Autumn 2021 Trip to Western Sichuan
I had time this year and could finally go see the colorful forests, to experience the long-awaited colors of autumn. Originally I planned to go to the Qinling Mountains, because I went there during the National Day holiday in 2019 and it left a wonderful impression on me. At that time, I thought I would come back to see Taiziling, Gaojiang Road, Liuba, and Huangbaiyuan when the forests were in full color. I had the route planned and was set to depart on October 30th. But then, around early October, a new round of COVID outbreaks started, involving Gansu and Shaanxi. A week before departure, the situation became more severe, and control measures kept tightening. To be safe, I decided to cancel the Qinling trip. Yet I didn't want to waste this long-awaited autumn scenery. Fortunately, Sichuan was still unaffected, so I opted for a trip to Western Sichuan. I roughly re-planned the route: Mianyang - Huanglong, Jiuzhaigou - Heishui - Jinchuan - Danba - Xinduqiao.
The day before departure, my little girl caught a cold. I really wanted her to come along, but considering the altitudes of the places we'd visit, safety came first, so she stayed behind. On the 30th, I had rice noodles with her in the morning, spent half a day playing, then dropped her off at her grandparents' place. Yang Gongzi and I then set off by car.
D1: October 30, Mianyang - Pingwu, stayed at Shuiyun Longzhou Hotel
Since my girl wasn't joining us, we skipped Huanglong, which we'd already visited. After half a day's drive we reached Pingwu. For dinner, we had Sichuan pepper fish at Brother Pang's Fish Restaurant, which we stumbled upon by chance during the Dragon Boat Festival last year. The taste was excellent, and parking was convenient, so we returned.
D2: October 31, Pingwu - Jiuzhaigou, stayed at Jiu'an Warm Inn
After breakfast at the hotel, we drove to Jiuzhaigou. Leaving Pingwu county town, we took the national highway from Pingwu to Jiuzhaigou, also called Pingnan Road (Jiuzhaigou county used to be called Nanping County). Shortly after leaving the town, the colors of autumn gradually appeared, and the further into the mountains we went, the richer the autumn hues became. We drove and stopped whenever we saw beautiful scenery. I hadn't realized Pingwu's autumn colors were so stunning. If we had come a few days later, the reds and yellows would have been even more intense. I'll come again next year, maybe every year...
We drove, looked, and played along the way, reaching the entrance of Jiuzhaigou at around 6 p.m. The last time I was here was 25 years ago in June. Now it was unrecognizable, and we had to rely on GPS to find our booked inn. Due to the pandemic, we were the only guests that night. Maybe there wouldn't be many visitors entering the valley tomorrow either—that's what I was hoping for, hehe! After dinner, I went to my room, washed up, and got into bed. I turned on the electric blanket and used its heat to warm my right ankle, which I had accidentally twisted while playing at Tianmu Lake earlier that day. Tomorrow I'd be walking all day.
D3: November 1, Jiuzhaigou, stayed at Jiu'an Warm Inn
Breakfast at the inn: porridge, eggs, highland barley cakes, and pickled vegetables. If my girl had come, she would definitely have eaten instant noodles. I had prepared for that and even bought 10 yuan per jin of pea shoots at the market, but since she didn't come, I gave the pea shoots to her grandparents for evening noodles. This trip would surely be called a 'food desert' by my girl, haha. After breakfast, the inn owner drove us to the scenic area entrance in his own car. We showed our health codes and travel history, successfully boarded the scenic shuttle bus, and began our one-day tour inside the valley. The beauty of Jiuzhaigou is beyond my limited Chinese skills; just look at the pictures. And I feel the photos don't capture the real beauty.
After returning to the inn, we heard from the owner that only 3,000 people entered the valley that day. Based on my experience, I tried to imagine what it would be like with 30,000–40,000 people. Mm, better not imagine. That night, there were two more guest families at the inn.
D4: November 2, Jiuzhaigou - Heishui, stayed at Heishui Yuelai Inn
Breakfast was the same: porridge, eggs, highland barley cakes, and pickled vegetables. After eating, we set off for Heishui County. We took the route via Hongyuan to Heishui; the road from Jiuzhaigou to Hongyuan is called Jiuhong Scenic Road. Snow was falling, and we passed a viewpoint where it was already covered in white snow, and the distant snowy mountains were very beautiful.
Another day of stopping and going, we arrived at Heishui only at nearly 7 p.m. Near the county town, we showed our health codes again. We didn't even notice the Naizigou colorful forest because it was dark; only when we saw the two big loudspeakers at the entrance of Yangrong Hade Tibetan Village did we realize where we were. We checked into the inn, and the owner asked about our origin and destination, registering the information. Cases had already appeared in Chengdu, but fortunately Mianyang was still safe. We weren't looked down upon yet, but we kept monitoring the situation closely, ready to retreat and go home at any moment.
D5: November 3, Heishui - Jinchuan Guanyinqiao, stayed at Jinchuan Dumu Linka Hotel
This morning we visited the Naizigou colorful forest in Heishui. We skipped Dagu Glacier because we felt it had poor value for money, and the weather wasn't great either—we were afraid that after spending hundreds of yuan on the cable car, we'd only see fog and loneliness. Naizigou colorful forest is located on both sides of National Highway 347 near the county town. We hadn't noticed it at all when we passed by in the dark last night. As for Yangrong Hade Tibetan Village, because the previous night they checked Chengdu tourists, and some guests from Chengdu's Jinniu District were inside, the village had been closed to outsiders since last night, so we couldn't enter today. But from the road outside, we could still see a bit; it's a beautiful village. While we were sightseeing, a small incident occurred: we didn't know when a nail had punctured the left rear tire. We had to return to the county town to patch it up—safety first.
It was already noon after visiting the colorful forest. We had self-heating rice at a roadside parking area and then drove to Jinchuan. From National Highway 347 we turned onto National Highway 248. The road began to narrow, and it felt like we were entering mountainous areas. The traffic volume suddenly increased dramatically. Ah, merging into the endless flow of cars again. We arrived at Guanyinqiao around 6 p.m. As usual, we showed our health code and travel history at the town entrance. Fortunately, another smooth day. We found the hotel, checked in, and had dinner at a Sichuan restaurant in town. The owner told us that vegetables and meat here were shipped from Chengdu every day. After dinner, we strolled back to the hotel. At the foot of a distant mountain, a large prayer wheel stood brightly lit. We even went in the dark to see the incense-burning pagoda. Originally, if we had arrived early in the afternoon, we had planned to visit the Guanyin Temple up the mountain.
Back at the hotel, we checked the distance from Guanyinqiao to Xinduqiao. Our original plan for tomorrow was to go to Danba and stay there, visiting Jiaju Tibetan Village or Zhonglu Tibetan Village. But considering the pandemic, we decided not to stop at Danba and go directly to Xinduqiao, just a drive-by view of Danba's Tibetan villages.
D6: November 4, Jinchuan Guanyinqiao - Xinduqiao, stayed at 7 Days Inn
Today would be over 7 hours of driving. After breakfast, we went to see the incense-burning pagoda. We skipped the Guanyin Temple, even though I really wanted to go. The reason I chose to stay here was for that temple, but since we decided to head to Xinduqiao today, I had to give it up.
We drove away from Guanyinqiao and, after turning from National Highway 317 onto National Highway 248, we encountered traffic control due to road construction. Only two time windows were open: 11:00-13:00 and 17:00-19:00. We had no choice but to stop and wait. It was 9:50, so we had to wait another hour. Yang Gongzi said, 'If I'd known, I would have gone to the Guanyin Temple first.' I shot him a glance—there's no such thing as 'if I'd known' that often. While waiting, since we were near Jinchuan county town, we were asked to show health code and travel history again. During this time, we witnessed a car with a Chongqing license plate being turned away. We'd better finish the trip quickly.
At 10:40, surprisingly, we were allowed to pass. We were thrilled, got in the car quickly, and set off. Passing through Jinchuan county town, we entered Danba and were stopped again to show health codes and travel history. The frequent checks made us a bit nervous. At noon, while stopping for lunch, I called our hotel to ask about the pandemic policy in Xinduqiao. I was slightly relieved and decided to continue; it should be fine. We passed by Jiaju Tibetan Village in Danba, thinking we could see a bit from the road, but the navigation led us to a scenic area entrance with only a gate. Yang Gongzi was unwilling to give up and even went to the visitor center to look around—hmm, he always has a fondness for checking in at popular spots. On the way, we passed Moshi Park and Tagong Grassland. Although we didn't enter the scenic areas, we still took photos at the gates.
Around 6:30 p.m., we arrived at Xinduqiao. We checked in and had dinner at a Leshan restaurant next to 7 Days Inn—the best meal since leaving home: pine mushroom and chicken hotpot. After dinner, I went back to my room. Yang Gongzi asked the hotel front desk about sightseeing routes. He unexpectedly found out that Zimei Yakou (pass) was still accessible via Gongga Township.
D7: November 5, Xinduqiao, stayed at 7 Days Inn
Today we decided to go to Zimei Yakou to see the Gongga Snow Mountain. The 'Ten-Mile Gallery' of Xinduqiao didn't wow us, as we had come from Pingwu, Jiuzhaigou, Heishui, and Hongyuan. The weather was perfect today—clear skies for miles—so we should be able to see Gongga Snow Mountain.
After breakfast, we set off. Originally, we had booked two nights at 7 Days Inn, but we were worried we might not make it back tonight, so we temporarily canceled one night at the front desk, preparing to stay wherever we ended up. Of course, it would be best if we could return to Xinduqiao, because the accommodation here was much better. We thanked the young lady at the 7 Days front desk for helping us cancel.
Leaving Xinduqiao, the scenery along the way was beautiful, but our minds were set on Zimei Yakou and Gongga Snow Mountain, so we didn't stop to linger. Shortly after passing Gongga Township, heading toward Zimei Yakou, there were two checkpoints due to road construction. We had to show health codes and also register. The road surface turned into gravel, but fortunately it was still wide. After a fork, we officially started the ascent toward Zimei Yakou. The road went upward, turning and climbing continuously. Driving on this road, I finally understood what 'wild road' meant—bumpy, nerve-wracking. The road surface was full of large and small rocks. I was very worried about a tire blowout. If I had known the road conditions, I would never have come. But Yang Gongzi said it would be fine, just drive slowly. I could only stare at the road, hoping silently. I wanted to check the navigation, but there was no cell signal. The car kept winding around the mountain. It felt like a long time. I looked around—where were the snowy mountains? Why weren't we there yet? When we silently turned another 180-degree bend and rose a few meters higher, suddenly a snowy mountain loomed on our right. A 'wow' of amazement escaped me. I understood what 'a sudden turn of events' meant. We had arrived at Zimei Yakou. I saw the King of Sichuan mountains—Gongga Snow Mountain. It was so close to me. I never imagined I could see it so clearly. It was stunning. If only my girl could have been here with us.
The wind on the pass was strong. We stayed for about half an hour. Then we descended, back on the stone road. Even though we were still excited from seeing Gongga, we worried all the way down. After leaving Zimei Yakou and returning to the main road, the gravel road suddenly felt like a smooth highway. We also visited Quanhua Tan. We didn't go to Lengga Tso because you have to hike up to 4,600 meters by yourself—you can't drive up. We felt we weren't well-prepared for the hike, so we'll save it for another opportunity.
After visiting Quanhua Tan, we saw it was still early, so we could make it back to Xinduqiao for the night. This area is called Yulongxi Village, Gongga Township. There are many accommodations, but they are much more basic. We wanted a good night's rest, so we decided to return to 7 Days Inn in Xinduqiao, rest well, and cross Zheduo Mountain tomorrow.
D8: November 6, Xinduqiao - Mianyang
Today we decided to return home because the weather forecast showed snow on the 7th, and I was worried about traffic control on Zheduo Mountain. In the morning, we had breakfast at a small shop next to the hotel. The owner asked us to register—haha! Yesterday morning we only had to scan the health code, but today we not only had to scan but also register. Fortunately, during these days, Mianyang never had any incidents. Today, returning home felt strangely relieving. I wonder if future trips will always be like this.
After breakfast we set off. The car's front windshield was covered with snowflake-like frost.
Traffic on Zheduo Mountain was heavy. Several large temporary parking areas had been built along the way, perhaps to handle sudden rain or snow. When we reached the highest point, we looked at the surrounding mountains—the scenery was unique.
After descending Zheduo Mountain, we reached Kangding City. From there, we could take the expressway all the way. At the Kangding expressway entrance, I saw cars on the opposite side lined up neatly and orderly, one by one undergoing checks. On the expressway, we began to go through tunnels, one after another. It felt like swimming underwater, surfacing for a breath, then diving back in. Getting on the expressway from Kangding, we emerged from a tunnel into Luding. For the first time, I felt that driving on the expressway was just a lonely experience—I missed the national highways we had traveled along.
We stopped at Tianquan service area for lunch. Since we had plenty of time, we specially added a self-heating hotpot. After a leisurely lunch, we set off again. To avoid passing through Chengdu, I carefully double-checked the navigation route. After Tianquan, it rained all the way. The car was very dirty, so we took the opportunity to wash it. At 5 p.m., we exited the Mianyang expressway toll gate. I had expected a health code check, but there was none. The 8-day autumn trip ended perfectly.
