Muji Crater (officially known as Karatimir Volcanic Group) is located in Muji Township, Akto County on the Pamir Plateau, and is known as the "Eye of the Pamirs". It is fascinating for its transparent glaciers, clear glacial erosion lakes, and bottomless ice caves.
The Muji Crater, formed 1,500 years ago, is one of the highest volcanic craters in Xinjiang and even the world, with an altitude of about 3,800 meters. Though it erupted long ago, it still retains transparent glaciers, clear glacial lakes, bottomless ice caves, and sweet glacial meltwater. As a "sinter-type" volcano, the Muji Crater is also one of the most typical volcanic craters in the world. Surrounded by plateau wetlands and snow-capped mountains, it forms a unique "illusion of ice and fire" here.
Unlike traditional hot volcanoes, the Muji Crater is called a "cold volcano" and is also a mud volcano. When a hot volcano erupts, the temperature of the magma after it is ejected to the surface is generally above 1,000°C, with the minimum being 800°C.
The area near Muji Crater is also a mineral belt containing gold mines and primary gemstones. Within the entire Karatimir region, there are 13 volcanic craters of varying sizes, interlacing with one another, scattered at different heights and in diverse shapes. With their unique forms and distinct geological colors, they attract tourists to come for sightseeing.
Not far from the volcanic crater lie the Eighteen Arhats Peaks, a range of mountains stretching in a continuous line, their summits perpetually blanketed in snow. The "Eighteen Arhats Peaks" here do not refer to exactly eighteen specific peaks, but rather a series of mountains surrounding the Muji Volcanic Crater, named for their striking resemblance to the Eighteen Arhats. Here, one can imagine that during the ancient volcanic eruptions, the fiery red magma and snow-capped peaks—one crimson, one white; one scorching, one frigid—created a spectacular "world of ice and fire."
The formation of the Muji Volcanic Group is closely related to the uplift of the Pamir Plateau, which is one of the regions with the most intense plate collisions in the world. Here you can combine abstract concepts such as "plate movement" and "orogeny" with actual landforms, and understand how volcanic activity becomes a "window" for the release of energy from the Earth's interior, as well as the geodynamic processes of plate boundaries.
Visit pastoral villages: Muji Township is a settlement of the Kirgiz people. You can visit traditional yurts, learn about the lifestyle of nomads, and experience daily activities such as milking and making dairy products.
Taste special food: Try the Kirgiz hand-grabbed meat, milk curds, mare's milk, etc., and experience the plateau food culture.