Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (2014)
BASIC INFORMATION
Trek: Y2014 Winter XP
Date: December 2014
Location: Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Lijiang
Elevation:
Duration:
(SUPER WORTH WATCHING!!)
Group photo at KunMing Airport
This is a round up of the 13 days that we have spent in Lijiang on the winter trek. For many of us, this has been a refreshing experience, a break from our hectic schedules. Read on to find out more!
Day 1
Today marks the first day of this trip and the prospect of taking 3 flights and spending close to 12 hours in airports don’t really appeal to us much. Off to a roaring start with some SMUX members sending us off, we had little problems along the way with the exception of a slight delay in the domestic flight. After all, Murphy’s Law always strikes doesn’t it? What happened next was less expected, with one member losing his luggage in transit. Oh, did I mention that we were on Malaysian airlines? Well, much of the fears regarding the flights were unfounded, perhaps with the exception of baggage handling. Regardless, we were pleasantly surprised with the beautiful inn that we resided in Lijiang Old Town, a UNESCO heritage site. Most importantly, there was WIFI! A short walk around the old town rich in heritage as well as a sumptuous mushroom steamboat dinner summed up the first day for us.
Planes, Planes and more PLANES.
Mushroom Hotpot!
Accommodation for the night!
Day 2
The second day of the trip was set aside for acclimatization. We met up with our guide Mr. Mu and proceeded for some sightseeing around town. First up, we had a walk around Baisha village, an ancient town with a temple as its crowning jewel and centerpiece. A noble of the Mu clan built the temple some time in late Ming early Qing dynasty. The unique selling point of this temple though, was the frescos on the walls of the various halls that were drawn by artists from various ethnic groups, ranging from Tibetans to Bai clan people in Dali to the Han Chinese. This unique mix of cultures resulted in drawings that incorporated various characteristics of these groups and forms a unique trait of the Naxi people. Lijiang is truly, a melting pot of cultures from the ancient times right up to today. Next, we had lunch before embarking on a warm up trek on Xiang hill. A relatively relaxing hike up the hill was what we needed to get hyped up for the treks of following days. The view at the black dragon lake was amazing, with Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the backdrop, forming a picturesque sight. A walk around the old town that involved snacks, drinks and insects concluded our second day.
Fusion Mural – Styles from various ethnic groups in one picture
Haba Mountain in the background
Climbing up Xiang Shang.
Bird’s eye view of Lijiang
Black dragon pool
“This is a BAOOOO”
“How many legs do insects have?”
Day 3
Day 3 marks to beginning of our trek proper and we had to ensure that the trek bags won’t too heavy or the participants would have a really hard time. We were off to an early start in the day, with us struggling to find a place for breakfast. The hike up from Yuhu village to wenhai village at 3100m above the sea level was 8km and despite us taking a little longer than expected to reach the village, we made it nonetheless although some participants experienced a little discomfort. A change in plans was in place, considering the time constraints we had and we opted to walk around in wenhai village instead of making our way to xuehua village, which would have tired us out even more. Considering the increasing difficulty of the hikes in the next few days, we can only hope that everyone would adapt quickly and be ready for the forthcoming challenges. Speaking of wenhai village that is also where we stay for the night, in an inn ran by locals, which although lacking some material comforts, still provided a nice, and perhaps not so warm place for us to rest our weary legs for the night.
Becoming rice buckets, literally.
Innocent Kid? Just you wait…
Horror, horror, horror!!!
Day 4
The starting of day four can only be described by the words, 天寒地冻. Even with the heating mattress and long johns on, the cold still seemed to bother me (perhaps I am not the ice queen/king after all). With winds that sounded like trains moving by throughout the night, which hit us in the faces the moment we stepped out of the building, but is really amazing how the locals have gotten so used to such weathers. Our trek took us away from our beautiful glass hostels in wenhai village onto a relatively easy downslope trail to longpan village. Along the way, we had a few close encounters with pigs, geese, horses and cows, which I must say pack quite a punch in their droppings. The trek was quite manageable even though we had to cut it short in order to make it for our next trek in the afternoon. After a short transfer on vans for lunch at qiaotou, before commencing our trek up to Naxi village. The trek took us up 200m and was quite physically taxing for most of us. Nonetheless, we managed to arrive at the place of lodging before nightfall for a nice warm bath and WIFI!
In the wilderness, even the toilets look picturesque
Never a good sign to have too many clouds…
Day 5
Today is day 5 and with heavy hearts, we left the Naxi guesthouse, which had our (Or at least mine) favorite WIFI! With a delightful breakfast and warm up done, we set off to conquer the 28 bends. With us moving at a comfortable pace, the bends were very manageable and we managed to finish it with little difficulty. The breathtaking view of the yulong snow mountain was amazing and we took quite a while to take photos before setting off for the trek to teahouse trade guesthouse for lunch. This guesthouse is situated along the ancient tea horse trail, a vital trading route in the past. After lunch, we made our way to Tina’s guesthouse where we placed our trek bags down and made our way to woody’s guesthouse for the night. Power outages seem commonplace here and it appears tonight will be a cold and windy night once more.
Tea-trade guesthouse
Sir, do u need some cleaning Sir?”
Day 6
On day 6, we set off for the tiger leaping stone without our trek bags early in the morning to enjoy the breathtaking sights and sounds of the river. The tiger-leaping gorge is the valley in between mountains and the stone lies in the pass in the tiger-leaping gorge so narrow that it is said a tiger can jump across the river by using the aforementioned stone as a stepping-stone. It is marvelous how the villagers have managed to build the bridges and carved out paths at such steep and inaccessible places with the rudimentary tools they possess. The power of the human will is truly amazing. Next, we had lunch before taking a van to our next destination, Haba village, where we took a walk around the village before ending the day.
Middle Tiger Leaping Gorge
The only easy day was yesterday
Day 7
Day 7 marks the halfway point of our treks and today, we set off early from Haba village to make our way to jinsha ferry terminal to reach our resting lodge for the night in Daju village. What we expected to be a relaxing trek turned out to be surprising challenging, with us having to navigate through an area that has just experienced a rockslide. Along the way, we continued to walk under the watch of Haba Mountain, who’s peak hid shyly in the clouds. We had lunch near the ferry terminal, before making short effort to reach the ferry terminal for a short ferry ride across the river. Along the way, we saw barges once used to sieve out gold sand that has given the bay its name, Jinsha. However, the building of dams for power generation has rendered this industry obsolete, much like how the ferries will become relics of the past when the new bridge connecting the two sides is built. This is just how humans work, constantly improving and changing. Only time will tell whether such changes are for the better or for the worse. Next, we made our way to the inn, following the sandy village road winding through the paddy fields as the golden rays of the sun peek over the peak of the surrounding mountains. A scene of serendipity as the farmer labor on the fields. The slow pace of life as well as the simplicity of the people here is definitely a refreshing change from the rustle and bustle of the city.
The rockslide
Day 8
Today, we started the day with a short trek to another village for a pick up by the van that will take us to Baoshan village. The ride was pretty bumpy considering the mountain roads we were traveling on. Along the way, we saw an overturned vehicle on the road, reminding us again just how dangerous the mountains can be. We had a short reprise from the roads with lunch at Bole village before taking a bus again to reach our destination for the day, Baoshan village. This is a village with the unique characteristic of having a walled city perched above a giant rock. This is the walled city where the Mongolians signed a peace treaty with the natives during their conquest of China as they had no interest in conquering the mountain settlements. This is a place reach in culture and heritage, overlooking steppes of crops and a meandering river. A short walk around the village to take some photos of the river ended our day.
BaoShan Village
The difference light makes…
Day 9
Today, we woke up early and prepared ourselves to set foot on Taiziguan, which is a mountain pass that links Baoshan village to another village over the mountain. Locals have through their ingenuity created two tunnels through the mountain, one 60 meters long and the other 90 meters long. Our trek to the pass was to be the last of our 7 days trekking trip and it didn’t really start off on a good note, with us having to cross a stream that flowed a tad too fast for our liking. Some of us had to step into the water flow and it sure was no pleasant experience walking around with wet shoes! Regardless, we continued to press on and stopped for lunch at a small village where some of us chose to stay behind and rest their fatigued legs. For those who carried on, the slippery slopes and loose gravel on the ensuing paths slowed us down and we had to cut off our trek with the first of the two tunnels in sight. our way back to Baoshan village took us on the same path, only this time, downwards. We had to throw caution to the wind and take calculated steps as we slide downwards with every step we took. It felt a little like surfing, just that this time, we are on gravel on land instead of a surfboard at sea. The upside of this sliding was that we took considerably less time getting back and that allayed the fear that we might have to enter night trekking, a very grim prospect on the last day of trekking. We took a different path to get back to Baoshan village that proved to be easier albeit longer and a slight scare that we might have been on the wrong path. Thankfully, we were on the right path and we made it back in time to wash up and have a celebratory dinner at the guide’s brother’s house.
Every Step of the Way.
And we celebrated birthdays too!
Day 10
For our R and R, we took a bus from Baoshan village to Dali, on the way passing Lijiang ancient town where we did a little shopping and collected our luggages from the inn. The journey to Dali took up most of the day.
“Are we there yet?”
The mountain range
Day 11
On the first official day of R and R, we took a walk to the Three Pagoda Park, where we had a look at the engineering marvels of the ancient Chinese and took time to take some touristy photos. After all, what is R and R without some photo-shoots?
Presenting, Lijiang’s next top models.
And we go Kungfu fighting
Three Pagodas
The temples within
Reflection pool.
Next, we proceeded for lunch before taking the cable car up the Cangshan geographical park. This is a park that housed the numerous peaks in Dali and proved to be a pretty amazing trekking destination which many trails available. We also took time to take some photos with the giant chessboard, said to have been inspired by a novel by Louis Cha. Rook to D8! To end off the day, we were brought to Dali Ancient town where we got to enjoy some delicious local delicacies and got the chance to chill at some bar, discussing some stock and investment philosophies, a discussion that was perhaps too serious for a leisure trip to China.
CangShan Geographical Park
Who is this girl I see, staring back, right at me
A game of chess?
The fleeting beauty of snow.
Food.
Food!
MORE FOOD!
Chilling in a bar.
Day 12
Today, we made our way back to Lijiang airport on the bus and that journey took up a good part of the day. In the night, we split into different groups, some going back to Lijiang Ancient Town where we had thin crust pizzas and Momos, while others had steamboats near the airport. Tomorrow, we fly back to Singapore.
Thin Crust Pizza at N’s Kitchen!
Day 13
Today marks the last day of our trip and we woke up early to take a plane to Kunming airport before waiting for our transits to KLIA and finally back to Singapore.
The trip has spanned a total of 12 days and bonds have been forged, friends made. What have stared off as a winter trek for a group of 19 people, mostly strangers have ended somewhat differently from how most of us would have expected it to. We have become closer, a lot closer for a few specific pairs of individuals. We have sung songs, killed a couple of black yetis, foiled the plans of some golden yetis and of course, did plenty of convincing. We have slept in rather rudimentary conditions, sometimes not having taken warm baths, sometimes taking cold baths, and sometimes not even bathing! We have slept in 2s, 4s, and occasionally together. We have gazed at stars till 6 am, played with kids that are a little too violent, played with dogs that get a little to excited, and of course, we have cracked many jokes, some of which will stick with us for years to come. We have had sprained ankles and taken jabs at some rather unique places. Tempers have flared and tensions have been apparent. Yet, all of these have not stopped us from having a whale of a time in a country that may be foreign to many of us. Looking back in the near future, we may perhaps just wonder to ourselves, what an amazing 12 days in China we have had, in the winter of 2014.
“Why am I in between them T.T”
Before
After
We have all set on this trip with different objectives in mind. Some us wanted to get physically challenged, others perhaps wanted to have more interpersonal developments. Regardless of all these, I am sure all of us have found something extra on top of what we had originally set out to achieve. In those dim-lit village nights, many wishes have been made on those passing shooting stars, some might even have materialized. What wish would you wish for?
Concluding Thoughts
This trip is my first as well as first long trek with SMUX and I must say it has been an eye-opening experience. A lot of thought and effort has to go into the planning of every stage of the trek in order for it to progress smoothly. In every large group, there are bound to be differing objectives and opinions and if left unchecked, such differing goals will tear the group apart and leave the success of the trek in jeopardy. This trek has been a good learning experience for most of us and while there are areas where improvements are due, the important thing is that everyone has came back safely and looking back, the experience has been in general positive.
Numerous stakeholders have made this trek possible. My fellow participants have showed me how some lame jokes, songs and mutated games can really take our minds off the cold and appreciated nature and the company that we have. Nowhere is too cold when I have you guys.
The guides have certainly impressed us with their stamina, and willingness to work hard to make a living. In today’s society where everyone seems to engage in a mad rat race to accumulate more of everything, sometimes even at the expense of others, such noble character and morals is something that we can all seek to emulate and learn from.
I would like to take the opportunity to thank all the participants, guides, fellow org comm members and all that have played a part in making this trip possible. Till the next time we met. Au revoir.
“What are you looking at?”
“Wanna gaze at some stars with me?”
Our friendship never ends…
Video Credits: Joel Khoo
photo credits: Kai Tsi, Joel, Jeanne, Leah
Log written by: Safety/Logs IC, Lyndon Choo
