航拍中国之新疆系列英文解说（五）

作者：佚名
朗诵：郎郎乾坤
制作：lotus

A Quiet lake is tucked away in the dense forest. 190 meters below the surface, the depth of Lake Kanas is unknown to Man.

The stories are numerous about monsters being spotted at the lake. Even horses are said to have been dragged under the water.

Tourists flock to Kanas Lake, hoping to see its monster. Most scientists think the lake monster is in fact a Hucho Taimen, living deep underwater. A Hucho Taimen can be 2 meters long. These fierce and secretive creatures only surface occasionally, creating white ripples when they do so.

Burultoqay County at the foot of the Altai Mountains is the largest natural fishery in northern Xinjiang. During the May close seasons pond smelt is the only fish allowed for fishing. These small creatures which only live for a year reproduce at a remarkable rate.

In the evenings while other fish stay in the deep water the pond smelt swim to the shallows to spawn and feed. Experienced fishermen can pinpoint their location while letting down their nets, they’re trying to avoid other species. Eventually, only pond smelt are left in the net.

Summer is the busiest time of the year in Burultogay. The faint steps of Kazakh horsemen can be heard from a distance.

With every season change the herdsmen move to a different pasture. Carrying all their belongings with them, they’re driving their cattle and goats to the summer pasture over 300 kilometres away.

It’s usually the women who lead the way with the food and other household items on the back of camels. Before dark sets in, they set up camp and light the tires.

The men tend the livestock. These are the family’s most valuable possessions. The herdsmen move from pasture to pasture mindful of the grass’s cycle of growth. In four or even more major migrations every year, they cover up to a thousand kilometers. It’s said that Kazakh families move more often than any others.

The best pasture can be found among the high mountains. Every year around June, the summer pasture in Xinjiang will feed 10 million head of livestock. Summer is the season when they stock up nutrition.

Before the arrival of winter, the herdsmen will take their animals downhill back to the warmer river valleys and lowlands. Moving from altitude to altitude the herdsmen are always sensitive to the change of seasons.

The Schrenk’s Spruce grow deep in the Tianshan Mountains with strong roots. Each tree is like a small reservoir holding two and a half tons of water. But this water evaporates very fast, faster than sea water at the same latitude. The vapour rises and comes down in rain. The expanses of Schrenk’s Spruce shape the humid climate and nourish the grassland.