“Fly the Sichuan-Tibet sky route, travel the Qinghai-Tibet land route” – Summer 2020, Five Days in Tibet, Part 2: The Sky Road

📍 Lhasa · 👁 9567 reads · ❤️ 37 likes

On the morning of June 18, I took bus No. 20 from outside my guesthouse, then transferred to bus No. 1, arriving early at Lhasa Railway Station. I would board the Z6802 Qinghai-Tibet train here, departing Lhasa at 9 a.m., passing through Damxung, Nagqu, and Amdo in Tibet, then Golmud and Delingha in Qinghai, arriving in Xining early the next morning.

Today was my last day in Tibet on this trip. As planned, I’d ride the Qinghai-Tibet train to see the ‘Sky Road’, traveling across the Qiangtang Grassland in northern Tibet, Cona Lake in Amdo, the Tanggula Mountains, the Tuotuo River, and the Hoh Xil Sanjiangyuan area. I was hoping to spot the highland spirits – Tibetan antelopes – witness the pristine and vast Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and watch the sun set behind the Kunlun Mountains!

“In the morning I stand on the green pasture, seeing divine eagles draped in dawn’s glow, like auspicious clouds drifting across the blue sky, bringing good fortune to Tibetan sons and daughters”;

“At dusk I stand on a high ridge, watching the railway built to my homeland; dragons winding over mountains and ridges, bringing peace and comfort to the snow-covered plateau”;

“From then on, the mountains are no longer high and the roads no longer long, ethnic children gather in joy; that is a miraculous sky road, leading us into a paradise on earth”;

That beautiful, soaring song ‘Road to Heaven’ sings of people’s boundless longing for the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau! It also echoes my heart’s yearning for this magical land. Today, I would fulfill this long-held wish!

At 9 a.m. sharp, a whistle blew and train Z6802 slowly pulled out of Lhasa Railway Station, heading northward into northern Tibet. At that moment, the moving melody of ‘Road to Heaven’ began playing in the carriage. Now, I would follow this Qinghai-Tibet Railway on a 12-hour journey to meet my ‘Sky Road’ promise!

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway, from Xining in the north to Lhasa in the south, is 1,956 kilometers long and was fully opened to traffic on July 1, 2006. It is a world railway construction miracle. With an average elevation of 4,500 meters and a highest point of 5,072 meters, it crosses numerous high mountains, great rivers, and plateau permafrost. Along the route, key sights include the northern shore of Qinghai Lake, the Qaidam Basin, Kunlun Mountains National Park, Yuzhu Peak Glacier, the Chumar River, Wudaoliang, Hoh Xil, Sanjiangyuan Nature Reserve, the Tuotuo River, the Tanggula Mountains, Cona Lake, the northern Tibetan Qiangtang Grassland, and the Yangbajain geothermal area. It is hailed as the Sky Road atop the roof of the world, and also known as a scenic highway on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

“The Qinghai-Tibet Railway follows the Qinghai-Tibet Highway.” After leaving Lhasa, the train followed the highway into the northern Tibetan grasslands. Mountains, rivers, villages, and open land – Tibet’s unique landscapes slid past the window one after another.

Soon, the bare rocky mountains along the route became snow-capped peaks. For a southerner who rarely sees snowy mountains, this was quite exciting!

Scenery and songs accompanied me all the way as the train rolled into the northern Tibetan grassland on the railway. Blue skies and white clouds, mountains and rivers, snowy peaks and meadows accompanied the journey.

Entering Damxung county in Tibet, the vast Qiangtang Grassland of northern Tibet unfolded before my eyes.

The northern Tibetan grassland, also called Qiangtang Grassland, lies between the Tanggula and Gangdise mountain ranges. Covering over 400,000 square kilometers with an average altitude above 4,500 meters, it is one of China’s five great alpine pastures. The Qiangtang Grassland is vast and flat, dotted with lakes and crisscrossed by rivers, with lush pastures and thriving herds. Since ancient times, it has been a major livestock and crop production area in Tibet, known as the northern Tibetan natural granary. It is also a habitat and breeding ground for wild animals like Tibetan antelopes, Tibetan wild asses, and wild yaks, earning it the name ‘paradise of animals’.

Like an oasis on the plateau, Qiangtang exudes enchanting charm everywhere. The shimmering snow mountains and lakes provide abundant water and fertile soil. This land produces the ‘three treasures of Tibet’ (snow lotus, golden mushroom, and caterpillar fungus). In June, the grassland is lush green; beneath blue skies and white clouds, surrounded by snowy peaks, herds of cattle, horses, and sheep are seen everywhere. What I saw was not the Yangtze Delta, yet it surpassed it in a pastoral idyll. This is the Qiangtang Grassland I witnessed – a snow-covered plateau you can truly perceive only when you come!

Because the ancient Tang-Tibet Road runs north-south across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the Qiangtang Grassland has been a station on the ‘Sky Road’ since ancient times. It is rich in historical and cultural heritage and numerous human landscapes: the colorful nomadic culture, ancient rock paintings, ruins of the ancient Zhangzhung kingdom, ethnic song and dance filled with local charm, and the tales of King Gesar widely sung across this grassland. Mani stone piles, prayer flags, ancient stupas, temples, white felt tents everywhere, and maroon flat-roofed buildings... From the train window, you can glimpse strong Tibetan character.

The train reached Nagqu in northern Tibet at 12:30 p.m., stopping for six minutes.

The most beautiful season in the Qiangtang Grassland is from May to August each year (from November to March is the windy season, with a dry climate, freezing cold, low oxygen – not suitable for tourism). In summer, the climate is relatively warm and humid; the grassland turns green, everything flourishes, full of life. This is the golden season for travel in Qiangtang.

At about 2 p.m., shortly after the train entered Amdo county in Tibet, the famous Cona Lake immediately came into view!

Cona Lake is located in the Nyainqêntanglha Mountains, 20 kilometers southwest of Amdo county. Its surface elevation is 4,594 meters, covering about 300 square kilometers – the world’s highest freshwater lake, formed by the confluence of the Liantong River and the Nagqu River from the southern Tanggula range. Cona Lake is also the source lake of the Nujiang River in China, acclaimed as a pearl along the Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

The pure, deep blue water, wildly rolling clouds, and soft green grassy beaches together form a stunning picture on the ‘Sky Road’. This area has a high-altitude frigid, semi-humid monsoon climate with perennially thin oxygen, large day-night temperature differences, and indistinct seasons. The average annual temperature is only -2.8°C; the coldest month (January) averages -15°C, the hottest (July) only 7.8°C. Thus, Cona Lake is more suitable for summer visits.

After passing Cona Lake, the train reached Amdo Railway Station in Tibet, stopping for four minutes. Leaving Amdo, we entered the Tanggula Mountains.

‘Tanggula’ means ‘mountain on the plateau’ in Tibetan. It is perpetually buffeted by wind and snow, with frozen ground all year round, forming a natural boundary between Qinghai and Tibet. The famous Tanggula Pass is the key gateway for the Qinghai-Tibet Highway and Railway into Tibet. The highway’s maximum elevation is 5,231 meters; the railway’s highest point is 5,072 meters. Here the view is wide open, but the weather is extremely unstable. Even in midsummer, the highway is often blocked by heavy snow, and hail and frost are common. The oxygen content is only 60% of sea level, so passengers crossing the Tanggula Pass usually experience noticeable altitude sickness.

The Qinghai-Tibet train passenger carriages are equipped with ample oxygen supply facilities. Passengers must sign a safety agreement before boarding. If you have wilderness experience above 3,000 meters, you need not worry about crossing the 5,072-meter Tanggula Pass. My personal high-altitude wilderness experience was 4,600 meters – that gave me a bit of confidence for riding the train on the ‘Sky Road’.

The Tanggula range lies on the border of Tibet and Qinghai, its eastern section serving as the boundary between the two regions. Its southeastern extension meets the Yunling and Nushan ranges of the Hengduan Mountains. In Tibetan, its name also means ‘mountain on the plateau’ and ‘Dangla Mountain’, meaning ‘a mountain even eagles cannot fly over’. It is a famous east-west trending mountain range in the central Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Looking like a primordial barren wasteland, it is also known as a human life-forbidden zone.

The Tanggula section was the most challenging part of the entire Qinghai-Tibet Railway – the worst climate, poorest geological conditions, and greatest construction difficulties. Sloping wetlands abound, with long stretches of permafrost, strong frost heaving and thaw subsidence. North of Amdo county in Tibet, seasonal frozen ground is widespread. In winter and spring, temperatures are low, winds biting, and the frozen ground layer rapidly uplifts. In July and August, when it warms up and rains are plentiful, there is either rain, snow, or hail. After glaciers melt, the ground sinks rapidly. It is truly a plateau construction forbidden zone.

In June and July, Tanggula remains a world of ice and snow.

‘First there was the Qinghai-Tibet Highway, then the Qinghai-Tibet Railway. The railway follows the highway.’ Tanggula, deep in the heart of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, is called a heavenly secret realm and a human survival no-man’s-land. It is full of mystery. Today, only by traveling along the highway and railway can one see the ancient vastness of Tanggula. It is unsuitable for any other form of travel or sightseeing. If you can see its true face with your own eyes in this lifetime, it is your fate and blessing!

Crossing one mountain, river, bridge, and tunnel after another in Tanggula, the train arrived at the famous Tanggula Town around 5 p.m. that afternoon. The source of the Yangtze – the Tuotuo River – flows right past the town.

Tanggula Town (also called Tuotuohe Town) belongs to Golmud city in Qinghai province. It is a small settlement deep in the heart of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, known as the First Town on the Ten-Thousand-Li Yangtze. With a permanent population of only 1,600 (including 400 students) and a single school, it is nonetheless the most important staging post on the Qinghai-Tibet line, providing support for those traveling through this plateau secret realm. It is because of this unassuming town that crossing the vast Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and traversing this primordial wilderness became possible! It’s like a tiny Noah’s Ark in the life-forbidden zone!

The famous Tuotuo River Bridge near Tanggula Town. It is said that the environmental protection monument for the Yangtze River source stands by the highway at the bridgehead.

The Tuotuo River beside Tanggula Town seems to meander down from the horizon, then twists and turns indomitably eastward. It always nourishes this vast, pristine landscape with mother’s milk-like ‘deep love’, nurturing generations of Chinese ethnic groups who have multiplied here.

The 6,300-kilometer-long Yangtze River – the world’s third longest and the mother river of the Chinese nation – has been proven through multiple scientific expeditions to originate from the never-ending glaciers on the southwestern flank of Geladaindong Peak, the main peak of the Tanggula Mountains among layers of peaks. Meltwater from the glaciers gathers at the foot of the peaks, forming the mighty headwater of the Yangtze – the Tuotuo River.

The Tuotuo River is the longest headwater stream of the upper Yangtze, flowing 375 kilometers from the glacier terminus of Geladaindong to the Dangchu River mouth. Starting from the Tuotuo, the Yangtze flows through ten provinces – Qinghai, Tibet, Sichuan, Yunnan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Shanghai – before emptying into the East China Sea, a true ‘long river’ of over 6,300 kilometers, and undeniably the mother river of the Chinese nation.

The beauty of the Tuotuo is a beauty beyond words! It symbolizes five millennia of Chinese civilization and represents the indomitable spirit of the Chinese nation; it surges eastward through countless obstacles without hesitation; it is tender as water, full of motherly love, nourishing a hardworking, courageous, and colorful people; with its broad bosom, it embraces every descendant who comes to see it! The beauty of the Tuotuo is etched deep in heart and bone – the beauty of Mother Earth!

That distant and mysterious Tuotuo River I once heard of – today, it truly unfolded before my eyes! Once it felt like the unattainable edge of the sky. Today, I was fortunate to witness her beautiful face! Wide, vast Tuotuo River, gleaming silver and sparkling. Today, this mother river of our nation seemed to flow through my heart, imprinted in my mind, unforgettable for life!

After crossing the Tuotuo River, the train entered the heart of the Hoh Xil Sanjiangyuan area.

‘Hoh Xil’ means ‘blue ridge’ in Mongolian, also called ‘beautiful maiden’. Located in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai, it sits in the northwestern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, between the Tanggula and Kunlun mountains. It is the main source area for the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, one of the best-preserved primitive ecosystems in the world, and China’s largest, highest-altitude nature reserve with the richest wildlife resources.

The climate in Hoh Xil is harsh and natural conditions are severe; humans cannot live there long-term. Thus it is also called the ‘Third Pole’ and ‘life-forbidden zone’. However, precisely because of this, Hoh Xil provides unique survival conditions for highland wildlife, making it a veritable ‘wildlife paradise’.

With an average altitude above 4,600 meters, Hoh Xil has unique natural landscapes, a web of rivers, and a scattering of lakes. Within a single square kilometer there are over 100 lakes, and glaciers cover an area of up to 1,800 square kilometers. Snow mountains, gorges, stone forests, stone rings, and boiling springs beneath glaciers together form Hoh Xil’s unique snow-plateau wonders.

In 2019, Hoh Xil was inscribed on the UNESCO World Natural Heritage list. The huge billboard reading ‘Consolidate the heritage application achievement, protect the beautiful source of the rivers’ reminds us: faced with beautiful Hoh Xil, we have no choice but to treat it kindly and protect it!

Hoh Xil is reputed as the ‘animal kingdom’ of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with large, diverse wildlife populations. Rare highland animals like Tibetan antelopes, wild yaks, Tibetan wild asses, snow leopards, and brown bears inhabit this land. Meanwhile, under blue skies and white clouds, golden eagles, black-necked cranes, and whooper swans soar, and fish like the naked-belly barbel swim in the lakes – all species unique to the plateau. (Above photo) I was lucky to capture Tibetan wild asses running near the railway. Although I also saw Tibetan antelopes, I couldn’t photograph them.

The long convoy of trucks ahead was not due to any accident or situation, but the highway management was forming the trucks into groups to ensure drivers could safely cross this life-forbidden zone. Today, Hoh Xil’s desolation and isolation are long gone. The excellent roads, railways, communications, power, and oil and gas supplies provide every support to the endless stream of trucks running on the Qinghai-Tibet line daily. And these hardworking truck drivers, for the development of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the great western development, tirelessly deliver everything people need! They are heroes on this road too!

Everything today is the fruit of people’s hard work. Beyond its original landscapes, the most splendid thing about Hoh Xil is still its people! From the early road and railway builders, pioneers, to today’s managers and protectors – it is because of predecessors who defied danger and sacrificed their lives that we can now ride the train to see the ‘Sky Road’! It is because of their unremitting efforts that a truly beautiful Hoh Xil is revealed before you and the world!

Bright heavens, primordial wilderness, a plateau secret realm; scattered lakes, intersecting rivers, ancient ridges, a wild landscape full of spirit. Hoh Xil is a miracle wrought by nature, the nirvana of the Creator! On this ‘Sky Road’ across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of my homeland, I finally beheld its soul-stirring sights!

When the train reached Wudaoliang in the Kunlun Mountains, the sun was slowly setting behind the ridges. The fiery sunset that evening was spectacular. It was already past 9 p.m., and my full 12-hour ride on the Qinghai-Tibet train to see the ‘Sky Road’ came to a close. In an early summer June, on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway of my country, through my own eyes, I had explored this vast, magical ‘Sky Road’ and fulfilled a ten-year anticipation!

Early on June 19, the train arrived punctually at Xining station. I had been here before; everything still looked as I remembered, which felt very warm.

After breakfast near the station square, I walked to the bus passenger center east of the train station, where I took a dedicated shuttle bus (20 yuan per person, 30 kilometers, about 40 minutes) to Xining Caojiabao Airport. With my heart full of joy from this trip to Sichuan and Tibet, I flew back on flight GJ7080 of Loong Air around noon that day, returning to my everyday life. Life may be like this – ordinary yet sometimes full of highlights! (The End) Jinling Lexue, July 2020