Turpan Karez Wells

A karez is a gently sloping tunnel dug from an aquifer at the foot of the mountains out to the fields, with vertical shafts sunk at intervals for digging and maintenance, so water flows by gravity underground and reaches the oasis without evaporating in a basin where summer temperatures pass forty degrees. The technique, shared with the qanats of Iran and Central Asia, made agriculture possible in Turpan, and the network here has run to thousands of kilometres of tunnel in total, dug and cleaned by hand. Many channels have dried as groundwater has been pumped for modern irrigation. A museum lets visitors walk a restored section.

What you actually see

• The underground channel - a restored tunnel walked at the museum.
• The vertical shafts - lines of well mouths crossing the desert surface.
• The oasis fields - vineyards and orchards the system waters.
• The construction exhibits - tools and methods used to dig by hand.

When to go

April to May and September to October; Turpan summers are extreme though the tunnels stay cool. The grape harvest in late summer shows what the system supports.

Honest expectations

The museum section is short and partly staged for visitors. Many karez are dry or abandoned. Interpretation is largely Chinese with limited English.

Nearby

Grape Valley lies northeast; Jiaohe is west.