trip to Wenhai and Baoshan Stone village

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It has been long time that I haven’t guided for tourists, today is kind of new for me. I haven’t any ideas for how to start to be guide? How I can meet them? What I should talk to them? ???? a lot of questions come to my mind. “it’s ok! To be relax, you can be excellent guide! You can do good job! Just go meet them!!!!!!!!!” I always encourage myself! Because I need guide for them to visit Wenhai village, Baoshan Stone Town, Snow mountain and Tiger Leaping Gorge for few days.


First day: I go the big hotel where they stay in south of old town to pick them up with driver on time(09:40). They come out on time to meet me, it is very strange for me to see they bring two very big suitcase, looks very heavy instead big backpack. Because usually almost all of our tourists carry big backpack. We move their suicase to car, then driving about 30minutes to Baisha Old town. We just bring something for the day’s hiking, I ask the driver come to Ecofarm guesthouse tonight. We only start hiking at 10:40am, it is already very warm, but the views around our hiking path is very nice. Today we must from the place with the altutide 2500m hike to Wenhai village where the altitude is 3100m, the deeth is about 600~700m.. I am little worry about them at beggining, because looks they are not good hiker like our normal customers. but after we started, I fell they really love nature and very interested in most of plants around us, so I think they will be fine! When we go hike, on the way I just try my best to walk slowly than usual and try to let them feel it is not hard to hike. Because if we walk fast, it will be very hard for us, especially for them to feel hard to breath. most of way we enjoy our hiking, enjoy seeing many different kinds of plants around us. They are live in big city and don’t have much chance to close to natuer, many things are so interesting for them.

There is one big plant called“Coptis Tree”, there are many small white berry on the plant.I ask them:“do you know what this and what they are use for？” they shake their head. Everywhere there are many different kinds of herbs,the local people says“when you sit down, under your hip, at least there are three kinds of herbs.” Usually if local people have cold, headache, stomach…,they don’t like go hospital, they just collect some local herbs for themselves! So this plant is kind of herb, mostly for cooling( if it’s too hot inside of your body, we use the roots to make tea to drink), also the roots use for making medicine.

On the way we also collect some wild berry or other things to eat: kind of red berry, tasting a little sour; on the pine needles, there are some white sugar, tasting very sweet, we can it is sugar of pineneedles. I remember when I was child, during this season, my parents always collected for us when they went mountains. I pick it up and give them to taste it, they told me it is very delicious and sweet.

Almost every 5 steps, she must have a little rest, looks it is kind of big challenge for her, because the altitude, also the very strong sunshine. She asks me“ if I only can hike like this, do you think we could arrive Wenhai today!” “yes, of course! We still have long day for us to hike, please don’t worry!

Finally we are not so bad, we just like normal clients, we just did 3 hours, come to the top of the Fenghuang Mountain where we can get very nice view of Lijiang city area, also most part of Baisha. They are so excited to hear that we needn’t climb up again, and very close to Wenhai village.

Instead we spend long time after we come into the village, he loves taking pictures, looks almost everything here is so very new and interesting for him, it is hard for him to stop taking photos. Like： wood fence around small pieces of land, colourful rooster, naxi traditional building’s construction which made of muddy bricks, little pigs and chicken are running everywhere… they are so common for us, but for them, this kind of scene are so special for them. From the beginning of the village to the Ecofarm Guesthouse, we already spent 2 hours.

So we only arrive there around 17:00. Looks they are so tired from long hiking, they just check in and rest, we only make appointment for dinner around 19:00. Because it has been for a while that I haven’t hiked, also come to here. I feel a little tired, but also very happy to back here to stay.


Wenhai is a small village with about 100 Naxi families, where is at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain which is the highest mountain in Lijiang. It is coveried by snow throughout whole year. The water in Wenhai area comes from the snow smelt of snow mountain. It is not very far from outside, but because the road, also the condition here is not as good as other places around Lijiang city. So till now the local people still keep their traditional life, custom, culture very well. Usually they speak Naxi language, wearing their traditional clothing in daily life.

Maybe because the altitude is higher(h:3100m) and very cold during winter time, so they couldn’t have many crops, only potatos, barly, tunip. Most of them for animals, very little for people. They must buy their food from outside. They are kind of grazing farm, there are horses, pigs, cows, yaks, many goats and… mostly their income is from animals, they also make charcoal, but now cut trees is kind of forbid, so they can’t make much like before anymore. Also now most of younger people have gone to Lijiang or other cities to find some job to do!


Second Day: Wenhai---Jade Dragon Snow Mountain----Baoshan Stone
We have breakfast at 8:30am, the local Naxi woman cooks fried bread which made of wheat floura, porridge, fried potatos and green tea. Taste so delicious and we have a lot! After we thanks to the owner of Ecofarm guesthouse, starting our trip for Baoshan Stone Town. It will be a long day for driving. There is about 120km from Lijiang to Baoshan Stone village, on the way we still need stop to visit some places.

After 1 hour we come down to the nice road where is close by the Fuguo Temple, because we don’t have time to go inside to visit, also there is nothing besides two monks, and some buildings, they are planning to repair it. It is the biggest and oldest Tibetan Buddhism Temple in Lijiang among 5 Tibetan Buddhism Temple. But I heard during the Culture Revoluntion, all the temples were destried including Fuguo temple. The main hall of the temple was moved to Black Dragon Pool, it is Five Phoenix Building. It is still very good for tourists to visit.

WE continue driving about another 40minutes come to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain landscape area, there are so many tourism buses in bus station where is leave for other places( Glacier, Yunshan Meadow and Yak Meadow).Too many tourists are follow the flags to move around there.

Normally after we get tickets, we must wait for long time to get seats in bus to different places. But today our purpose is to Baoshan Stone village, we can directly drive to Yak Meadow with our own driver without spending any time to wait for bus. We feel we are so lucky! On the way we stop to take some pictures of snow mountain when we can get nice views of snow mountains. Then we by cable-car for 30minutes up to Yak meadow. When we come up to the higher place(h: 3700m), it is a little wind and feel cold, we can walk about 2 hours from corridor to visit the meadow and snow mountain, but today we only walk to Snowflake Temple to visit, then back down to car.

We stop for lunch in small town called“Mingyin” where is the only small town on the way to Baoshan Stone village. After we have simple lunch, we continue our trip to Baoshan Stone Town. I am so happy to see the road has improved a lot from before, no any bump. Just feel the road much narrow than before, maybe because the road paved very nice. On the way we pass by several small villages, we just enjoy the views by the road, looks they are enjoying taking pictures and asking driver to drive slowly. Our driver stop for us to take picture of mountains, terrace fields, special Naxi traditional houses…

Around 4:00pm, we come to the bus station where is we need walking down to stone village. Because they have very big and heavy luggage, so I have been called guesthouse help us to arrange one horse to carry their luggage. We walk down from small path for people to walk for about 1hour. Finally we arrive at the gate of Stone Village,I heard there are two gates for this village, this is one of main gate of the stone village which lies on the big rock, there are only 108families inside of gate. Following the development, there isn’t any space for more family, so most of families moved to outside of the gate. At the gate, there are many old people relaxing there, the old women wear black headband and talk in very traditional Naxi language, usually we can’t understand their pure Naxi language, but they can understand me! Around the Stone village, there is a lot of terrace fields with good crops, under the fields, it is the Yangt-Ze River which is around Lijiang about 615km.

From the very narrow path, we are leaded to local guesthouse in the middle of village. There is kind Naxi traditional house, because the land is limited, so there is only one big building there. Upstair for guests to live, besides bedroom, there is one sitting room too with very nice views of mountains, rivers, fields…


Third day: we just walk around the village, even we can hike down to Yangt-Ze River or hike to other big mountains.
During the ancient time, it was kind of important place. From 1277~1294, there was Lijiang Gover office, so it is place where the Naxi people lived early. Also the place where the Kublai Khan crossed the Yangt-Ze river to south. I heard it is very safe place druing ancient, if they closed two gates of village, nobody could come inside, because the wall is very high and it is impossible for them to climb up to village.They live on big rock, some family use the big rock to make different things for use in home, like: bed, stove, jar...

There are many Naxi Dongba before culture revolution, besides worship nature, there are wash oxhorn festival, after they planted rice during May in Lunar month, all the cows would take a bath by their owner and get good food, it means people depends this festival to thanks for their hard work.

Also there were two times to worship their ancestors. But during the Culture Revolution, most of culture were destoried, so many Dongba left or not continue to be Dongba.


This is last day for our trip, today we need leave for Tiger Leaping gorge and back to Lijiang. After breakfast, goodbye to everyone in guesthouse, we leave stone village. When we come to the gate and look at our way up to bus station, it is long way for us to climb up, also it is very steep. It is kind of hard for them to up, we move up very slowly, finally we spend about 1hours and come the car. Another 2 hours’s driving,we come to lower gorge where is end of Tiger Leaping gorge。 The water is so blue and clear.

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Photos

tiger Leaping gorge
Short part of Lower Tiger Leaping Gorge during March

Terrace
there is many terrace fields in Baoshan Stone village in north of Lijiang city

Baisha valley
on the hiking path from Lijiang to Wenhai village, you can get very nice views of baisha valley and others...

village
the village outside of Stone village, when you stay in homestay in stone village, you can look out to see the nice views of families

wenhai village
Wenhai village where is northwest of Lijiang, at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

wild plant
this wild plant can be useful for medicion

ston stove
the stone stove which the local people used during ancient time

yak meadow
Yak Meadow is part of the most famouse Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in Lijiang with the altitude 3700m