Roaming the World (1763) Part 4 of Jiangsu-Anhui Self-Drive Tour - "Wannan 318"

📍 Rotorua · 👁 5691 reads

In early and mid-April 2024, while participating in a Jiangsu-Anhui self-drive tour, I visited the "Wannan 318" in Anhui Province. Photo taken at "Wannan 318".

The mysterious Wannan "Sichuan-Tibet Highway", also known as "Jiangnan Sky Road, Wannan 318", starts from Qinglong Township in Ningguo City in the east and ends at Caicun Town in Jing County in the west, with its highlight section about 120 kilometers long. The picture shows a guide map of "Wannan 318".

Route of Wannan Sichuan-Tibet Highway: Ningguo urban area, Anhui — Qinglong Township — Chujiatan — Fangtang Township — Banqiao Village — Taoling — Suhong Village — Tingxi Township — Aimin Township — Caicun Town, Jing County, Anhui. The picture shows the starting point in Ningguo urban area, the Count Dynasty Hotel.

How did this road come about? Taoling, as an old revolutionary base area, with its steep terrain and inconvenient transportation, provided strong shelter for the Red Army. It was the seat of the Soviet Government of the Wannan Special Zone and also a base for our party's guerrilla forces during the Anti-Japanese War. Photo taken at "Wannan 318".

After liberation, Taoling did not see much economic improvement. In the summer of 1972, under the leadership of then county party secretary Wang Leping, the local people used their own hands to carve out a road leading to a new life. The project started on October 24 of that year and was completed and opened to traffic on December 24, 1976, taking four years and two months. Photo taken at "Wannan 318".

During the road construction, the people of Taoling who built the road endured various hardships and finally presented to the world a grand project that seemed impossible at the time - the Shangban Road. Photo taken at "Wannan 318".

Ningguo City, which enjoys the title of "Top Ten Most Beautiful Towns in Beautiful China", was established as a county in the 13th year of Jian'an of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 208). The county name means "country peaceful and prosperous, people well-fed and content". With clear waters and green mountains, it forms a natural beautiful landscape painting. The picture shows a sketch of returning home along the way.

The scenery along the way is even more breathtaking; Moon Bay, Banqiao Village, viewing platforms, etc., every turn hides a surprise!

When you arrive at Qinglong Bay, you will understand why true masters like to live in seclusion among the mountains and waters!

Chujiatan is located downstream of Qinglong Bay, which is known as a "National Water Scenic Area and National Forest Park". The sparkling mountain lake and the surrounding peaks create a beautiful picture of sky and water blending into one, like being in a fairyland.

It passes through quaint and natural mountain water towns, with the unique gentle and graceful beauty of Jiangnan.

There are deep primeval forests and hidden secret realms, attracting countless tourists from all over the country, batches of self-driving teams and cycling teams to come and check in and take photos.

Tingxi Scenic Area integrates green mountains and clear waters, forests and tea gardens, exotic flowers and trees, strange rocks and deep pools. It contains 100,000 mu of primeval forest, the only remaining primitive forest area on the Jianghuai land. The four seasons are distinct, presenting a pure ecological "ink painting" masterpiece.

Moon Bay is a filming location for many films and TV dramas. Excellent works such as "Laughter in Moon Bay", "Red Memories", and "Reconnaissance Across the Yangtze" have all been filmed here.

It passes through quaint and natural mountain water towns, with the unique gentle and graceful beauty of Jiangnan.

It passes through steep cliffs and mountain walls, with breathtaking thrills above the clouds.

A few curves so close to Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Anhui, and Jiangxi attract self-driving and cycling enthusiasts to experience the thrill and excitement of "high road into the clouds"! It is the Taoling Highway in Jing County, Anhui!

Taoling Highway is a winding mountain road from Suhong Township, Jing County, Anhui to Banqiao Township, Ningguo via Taoling. It is separated by several large mountains, all above 800 meters in altitude, with about 10 kilometers of uphill and 10 kilometers of downhill. The terrain is steep and the scenery is charming. The most beautiful winding mountain road among them is Liudao Bay.

The enchanting scenery along the way made us temporarily forget the bumpy road, and the colorful natural hues satisfied our greed for nature.