng Hao left the team alone and lost contact. On the noon of May 5th, teammate Li Zhisen immediately sent a message on Weibo saying "Feng Hao has come out on his own" and reported safety to netizens. At this time, it had been over 50 days since Feng Hao lost contact.
It is understood that Qiangtang, located in Naqu and Ali regions of Xizang, together with Hoh Xil, Arkin and Lop Nur, is one of the most dangerous and difficult hiking routes in China, known as the "life restricted area". There are a large number of wild animals listed as national key protected species here, such as Tibetan antelopes, wild yaks, snow leopards, Tibetan wild donkeys, Tibetan antelopes, black necked cranes, and more than 30 other species.
Laba, director of the Natural Resources Bureau of Anduo County, Naqu City, Xizang, said in an interview with the Voice of China reporter that tourists' lives would be in danger if they walked into the Qiangtang no man's land. The first one is the harsh climate, with an altitude of over 5000 and wind and snow; In addition, wild animals such as wolves, brown bears, and male wild yaks can cause harm to tourists in terms of life or body. The biggest problem is that the protected area is too large, and once there is a shortage of food and water, there is a risk of starvation or cold death. In November 2017, the national nature reserve administrations of Hoh Xil, Qinghai, Altun, Xinjiang, and Qiangtang, Xizang, etc. issued a notice prohibiting illegal crossing activities, making it clear that this is the largest group of nature reserves in China.
However, the harsh natural environment of the Qiangtang uninhabited area did not prevent explorers from bravely going regardless of personal safety.
On October 4, 2014, Li Congming set out from Jieshan Daban, Ritu County, Xizang, and began to ride across the Qiangtang no man's land to the Tuotuo River in the Hoh Xili no man's land. After that day, Li Congming did not post any information online, nor did he contact any relatives or friends.
The Monument to Li Congming's Missing Site. Image source/network
Liu Yinchuan is a "great deity" in the Lhasa tourism circle. On October 23, 2017, Liu Yinchuan walked into the Qiangtang National Nature Reserve and planned to cross this barren land in about 60 days. But three months later, Liu Yinchuan no longer appeared in people's sight.
Yang Liusong, who had successfully crossed the uninhabited area of Qiangtang, once wrote, "In fact, there is no imagined sense of happiness or achievement when walking out of the wilderness, and there is even a mild depression and confusion."
Kekexili uninhabited area
Two young people died here in a year
The Kekexili National Nature Reserve in Qinghai Province is located in the western part of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, with a total area of 4.5 million hectares. It is one of the best preserved natural reserves in the world's primitive ecological environment at the beginning of the 21st century, and also one of the largest natural reserves built in China, with the highest altitude and the richest wildlife resources.
In September 2020, the Public Security Bureau of Golmud City, Qinghai Province issued a notice prohibiting all social organizations or individuals from traveling from Golmud to the Kekexili Nature Reserve in Yushu Prefecture to engage in activities such as tourism, exploration, and illegal crossing. All taxis and private cars carrying passengers from Golmud to Kekexili Nature Reserve must first go to the public security organs for registration.
However, just before that, two young people had left their lives here forever.
On the evening of August 1, 2020, the Golmud City Public Security Bureau issued a notice that the remains of a female college student who had lost contact in Qinghai were found in an uninhabited area. After preliminary investigation, homicide has been ruled out.
According to a previous report by Xining Evening News, on July 24th, Huang Yumeng, a female college student from Sichuan who came to Qinghai for tourism, had been missing her family for a full 17 days. The anxious family members split into two routes to search for her university city of Nanjing and the lost place of Golmud in Qinghai, and posted messages online to find her. Family members explained that on that day, Huang Yumeng rented a taxi in Golmud City to enter Kekexili alone, and it was a one-way trip without returning. One of the feedback messages from the driver was that Huang Yumeng even killed the price with her and said he brought a tent to live in Kekexili.
A friend of Huang Yumeng introduced that her trip to Qinghai may be related to her graduation. She was supposed to graduate that year, but due to many reasons, she didn't even do her thesis defense, which delayed her graduation. She was in a bad mood, so she came out alone to relax.
And in the same month that Huang Yumeng's body was discovered, another young man who had lost contact was also confirmed to have passed away.
On August 25, 2020, according to Xining Evening News, on the afternoon of August 25, the Public Security Bureau of Zhiduo County, Yushu Prefecture, issued a situation report. The newspaper reported on August 24 that the 95 year old Henan young man who had lost contact locally had passed away. Previously, according to a report by Xining Evening News, on August 24th, Duan Dan and Xian Xian from Guangdong sought help. Her friend Li Kaiyang lost contact after entering Kekexili, Qinghai on a single bike for more than a month and a half, and requested Xining Evening News to help find her.
According to two seekers, Li Kaiyang is from Luoyang City, Henan Province, born in 1995. In March of that year, after resigning, Li Kaiyang started cycling around China with a single bike and 40000 yuan. On July 6th, he posted on his social media that he was in the "Wolf Crying Gully" in Kekexili, and claimed to have heard the sound of wolves barking the night before. In his accompanying picture is a photo of the hinterland of Kekexili.
Introduction: After July 6th, Li Kaiyang had no further contact with her until July 11th when she proactively contacted Li Kaiyang but did not receive a response. On July 22nd, she contacted Li Kaiyang again but still did not receive a response.
According to previous reports, the Golmud City Public Security Bureau introduced that the average altitude of the Kekexili Nature Reserve is above 4600 meters, with a dry and cold climate, severe hypoxia and lack of fresh water, and a dangerous natural environment, known as the "forbidden zone of life". Carrying out tourism, exploration, and illegal crossing activities without authorization in the Kekexili Nature Reserve not only seriously damages the fragile plateau ecological environment, but also poses great safety hazards, and can pose a threat to life at any time, such as hypoxia, getting lost, and getting stuck in swamps and cars.
Altun uninhabited area
Terrorist rumors point to the cold, magnetic mines, and swamps
According to National Geographic of China, the Altun uninhabited area is located in the southern part of the Altun Mountains. It is a closed basin surrounded by high mountains, with a cold climate, dry and windy conditions, strong evaporation, and no frost free period throughout the year. The Nalingele Valley, known as the "Death Valley," is located within the Altun uninhabited area.
It is said that local herdsmen would rather starve their cattle and sheep than graze in the valley, because someone once pursued a flock of sheep in the valley and never came out again. When he was discovered, he was completely dressed and had no scars on his body. The cause of death was very mysterious and remains a mystery to this day.
▲ Altyn no man's land. Image source: Xinhua News Agency
In addition to such mysterious deaths, there are also many eerie and terrifying rumors: for example, after heavy rain, the valley is filled with animal remains, including wild donkeys, bison, wild foxes, and birds, with charred ash next to the animals; For example, someone heard the tragic and helpless cries of hunters and gold diggers coming from the valley; For example, some people often see grotesque stone peaks that transform into monsters at night and devour human lives
Research has shown that rocks with strong magnetic properties are distributed in the Narengle Valley, and as the valley reaches its bottom, the magnetism becomes stronger. At this point, the compass, telephone, mobile network, and so on will all disappear; The special terrain of the valley makes it easy to form charged clouds above, which interact with each other and produce lightning phenomena. Moving and towering objects are susceptible to lightning strikes; The permafrost layer in the valley melts, forming swamps. Once humans and animals sink in, they disappear out of thin air. The so-called "dark monster" is because that ancient limestone mountain has undergone thousands of years of wind and rain, dissolved and differentiated, presenting a variety of strange shapes.
