Along the Silk Road from Korla to Kashgar, October 2017
Silk Road culture, picturesque views, juicy fruits and tasty local food were the highlights of this trip along the Silk Road—see 35 photos

On this seven-day trip we travelled by jeep from Korla to Kashgar, following the old Silk Road and stopping along the way to visit Silk Road sights and scenic landscapes.
Starting at Korla, we travelled through Kuqa, Subashi, Baicheng, and Aksu, finishing the trip at Kashgar.
Along the way we saw the historical side of the area as well as the landscapes, visiting old Silk Road towns and their bazaars, mosques, and temples, and hiking into seldom-visited canyons and valleys.
Photos below!

A hike in the hills by Tiemen Gate, near Korla. The gate controlled a pass in the mountains here.

Part of the trip involved long drives from town to town. Here we stopped for a fancy lunch in the shade of an overpass.

We broke up the drives by stopping for walks to explore the country.

Hiking up into a canyon.

There were a lot of different colours in the hills here.

The minerals in the rock make for a lot of different colours.

We hiked through the hills here, and it seemed like we were the first ever visitors.

So many good angles for a photo.

Great weather, wasn’t it?

Camping in the Baicheng Landform.

Cheers!

We took a little walk in the hills near the campsite before it started getting dark.

In front of the rock pillars.

The landscape around here was really weird!

Climbing up.

We followed this little gully back to the campsite.

Dinner at the campsite. During the night we heard an animal prowling around our tents – thought it might have been a fox!

Warming up with a coffee at the campsite the next day.

Simple but tasty breakfast.

Picnic lunch. Our drivers bought us some special chilli sauce, which we discovered goes really well with naan bread.

The Kizil Caves, an ancient Buddhist site.

Hiking in a rocky area.

Heading for up into a canyon.

Felt like we were on Mars.

In the canyon.

Hiking out of the canyon.

This is the remains of a Han Dynasty-era (206 BC–221 AD) beacon tower, part of the old Great Wall in this area.

Team photo with the jeeps.

Making a stop to pick up some fresh naan bread.

Between Korla and Subashi we stopped for a walk in these dry hills.

We hiked up to a high point.

On the way back down.

The Tomb of Xiangfei, near Kashgar.

A local guide gave us all the details about the history of the tomb and the nearby mosque.

Walking through a park towards the mosque.

Outside the prayer hall of the mosque.

We took a night time stroll in the streets of Kashgar’s Old Town.