I stayed up all night to organize the 2024 Duku Highway travel guide, the super detailed kind

🌈 Duku Highway, also known as National Highway 217 from Dushanzi to Kuqa, connects southern and northern Xinjiang, traverses the Tianshan Mountains, and is also known as the Tianshan Highway. The entire journey is 561 kilometers long and requires crossing over 4 mountain passes. Here, you can experience all four seasons in one day, and every ten miles offers a different sky. The scenery is primitive and stunning! It has been selected by 'National Geographic' as a 'scenic avenue that traverses the spine of the Tianshan Mountains,' especially the southern section's Big and Small Dragon Pools, which are like two crystal-clear gems, delighting the heart and refreshing the mind! The canyon's landforms are like stepping into a magical and different world, mysterious and shocking! 💥Must-visit attractions ✅Tianshan Mysterious Grand Canyon: A bright pearl on the ancient Silk Road! It combines the beauty of earthly canyons and the uniqueness of Tianshan's scenery, embodying the spirit of eternity, and integrating the divine, the strange, the dangerous, the majestic, the ancient, and the secluded into one, like a magical different world. ✅Naraty Grassland: One of the top ten scenic areas in Xinjiang and also one of the four great grasslands in the world. It encompasses snow-capped mountains, grasslands, valleys, and forests, with a high vegetation coverage rate and rich wildlife resources. Its 'sky grassland' is the most classic. ✅Qiaojia Hero Monument: A red base, the Heroic Tianshan Road was built to commemorate the 168 revolutionary martyrs who sacrificed themselves for the construction of the Duku Highway and is a national revolutionary martyrs' cemetery. ✅Bayinbuluke: China's second-largest grassland, with lush water and grass, was a filming location for the movie 'Pegasus'. Not only does it have the 'Nine Curves and Eighteen Bends' of the Kaidu River, but also the elegant and charming Swan Lake. With luck, you can see swans. When you stand on the mountaintop by Swan Lake at sunset, and the sun shoots thousands of rays of light through the clouds onto the grassland, you can see the winding Kaidu River reflecting the nine suns shot down by Hou Yi, which is very magical. ✅Tangbula Grassland: A natural scenic area that combines forests, grasslands, rapids, and mountainous beauty, and was a filming location for 'Flowers of the Tianshan'. Its Fairy Lake is a popular internet spot, and the ancient Mengketu Trail to the north is also worth a visit. ✅Dushanzi Grand Canyon: Known as the 'Duku secret realm, a billion-year spectacle,' it has been featured in National Geographic as the most beautiful highway in the country and is the number one scenic spot on the Duku Highway. It was also a filming location for the TV series 'Novoland: The Castle in the Sky' and the movie 'Pegasus'. 🔴‼️To fully experience the beauty of Duku, cycling is the best strategy D1 Departure point - Dushanzi Town, warm-up cycling for 5 kilometers D2 Dushanzi Town - Wulansadak (Silk Road Station 639), cycling for 85 kilometers D3 Wulansadak - Hashilegendaban - Hundred Mile Gallery - Qiaojia, cycling for 86 kilometers D4 Qiaojia - Hundred Mile Gallery - Naraty, distance 117 kilometers, cycling for 87 kilometers D5 Naraty - Lartundaban - Bayinbuluke, cycling for 69 kilometers D6 Bayinbuluke - Big and Small Dragon Pools - Kuruli, cycling for 156 kilometers D7 Kuruli - Tianshan Grand Canyon - Kuqa, distance 105 kilometers, cycling for 87 kilometers ⚠️Tips 1️⃣ The Duku Highway is only open for about four months a year (June to September), but it will be closed in extreme weather. The road condition is good, and only vehicles with 7 seats or less are allowed to pass. 2️⃣ Accommodations at the starting and ending points are very good. Midway accommodations are in Naraty and Bayinbuluke. If you don't watch the sunrise at the 'Nine Curves and Eighteen Bends', Naraty is preferred. 3️⃣ There are 4 mountain passes in total, with many sharp turns. Remember not to overtake, overtake in the wrong direction, or coast downhill in neutral. 4️⃣ Some places have no signal. Inform family and friends in advance if there's an issue, and also carry some change and snacks in case of unexpected traffic jams. 5️⃣ During peak season, traffic jams from north to south on Duku are severe. If you only travel on Duku, it is recommended to start from Kuqa in the opposite direction. 6️⃣ Do not stop to take photos at random, pay attention to safety, and there are special parking areas along the way for viewing and taking photos; if you encounter thin ice, water stains, cattle, and sheep, please observe the road surface and drive slowly. 7️⃣ The Duku Highway has 'four seasons in one day,' even in summer, you need to bring cold-weather clothing. 8️⃣ The essence of the Duku Highway is in the southern section, from Bayinbuluke to Kuqa. Travel agencies generally won't go out of their way to visit, but if you have plenty of time and are self-driving/chartered, be sure to complete this section. 9️⃣ The toll station on the Duku Highway is located more than 10 kilometers away from Kuqa City at Yanshui Gully 20, and it charges both ways. 🔟 There are very few gas stations along the way (as shown in the picture), and there will be queues! Be sure to fill up when you encounter a gas station. 1️⃣1️⃣ There are three charging stations along the way: Maoliu Gully Service Area, Lati Tourism Service Area, and Bayinbuluke Pegasus Bayin Self-Driving Camp. 1️⃣2️⃣ Most of the road sections have a speed limit of 40, some cannot exceed 30, and the maximum speed cannot exceed 80. 1️⃣3️⃣ Traffic hours: 7 am to 9 pm