Tiger Leaping Gorge, the gorge with the biggest drop in the whole world, is famous for its magnificence, danger and strangeness, attracting countless tourists at home and abroad to travel there. A large part of them are hiking.
First of all, it should be said that going to Tiger Leaping Gorge to take a look and hiking through Tiger Leaping Gorge are two different concepts, so you must plan the route well and make full preparations before going.
There have been too many hikers who have trekked through Tiger Leaping Gorge. Some Chinese and foreign names such as "Tinas", "Havvie", and "28 Turns" are often talked about by many people who have walked or haven't walked yet. Of course, there will also be more hikers planning to trek through Tiger Leaping Gorge.
In the eyes of travel agencies, tour guides, and tourists who like to play scenic spots, Tiger Leaping Gorge refers to the Upper Tiger Leaping Gorge. You can take a bus from Lijiang or Zhongdian, pass over the bridgehead (Tiger Leaping Gorge Town) into the canyon road, get off at the Upper Tiger Leaping Gorge scenic spot, go down to the riverbank to take a look, climb back up to the road, get on the bus, and return. Travel agencies usually do not organize hikes through Tiger Leaping Gorge.
It's very easy to take a car to the Tiger Leaping Gorge scenic spot. You can join a one-day tour group in any travel agency in Lijiang, or hire a taxi with a few people. In half a day, you can have a one-day tour of "Lijiang - Lashi Sea - First Bend of the Yangtze River - Tiger Leaping Gorge - Lijiang (Zhongdian)". The Tiger Leaping Gorge scenic spot is divided into the Zhongdian side and the Lijiang side. The entrance fee is 30 yuan per person. Usually, taxis from Lijiang take guests to the Lijiang side (without crossing the river, not reaching the bridgehead, newly developed), while cars from Zhongdian take guests to the old scenic spots on the Zhongdian side, entering the canyon road after passing the bridgehead, for the purpose of keeping the benefits within their own territory. The two scenic spots are across the river from each other. For tourists, the difference is: On the Zhongdian side of the scenic spot, there is about a 300-meter drop from the parking area to the riverside of the Upper Tiger Leaping Gorge, all stone steps, which can be tiring when climbing back; on the Lijiang side of the scenic spot, from the parking area to the riverside of the Upper Tiger Leaping Gorge, you need to walk about 3 kilometers of boardwalks, but there is no drop.
Hiking through Tiger Leaping Gorge means starting from Daju, crossing the entire gorge and finally reaching the bridgehead, either the entire journey on foot, or vice versa from the bridgehead to Daju. In the 1980s, foreigners were the first to cross the gorge on these mountain trails. The route was: Daju - Old Ferry - Walnut Garden - Dashengou - Ben Diwan - Two Families - 28 Turns - Zhongluoyu - Changsheng - Bridgehead. Gradually, simple guesthouses began to appear along the way, providing basic catering services. Such as "Woody Hotel" and "Shanquan Inn" in Walnut Garden and "Half Way Inn" in Ben Diwan. By the mid-1990s, there were still only these three inns on this road.
Year after year, until now, the path through the gorge has become easier to walk, there are more and more guesthouses and inns along the way, and the facilities and conditions are getting better and better. There are now two ferry crossings in Daju, and there is also a path leading down to the middle Tiger Leaping Gorge riverside. Similarly, more and more domestic and foreign travelers are hiking through the gorge. Whether walking fast or slow, whether physically fit or not, there is no worry about consequences, so it has already become a very comfortable journey.
Different hikers will have different hiking speeds, physical conditions, planned time, and costs, so I try to design several ways for different time schedules. Which one do you like?
For several ways, I do not recommend the old route from Daju to the bridgehead against the current, but recommend the reverse way from the bridgehead to Daju following the current, which is already liked by most hikers. The reason everyone knows is that now taking the bus from Lijiang to Daju, even though you are not going to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, you are forced to buy a 60-yuan snow mountain ticket per person (40 + 20), which is infuriating. 60 yuan is already the total cost of food and accommodation on this journey; for a group of 4 people, 60 yuan per person is the cost of a chartered car for a one-day tour.
At the same time, the place names I mention below are all village names or place names passed through during the entire crossing. I do not advocate using the name of a certain inn or restaurant to replace a village name. Perhaps many foreign names are familiar to many hikers, but besides representing a place in the circle of netizens and hikers, how much value do they have in actual hiking? For example: if you encounter villagers during your hike and ask where "TINA'S" is and how far it is, I think very few people can answer you, but if you ask about "Dashengou" where "TINA'S" is located, which villager does not know?
Characteristics of various inns and lodges along the way:
Naxi Family: The inn with the most beautiful environment —— you can overlook several snow peaks of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the yard.
Half Way: The inn with the most imported donkeys —— it has a great reputation among foreigners.
Tina’s: The inn with the most domestic donkeys —— convenient transportation, it is said that the chicken soup is delicious.
Shanquan Inn: The inn with the most romantic stories —— the love and marriage of disabled Xia Shanquan and Australian girl Maya once caused a sensation.
Woody: The inn with the longest history in the gorge —— opened in 1983, there were only 3 beds at that time.
Snow Flake Inn: The inn with the cheapest food prices —— Nescafe coffee for 3 yuan, tea for 1.50 yuan.
Peace Gorge Inn: The newest opened inn —— seems to have been open for only a few months?
Five Fingers Mountain Inn: The inn with the least customers —— who calls it the same village as HALF WAY?
Old Horse Inn: Haven't passed by, don't know. But if not for accommodation, at the fork near Zhongluoyu, please follow the "NAXI FAMILY" signpost instead of following the OLDHORSE directional sign, otherwise, you will walk an extra uphill and downhill.
(To be continued)