Things to do in Ganzi Prefecture

这次入住真的很满意！房间里有制氧机和加湿器，对高反太友好了，简直是高原旅行的得力助手。最惊喜的是第一次不用早起去景区抢位置，躺在床上就看到了日照金山，太幸福了！吃早餐的时候也能继续欣赏雪山，风景真的绝了。晚餐也很好吃，酥油炒牦牛肉和清炒松茸都值得推荐。整体体验超出预期，下次来还会选择这里！

I absolutely loved this place, especially its unique stone forest landscape. The "stones" here aren't formed by erosion or volcanic eruptions, but rather by mylonite squeezed out from the Xianshui River fault zone and then sculpted by weathering into these stone forests. There are many large stone forests here, with bizarre and breathtaking shapes. It's a pity that photos don't capture their full beauty; they're nowhere near as impressive as they appear to the naked eye. Perhaps it's because the colors are so uniform. The stones here are gray, with occasional black spots, but not entirely jet black. It's the soil here that's black, with a black, coal-like appearance. These stone forests look very solid, but they're actually not that solid inside. The entire scenic area is quite large. We parked our car at the exit parking lot, where we could enter through the ticket check, saving the 20 yuan for the sightseeing bus, although it meant walking a bit of the same route twice. We explored each stone forest carefully, spending a total of three hours here because we loved every single one of them so much we couldn't stop walking! If you park at the visitor center and exit from the scenic area, you'll need to take the sightseeing bus back. It's not too far from the exit to the visitor center, but it would probably take more than ten minutes to walk there.

During my trip to Western Sichuan, Kangding was a stop along the way. I chose Mugecuo Lake as a place to get accustomed to the atmosphere. I had visited it 10 years ago, and the service is even better now. Since I entered the park in the afternoon and was short on time, the staff at the shuttle bus rest stop were very helpful. They arranged the boarding process in an orderly manner, explained the sightseeing schedule, and were very attentive during the handover of passengers. Perhaps due to climate change, the red stones on the beach didn't seem as red as they used to be.

Hailuogou Scenic Area is mainly for viewing snow-capped mountains. Whether you can take good photos depends largely on the weather. Due to continuous rain, I waited for 4 days before entering the scenic area. The service was very good, after all, it is a 5A scenic area. The ticket prices for the shuttle bus and cable car are relatively high.

Because it's the off-season, driving into the scenic area is the best option. I took the scenic area shuttle bus, but there aren't many buses during the off-season, so you have to stay in the same car and sit in the same spot. This greatly shortens your sightseeing time to only about 2.5 hours, which is not enough. If you want to enjoy the area at a leisurely pace, you should drive into the scenic area yourself.

Light and shadow + snow-capped mountains + Tibetan villages + yak hot pot: capture the essence of Western Sichuan in one trip! 📍Xinduqiao is not a tourist attraction, but a small town in western Ganzi and Kangding, at the intersection of G318 and G248 highways, a must-stop station on the Sichuan-Tibet Highway. It's renowned: 📸A photographer's paradise, ✨A world of light and shadow. Beauty lies in its 10+ kilometer scenic corridor: golden poplars, streams, Tibetan villages, and snow-capped mountains, like a flowing oil painting. The essence of the trip: Treat it as Western Sichuan base camp, explore during the day, and return to the town at an altitude of approximately 3300 meters to sleep at night, without carrying any luggage. 🗓️When to go? 🍂Late September to early November: Golden season, mid-to-late October when the poplars turn golden, peak photography time. 🌱May-June: Grasslands turn green again, wildflowers bloom everywhere. ☀️July-August: Summer retreat, stargazing, mushroom picking, matsutake season, but be mindful of the weather during the rainy season. ❄️December-February: Like an ink painting, less crowded, tranquil golden sunrise over the mountains. 🎮Core Activities 📸Chasing the Light 🌅7:00-9:00: Photographing the crepuscular rays: 3km poplar forest in Waze Township or Qumogong. 🌇16:00-18:30: Photographing the warm light of Tibetan villages, backlit silhouettes at the Gongga viewing platform. 🛣️Ten-Mile Gallery: Approximately 15km of the most scenic section of G318/G248. Secret code: Photograph the poplar shadows in the early morning, photograph the golden sunrise over the mountains in the evening. 🏔️Mountain Watch Yuzixi: Altitude approximately 4200 meters, 360° views of Gongga, Yala, and Qingrao. Panoramic views in the afternoon, golden sunrise over the mountains in the evening, Milky Way at night. Strong winds, wear a thick coat! SUVs are recommended for gravel roads. Gongga Viewpoint: 5 km from town, offering panoramic views of snow-capped mountains, villages, and rivers with a telephoto lens. Gaersi Sacred Mountain: Within 1 hour, free and less crowded. 🗺️Northern Route Yuzixi → Gedilam → Tagong Grassland → Gunong Village → Moshi Park. Take photos of Yala Snow Mountain and Muya Golden Pagoda at Tagong, and circumambulate the pagoda; take photos of otherworldly landscapes at Moshi. 🗺️Southern Route Juli Temple Pass → Jiagenba → Lenggacuo. Jiagenba is a pristine Tibetan village with few tourists; the E'se flowers bloom in July. Lenggacuo offers views of Gongga Mountain's reflection; a clear day is ideal. 🍄Local Experience In July and August, go mushroom picking with a guide. Open blind boxes of porcini and oak mushrooms, and cook fresh mushroom soup back at your guesthouse. ⚠️Don't eat anything you don't recognize! 🐎 Horse riding in Tagong; 🏠 Ask permission before visiting a Tibetan village and drinking butter tea; 🛏️ Tibetan-style guesthouses have oxygen-filled underfloor heating, and snow-capped mountains visible from the windows. 🍲 Highland Flavors · 🍲 Yak meat hot pot: The soul of the meal! Warms the body and combats altitude sickness. Recommended at Axi Pottery and Black Barley Estate. · 🍵 Butter tea: Salty and fragrant, relieves altitude sickness; sweet tea is an alternative if you don't like it. · 🥛 Yak yogurt: Thick and tangy, even better with sugar. · 🫓 Barley cakes + Tibetan buns: Authentic breakfast. · 🍄 Wild mushroom soup: A must-try in summer and autumn; red pine mushrooms are harvested from July to September. Restaurants on the main street cost 30-70 RMB per person. Tip: Ask the owner of the guesthouse where you're staying; Tibetan food at guesthouses is often a pleasant surprise. 🚗Transportation + 🛏️Accommodation 🚗Driving: Chengdu → Kangding → Highway 318 (crossing Zheduo Mountain), approximately 5-6 hours; High-speed rail to Kangding, then share a car, approximately 35-50 RMB/person; Charter a car in Chengdu, approximately 800-1000 RMB/day. 🛏️Boutique Tibetan-style guesthouses with snow-capped mountain views from the window; Guesthouses in town, approximately 200-350 RMB/night. ⚠️Tips 🏔️Altitude 3300 meters: Move slowly, start on the first day...

Autumn in Jiaju Tibetan Village is definitely worth a visit. The watchtowers and Tibetan houses are scattered among various colors, making it incredibly beautiful. If you're driving, you can find a guesthouse to stay overnight, take your time to explore, and capture the pristine beauty.

The scenery in Daocheng Yading is amazing. This is my second time visiting. The buses and shuttle buses are very convenient. There are service personnel everywhere, and there are many hot water and oxygen supply stations. Staff at the supply stations can help measure blood oxygen levels.

Yala Snow Mountain is so beautiful, and the best part is that it's less crowded and you can drive there yourself. It's just as beautiful as Siguniang Mountain. You can't drive any further at the final service area, so it's best to bring an oxygen tank and ride a herdsman's horse up the mountain to see Yala Youcuo Lake. It was a beautiful and perfect trip, and my parents both loved it.

Internet-famous Tree The alarm clock hit 6:35 AM, and I crawled out of the tent and showered with ice-cold water. All the sleepiness was gone! Breakfast was at 7:30 AM, and we set off at 8:00 AM sharp! Today's destination was the internet-famous tree! Honestly, without a guide, I wouldn't have known which tree it was. 😂 But the highlight of the day wasn't the destination, but the grassland scenery along the way. This was my first time exploring such a vast expanse of grassland! The mountain was covered in tiny toothbrush flowers, so beautiful! We naturally took tons of beautiful photos. I was even happier to capture the beautiful scenery and my companions than to take any beautiful photos myself! The snow-capped mountains, as usual, were shy, revealing only a portion of their appearance. We rested at a tree for a snack and waited for almost half an hour, but still didn't get to see the entirety of Genyen. Today's hike: 26,017 steps