High Trail : Qiaotou,
school <===> Tina's
Guesthouse |
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How to hike the High
Trail: |
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takes 7 to 8 hours to hike the High Trial, not including
breaks and photographing. It's recommended to do it in
two days. |
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Two-day journey 1: Stay overnight
at Tea-horse Trade Guesthouse.
- Catch a bus leaving Lijiang or Zhongdian at
7:00 in the morning, arrive at
Qiaotou between 9:00 and 10:00.
- Devote
rest of the day to a tough 900-meter-height ascent.
You should be able to reach Tea-horse in 4 to 5
hours. Stay at this friendly and clean guesthouse.
- Next morning, admire the magnificent view of
Yulong Snow Mountain at sunrise and set off at 8
:00am.
- While arriving at Half Way, take a break and
drink a cup of tea on their balcony where you can
enjoy a breathtaking view.
- Before noon, you can arrive at Tina's. Take
your lunch there, and hike down to visit the Middle
Tiger Leaping Stone.
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Two-day journey 2: Stay overnight
at Naxi Family
Guesthouse.
- If
you are not able to get up early, you can take a bus
leaving Lijiang or Zhongdian before 12:00,
arrive at
Qiaotou between 14:00 and 15:30.
- In
maximum two hours, you are able to reach Naxi Family.
Spend the night at this clean, friendly
guesthouse.
- Next morning, admire the sunrise
and then attack the ascent of 28 Bends.
- Have your lunch either at
Tea-horse or Half Way. Take your time to enjoy the
splendid landscape.
- Arrive at Tina's in the late
afternoon.
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One-day journey is reserved for those who are physically strong for
the ascent.
- In order to set off early in the
morning, hikers have to spend the night before in
Qiaotou where accommodations are less pleasant than
those in Lijiang and Zhongdian.
- When the Low Road was still a
footpath, hikers usually took this itinerary for the
first day and trekked further to Daju for the second
day. It's not necessary to do it now.
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Other
possibilities:
- Set off at Tina's Guesthouse
if you come from Baishuitai or Daju, climb to Half
Way, walk to Tea-horse, spend the night at Naxi
Family. Go to Qiaotou the next day.
The ascent is less steep than
the ascent from Qiaotou, the contrary direction.
Warning : While walking on the large trail
after Half Way, you should look carefully for a narrow
path on your right with a sign marked for Tea-horse
direction. If you miss this side path and follow the
large trail, you will descend to the 14km point on the
Low Road.
- Set off at the 14 km point,
walk to Half Way and finish at Tina's.
I met a
Chinese group at Tina's Guesthouse who had started
their trek from the 14km point (which means the
distance to Qiaotou is 14 km) on the Low Road. They
climbed to Half Way along a tractor road and walked
down to Tina's Guesthouse. It was a tough 5-hour trek.
However the best part of High Trial was not in it. I
don't recommend this route. If you ask a local travel
agency to arrange your hike, make sure that they would
not arrange this route for you.
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Stage 1 |
Stage 2 |
Stage 3 |
Stage 4 |
Stage 5 |
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Qiaotou |
>> |
Naxi
Family |
>> |
Summit of
28
Bends |
>> |
Tea-horse |
>> |
Half Way
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>> |
Tina's |
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(1800m) |
1.5-2 h |
(2200m) |
2-2.5 h |
(2670m) |
30 - 45 m |
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1-1.5 h |
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2 h |
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Stage 1: From Qiaotou, cross the bridge, walk 1km along the main
road to the school. Take the narrow path beside school
basketball courts, follow it until meeting a tractor road. You
will see a sign of High Trail on your left. In several
minutes, you shall reach a village called 'Len3du2' where you
can hire horses. Walk through the village, the trail goes up
along the hillside.
In 20 minutes, you will reach the next village. A shop
called Sunrise sells water and snacks. The path narrows after
the village, rises gradually, and then turns left into the
Gorge. Here the narrow trail snakes
up along a vertical slope. The site of the Upper Tiger Leaping
Stone can be seen several hundred meters down from the trail.
Behind the cliff rising
vertically 2000 meters from the opposite side of the river
hides the 5596m Yulong Snow Mountain, almost 4000 meters above
the river level. You walk the next 45 minutes in such a
dramatic landscape till reaching the Nuoyu Village. You can
see a red flag hanging on the roof. It is Naxi family
Guesthouse.
Stage 2: The most
difficult part of trail, the 28 Bends, comes after Naxi Family
Guesthouse. Take your time and keep a regular rhythm while
climbing. In two hours you will embrace gentle winds on the
summit and be rewarded by a magnificent panorama.
Stage 3: In another
30 to 45 minutes, you will reach Tea-horse Trade
Guesthouse.
Stage 4:
From Tea-horse to Half Way, it is a
flat walk for 1.5 hours. You will enjoy the most beautiful
part of High Trail. 10 minutes before Half Way,
the narrow trail meets a tractor road, keep the same direction
as the contrary direction brings you down to the 14 km point
on the Low Road.
Stage 5: Several
beautiful cascades and falls appear on the trail after Half
Way. The most beautiful fall is called Quanyin Fall. Soon the Middle Gorge can be
seen together with switchbacks of Low Road. There is a small climb
leading you to a ridge at 2480m. Then the trail descends
gradually to Tina's Guesthouse. A shortcut to Zhang's
Guesthouse is marked by a sign on the trail. (See Middle Tiger
Leaping Stone). The High Trail terminates at Tina's Guesthouse
where a bridge was under construction during my visit in
September 2003.
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| Difficulty: Medium. The ascent from Naxi Family Guesthouse to the
summit of 28 Bends is the toughest part. |
| Food/Water: All the guesthouses have restaurants offering nice
food. You can take a rest there and have a cup of tea for
free, resume your hike with full bottle of water.
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| Route mark: Red, yellow, black arrows marked by different
guesthouses are found at each crossroad |
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When to go: Avoid the summer raining season: from June to
September. The trail will be muddy and slippery. You can hike
in all other seasons, The winter is dry and not
cold.
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- During raining seasons, it is important to
have a raincoat, and a stick to help the descent.
- When the trail narrows, look carefully at it,
especially when the trail traverses precipitous slopes. Make
a stop to admire the amazing landscape. Many accidents
happened due to hikers' negligence, even a tiny misstep.
- Luggage:
- Leave
unnecessary luggage at a cafe in Qiaotou if you plan to come
back after the trek. Try Gorged Tiger Cafe on your right
after crossing the bridge in Qiaotou.
- If you don't
make a round trip, you can rent a horse to carry luggage in
Qiaotou or any guesthouse mentioned in Accommodations.
- Horse Trek: Y80 per
horse with a groom from Qiaotou to Tea Horse Trade
Guesthouse, Y100 to Half Way Guesthouse. It is not
recommended for those who have never done horse trek before
as some parts of the trail are slippery and
dangerous.
- Avoid walking in the night !!
Don't fix your schedule too tight, make sure that you
are able to reach any lodge before night.
During the day, it easy to find signs at crossroads
and diversions.
- Ticket: Y30.-. It is possible to detour the ticket
office.
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