Laotuyekou is the first stop we passed from Yumin County to Tuoli County. The first thing that catches our eyes is a very spectacular wind power station. The rows of large windmills look very beautiful, but behind this scenery However, local friends told us that this place used to be a deadly place with extremely harsh conditions, and many people in Xinjiang turned pale when they talked about it.
According to relevant information, the "Old Air Outlet" is located in the northwest of the Tacheng area, between the Balluk Mountain and the Uriha Xiayi Mountain, and it is also the channel for cold air to enter the Junggar Basin from the northwest. In the past year, there were as many as 150 days with strong winds of magnitude 8 or above. The high wind speed and the large amount of snow removal are rare in the world, and it is one of the world's famous wind areas.
At the same time, due to the particularity of its geographical location, "Laofengkou" was the only channel for Tacheng, Emin and Yumin to communicate with the outside world before the 1990s. Therefore, although people know that the "Old Tuyere" is full of strong winds, sand and rocks fly there in summer, and mountains are blocked by heavy snow in winter, they have to take risks and go back and forth from here again and again. As a result, many passers-by unfortunately died in the "Old Tuyere", so the locals also called "Old Tuyere" the "Death-killing Kou."
Let’s take a look at the records about Laofengkou in "Tori County Chronicles": On January 31, 1966, a strong storm occurred in Tacheng and Emin counties, and many people were lost in the "Laofengkou" due to the wind and snow. direction, 26 of them died of frostbite and several others were frostbitten. In December 1978, several passengers were trapped in the "old air outlet", and two staff members went to rescue them, but due to the heavy wind and snow, the two were blown away by the wind for more than 10 kilometers, and sacrificed their precious lives...
Faced with such a disconcerting old tuyere, since 1993, the state and the autonomous region have approved the establishment of an ecological project for the old tuyere in Toli County, and began to plant ecological forests such as sandy jujube trees, elm trees, and poplars. With the strong support of the Autonomous Region Planning Commission, finance, forestry, transportation and other relevant departments, the Tacheng Prefectural Committee and the Administrative Office organized the people of all ethnic groups in the Ta'e Basin to fight against the sandstorm, and more than 533,000 volunteers were dispatched throughout the region. After more than 20 years of governance, the ecological construction area of the Laotukou area has reached 126,000 mu, and the ecological governance effect has shown. On both sides of Provincial Highway 221, the only way to pass through Laofengkou, a 28-kilometer-long and 3-kilometer-wide protective forest belt has been formed.
After more than 20 years of ecological construction, Laofengkou has formed a protective forest ecosystem with arbor species as the main body, wind-resistant snow forest as the basic framework, and agriculture, forestry and animal husbandry embedded with each other, and a 28-kilometer green barrier has been built. During the walk, you can only see lush trees. If your friends don’t mention the history of Zuomingkou, who would see such a forested place and would think that this was a frequent geographical disaster area?
Now, the "Old Tuyere" has changed drastically, and the desert has become an oasis. The grassland vegetation has been well restored, from a single xerophytic vegetation to a variety of mesophytic and wet vegetation, and it is extremely rare that hares, foxes, wild boars, pheasants, etc. can occasionally be seen in these forests All kinds of birds and beasts.
Duomingkou has become history, and now the old tuyere has become a famous tourist attraction in Tuoli County. There are large wind farms here, and many people come here to check in and take pictures, and it is also the center of the Eurasian continent. It is the farthest place from the ocean in the world, and it is more than 2,400 kilometers away from the coastline in every direction. In addition, local friends also introduced that there are Fengshen Temple and Pingan Station ruins nearby. According to historical records, during the Qing Dynasty, Xi Lun, the Minister of Counselor in Tacheng, and the local people expressed their respect for the God of Fengshen who was in charge of the windy affairs of the "Laofengkou". In Ping'an Station, Guangxu also personally bestowed a plaque "Fuyou Yanjiang" in order to ask the gods to bless this place.