Gar County
Gar County Overview
Chinese Name: 噶尔县 English IPA: Ga Er Xian Location: Located in the west of Tibet, Ngari Prefecture Population (city): 42,000 Language: Tibetan Language Zip code: Tel code: Time zone:
Gar, one of the frontier counties, lies in the west of Tibet. The town sits at an elevation of 4,255 meters with a population of 12,000, and covers an area of 17,197 square kilometers. The town Gar got its Chinese name by the Shiquan River which runs by the town and it is the upper reaches of the Indus River. Its English name “Gar” means “tents and barracks”, because it used to be a military station in the past.
Highlights of Gar County
Cultural Spots
● Shiquanhe Town: The town gained this name as it sits by the Shiquan River which is the upper reaches of the Indus River. The river banks of Shiquan used to be barren. When the Xinjiang¬Tibet Highway opened for transportation in 1964, military camps and simple public facilities were built. In 1966, the Administration Office of the Ngari Prefecture moved here and started creating a town out of barren field. In 1988, the Gar County government also moved here. “Gar” means “tents.” It is so-named because the place used to be a military station. The town sitting at an elevation of 4,255 meters accommodates a population of 12,000.
●Gurujia Monastery: Located in Gar County，Gurujia Monastery（古如甲寺） was founded by the master Jochon – jean – jang-jay（琼钦-·晋美朗嘎多杰） in 1936 AD. The main buildings are Kantong Lakang（卡洞拉康）, Zulacang（祖拉康）, Zangkang（藏康）, and Gadanju Lakang（噶丹居拉康）, etc. There enshrines the stone statue of the Janba Nanka（珍巴南卡） in the monastery and 12 Tangka（唐卡）. In addition, there is also Buddhist pagodas, Bon classics, and dharma-vessel and so on. The monastery was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution and rebuilt in 1983.The current abbot of the monastery Gelong Danzeng Wangzha（革龙单增旺扎）is a famous Tibetan medicine expert in Ngari area.
● Zhaxigang Monastery（扎西岗寺） is located in a small hill on Zhaxigang Town, Gar County. The monastery which was created by Lada Dacanwa was transformed to Gelug sect in the 17th century, belonging to the sub-monastery of Sera Monastery. The monastery was destroyed during the period of the Cultural Revolution and rebuilt in 1985.
● The Xiage Balin Monastery（格巴林寺） is located in Gar County with the meaning of atonement in Tibetan language. The monastery is said to be the confession monastery built for Gandan Cewang（甘丹策旺） during the end of his military life. It was once the largest monastery in Ngari area containing with more than 300 monks and 250 houses, with 315 pillars in the largest Zulakang (祖拉康).
Natural Landscapes
● Sênggê Zangbo is the name of the Indus river in Tibetan. It flows through the Ngari Prefecture in Tibet Autonomous Region, China. The capital city of Ngari, Shiquanhe, is also called Sênggêzangbo after the river.
● Gar Tsangpo or Gar River is in Ngari, Tibet, China. This river is a tributary of the Sênggê Zangbo (Indus River), which it meets at the town of Shiquanhe. The source is south of Gangdise Range, in Ngari Prefecture. Its course is mainly in the Gar County. The river drains an area of 6,060 square kilometers, and stretches a length of 196 km.
● Guola Zesong Peak（郭拉则松峰） is located at the junction of Gar County and Zanda County, southwest of Gar County. The peak which covers with the perennial snow is 6,112 meters above sea level. There are good natural pastures with yaks, cattle-yak, scalpers and sheep at the foothills.
● Nacha（纳查 ） is also known as Namozha, meaning “black flower mountain”. It is located in the southeast of Gar County. The foothills are natural pastures with yaks, cattle-yaks, cattle, sheep, goats, horses and other livestock.
Other Destinations in Gar County
Gar County Attractions
Gar, a wonderful and brilliant county famous for its attractive natural and cultural scenery, has dozens of attractions to appeal the visitors including Shiquanhe River（狮泉河）, Gurujia Monastery（古如甲寺）, Zhaxigang Monastery（扎西岗寺）, The Xiage Balin Monastery（格巴林寺）, Sênggê Zangbo, Gar Tsangpo or Gar River, Guola Zesong Peak（郭拉则松峰）and Nacha（纳查 ）, etc. Cultural Spots ● Shiquanhe Town: The town gained this name as it sits by the Shiquan River which is the upper reaches of the Indus River. The river banks of Shiquan used to be barren. When the Xinjiang¬Tibet Highway opened for transportation in 1964, military camps and [...]
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Gar County Tours
Ngari tour is one of the most attractive tours in Tibet, which can provide tourists stunning and amazing views in Tibet. It couldn’t be better to travel to Gar County in Tibet. We provide some types of tour packages for visitors to Gar County. Here, we recommend and arrange some efficient and suitable tour routes and tour packages in Gar County, and even in the whole Tibet for the travelers to have a better trip and comfortable service. Here we list some attractive highlights in Gar County for visitors [...]
Climate & When to Go
Gar County is in the arid climate zone of the plateau with the dry and cold weather and the strong solar radiation as well as long hours-sunshine. The annual average temperature is 0.2 ℃while the lowest temperature is 34.6 ℃. Every year except July and August, there are different degrees of frost every other month, so the best tourist season is in summer. Climate data for Gar County Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high °C (°F) 6.4 (43.5) 9.5 (49.1) 13.4 (56.1) 15.7 (60.3) 20.5 (68.9) 25.2 (77.4) 32.1 (89.8) 26.4 (79.5) 23.7 (74.7) 16.7 (62.1) 12.7 [...]
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Transportation
Ngari is with high elevation and harsh natural conditions, there are only one air route Chengdu-Lhasa-Ngari and only several months suitable for driving. Ngari Kunsha airport was opened in 2010, there is only one route Chengdu- Lhasa - Ngari by Air China in every Tuesday and Friday. It takes two hours from Chengdu to Lhasa, stop 40-50 minutes, and then fly 1 hour 40 minutes from Lhasa to Ngari. Kunsha Airport is [...]
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Festivals and Activities
Gar Qiaqin Festival Gar Qiaqin Festival is the most solemn and grandest festival of the year in Ngari Area. From October tenth to fifteenth in Tibetan calendar, there will held Qiaqin Grand Festival for five days. During the festival, there are activities held such as the horse racing, equestrian performances, shooting, and cabaret and goods trade. Tibetan New Year Festival The present Tibetan Calendar regards 1027 as the first year of an era. Tibetan New Year Festival is the first day [...]
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Travel Tips
The best season travel to Gar County: Summer It is quite necessary to purchase instant food, such as honey, condensed milk, spices, ship biscuits, canned food, chocolate, fruits (apples), vegetables (such as carrots, cucumbers), drinking water, instant noodles, hams and so forth in Shiquanhe or Purang County beforehand. Do keep to a slow pace and never eat your fill as this will help to save energy and ease the effects of mountain sickness. The standard of accommodation in Ngari is poor. Baths [...]
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Useful Maps
To give the visitors a better trip in Gar County, we list some related maps about the county, including Gar County Maps, Gar County Tourist Maps, Gar County Map, and Gar County Location Map. [...]
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Gar County Accommodation
There are dozes of hotels in Gar County, so it will be very convenient for visitors to have a accommodation in Gar County with a comfortable environment and a cheap cost. Here we list three of the best hotels in Gar County for visitors to have a reference. Guge Wangchao Hotel（古格王朝酒店）: Located in Binhe South Road, Gar County, China Laobeijing Shuanyangrou Business Hotel（老北京涮羊肉商务酒店）: Located near Gar County Government, Gar County, China Shuangfu Business Hotel: Located in No. 5 [...]
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