Lynne's Travels : Huanglong

Huanglong

The flight to Jiuzhaigou was quite breath taking! The mountains had risen above the clouds and were such a variety of colours, with verdant forests, snow-capped peaks, and jagged, craggy ridges. We flew so close to the mountain tops; it was as if we were going to hit them - and a few disaster movies did spring to mind!

We had been told by our guide, to dress for all types of weather, and when we left the plane, it was a lovely warm 30 degrees. Driving along the roads, we passed wild horses, mountain goats and yaks; and the houses looked like no others I had seen in China.

An hour later we reached Huanglong, and the weather had dropped to a drizzly 12 degrees, and several people had to buy raincoats. When we got off the coach, as usual, we were surrounded by people trying to sell us things; but the women here had masks over their faces - apparently not to stop germs (like the rest of China), but to stop the sun tanning them. After lunch we entered Huanglong National park, which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1992. Huanglong is in the Sichuan Province, in the eastern foothills of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, at the foot of the highest peak in the Minshan Mountain range – Mount Xuebaoding. Huanglong valley with its travertine lakes, waterfalls, forests and spectacular mountain scenery is described as nature at its very best.

The diverse forest ecosystems of the Minshan Mountains are home to endangered plants and animals, including the Giant Panda and the Sichuan Golden snub-nosed monkey. We were now at an area of over 3500 metres, one of the highest tourist areas in China - and warned to take things very carefully (We were constantly told to walk (not run), move slowly and pace yourself) or else we would be ill will altitude sickness! The name Huanglong (meaning Yellow Dragon) is said to describe a yellow dragon slithering through a valley – which is how people imagined the valley.

We were given 3 hours to explore, so I headed off up the mountain as quickly as I dare! The path was mainly a wooden boardwalk, with steps climbing higher and higher into the forest. There were small houses with toilets every so often, and numerous gazebos to rest in, as well as stalls selling Oxygen canisters - all along the route.

When I had tried to find out about this place before I went, the information had been quite scarce (whereas there is more online now) – and I was completely blown away by what I was seeing.

I could understand how the area had got its name - the golden coloured calcium carbonate that had been deposited, left a glowing area running down much of the mountain. To me, it resembled a beach with sparkling water trickling over it, forming calcified pools. This area, known as Yellow Dragon Gully, and is surrounded by these colourful, clear-water pools formed from calcite deposits.

The water in these limestone ponds is varying shades of turquoise and aqua, and the higher you climbed up the mountain, the more vivid they became. But the higher you were, the more out of breath you became. Even though I was going up really steadily, at one point my heart was beating so fast - it was scary, and I was having to stop to catch my breath.

As well as the altitude, you have to be careful not to fall in when you are taking photographs; there are many areas with no handrails and people were just barging past…..a few more scary moments! But it is always worth it to get another special photograph!

The waters though, are surprisingly warm, even when the weather is cold – so I was told! The Huanglong valley is relatively compact, with a total length of only 3.6 kilometres, but this rises over 500 metres - in such a short space. The main body of water starts at the ancient Buddhist temple at the top of the valley and ends at the Guests Welcome Pond.

One of Huanglong's most defining features, “travertine” is a type of limestone deposited by mineral springs, formed by the precipitation of calcium carbonate. Over time, the water in the pools have become separated by low limestone walls, making thousands of ponds and lakes - that cover much of the park.

Even the unusual waterfalls cascade over thick layers of the golden limestone (which is how the Yellow Dragon name came to be) - and they have fabulous names such as the Marvellous Flying Waterfall and the Washing Cave (which is 40 metres wide and 10 metres tall). I particularly loved that waterfall as it was like no other waterfall I had even seen. (Below)

I had been walking uphill for an hour and a half without really stopping for a proper rest and started thinking that every bend was going to be the last one, and I would be at the top. Time seemed to fly by – there was so much to see. Every pond you arrived at, consisted of hundreds of smaller pools – everyone special in their own way.

The Guests Welcome Pond was the first complex, and there were others such as Azalea Ponds, Flamboyant Pond, Bonsai Ponds, Mirror Pond, and Whirling Flower Ponds. But the upward, winding path kept going on and on – higher and higher. I tried to ask people how much further it was to the top, but no one spoke English or even looked like they understood me; and I think most of the people on my tour hadn’t ventured as far up the mountain as me. Every few hundred yards, I could see the wooden huts with the oxygen tanks were full of people with breathing difficulties.

I was desperate to get to the top – I don’t know why; as everything I was seeing was spectacular – it was only another pond - apparently the valley's highlight, The Five-colour Pond. But I pushed on and after another fifteen minutes, I found out that it was still another hour to the top and seeing as that was all time that I had left, I had to turn around and head back down - quickly! I wasn't too disappointed because the pools and ponds I had seen were so much more beautiful than I had been expecting – the whole area had been a magnificent surprise.

Also, the rain had stopped, so it was far easier going downhill than I had expected. Looking back, I wish the tour guide had given us the option to use the Cable car, because then I could have gone up to the top without becoming too exhausted. Then walked back down leisurely – admiring the travertine lakes and ponds, the scenery of the primitive forest leisurely, and the whole panorama of Huanglong. But I can’t change things – unless I go back one day. It had been a huge challenge, but worth it; and one I am very proud of doing.

Most people go to the Nine Villages Valley and skip this park, which is a couple of hours away. But I highly recommend that you take an extra day to visit Huanglong, where you can see these most amazing geologic formations and pools that are formed with the same process that stalagmites are formed in caves - there really is nowhere else like it!

It's difficult to describe Huanglong to someone who has not seen it – I just hope my photographs have given you an idea if it’s unbelievable beauty. This very scenic valley is absolutely awesome – it just isn’t very easy to reach.

We had to leave the area by 4.30pm, because it often snows about this time on the mountain, we had to cross to reach our next hotel. The zig zag roads on the drive back made many people feel ill. They wound up and down the valley, and over the highest of mountains; but once we were on the other side, the sun came out again and it was far more enjoyable.

We passed many villages, temples, statues, prayer flags, rivers, and an unusual bridge (with three ornate spikes with gold baubles on the top) - and a monastery.