Gela Mountain

Gela Mountain is a high mountain pass at an elevation of 5.172m (16,968ft) above the sea level, located in the Tanggula Mountains, a mountain range in the central part of the Tibetan Plateau in the People's Republic of China.

Gela Mountain

The pass is traversed by the Qinghai-Tibet Highway (part of the China National Highway 109) an asphalted road connecting Beijing with Lhasa that does not drop below 5000m for about 80km. The road runs westwards of Beijing via Datong, Yinchuan and Xining to Golmud before turning southwest to Lhasa. The total distance of the highway is 3,901 km.
The weather on this zone is harsh and highly unpredictable and it does not take much time for the bright sun shine to change over to moderate to heavy snow fall. On the summit of the pass there are great views over the never-ending plains and usually the climate is extreme, with a killer side wind.
Pic: Dominic Wyss

 

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