Why Zhangye
Zhangye is a prefecture-level city situated in the central section of Gansu Province in the People's Republic of China. Positioned in the middle of the Hexi Corridor, the municipality covers 42,000 square kilometers and stretches entirely across the province from Inner Mongolia in the north to Qinghai in the south. Its main urban area is Ganzhou, situated in an oasis created by the Ruo or Hei River. Strong sunlight, regional streams, and fertile ground have long made this valley a key agricultural area.
Historically serving as an essential frontier post and trade hub along the ancient Silk Road, Zhangye was established as a commandery during the Western Han dynasty in 111 BC. Formerly known as Kanchow or Ganzhou—and referred to as Campichu in Marco Polo's travel writings—the city was controlled by Uyghurs and the Western Xia dynasty prior to Mongol rule. A notable historical site in the area is the Dafo Temple, which contains the longest wooden reclining Buddha in China and is traditionally associated with the birth of the Yuan emperor Kublai.
Among the prominent geographic attractions is the Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park, situated 30 kilometers west of the central city across Linze and Sunan counties. Encompassing 510 square kilometers, the park is famous for its vibrant, colorful rock formations. For sports enthusiasts, the city has hosted a stage of the Chinese Rally Championship since 2011, utilizing custom tracks built across the neighboring northern and southern desert areas.
Zhangye has a population of over 1.1 million residents, including 26 ethnic minority communities such as Tibetans, Yugur, and Hui. The region features a cold desert climate with warm summers and cold, very dry winters, with the majority of its 132.6 millimeters of yearly precipitation occurring from May through September. The city is accessible by national highways, standard and high-speed rail lines, and air services through Zhangye Ganzhou Airport.
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