Nanzhai Gongfang Ancient Tea Horse Road and GaoliGongshan Mountain Hiking Tour from Tengchong to Baihualing

In 2010, I remember it was the first time i went to Baoshan(宝山) when i began my work. Because i was appointed by my department to visit the student’s living buildings in a hope primary school financially supported by a famous brand entity,i went to the Qinghe(清河) primary school in Datianba(大田坝)，a town in Changing(昌宁) county under Baoshan(宝山).I put myself into work so quickly without paying any attention to Baoshan(宝山) appearance.

I went to Baoshan(宝山) again in June ,2012. Directly, we went to Xiaopingtian(小平田) county since it was the first time we visited Nanzhai(南寨) public houses. On the Double Fifth Festival, it ceaselessly rained for a whole day, because of my father’s assuring confidence in direction recognition, we began our “hiking” traveling without the help of a tour guide. Some tree branches were snapped by rains.there were no ways uder our feet, let alone in front of our eyes, so we got lost. Then we deadly struggled to find the returning way and finally went back to Baihualing(百花岭) protection station.When it reminds me of the attacks we suffered from leechs, the steepness of mountain roads,i still feel deadly astonishing.

I feeled that there still would be rains on the 2013 national holiday, but i totally strengthened my determination to go for the thip because what we have suffered last time. when my luggage was prepared, we normally driven to Xiaopingba(小平坝) county in Baoshan(宝山) city at 5:50,1st October. Indulged myself in beautiful landscapes alone the whole trip, a delusion of being in the hometown of Dai people in Ruili(瑞丽) suddenly came into my mind.

I enjoyed the fantastic sights while i was driving, it’s what the traveling means to a person.

Picture Illustration: Lujiang(潞江) Big Bridge

Picture Illustration: Xiaopingtian(小平田) Basin

Picture Illustration: River Beauty

PS:1.The way from Kunming(昆明）to Baoshan(宝山) is quite comfortable, it’s all highway, from Baoshan(宝山) to Xiaopingtian(小平田) Dam is the second-level way. The  airplane is also available to directly reach Baoshan(宝山) city.

2. There is a free-visiting Japanese-defending museum near the Lujiang(潞江) Big Bridge, in which many “histories” left from fighting against Japan are reserved.

In order to live a general impression  on each of you, i insert a route picture of our hiking trip first.

Meanwhile, our route is: Xiaopingtian(小平田)→( driving car）Bauhualing, Gaoligongshan(百花岭高黎贡山) protection station→Qiujiezi(旧街子)→Ertaipo(二台坡)→Dafengbao(大峰包)→Huangzhuhe(黄竹河)→Huang xingshu(黄心树)→the Death Valley(死亡谷)→Huanmichu(换米处)→Qingrenshu(情人树)→Lanbandeng(懒板凳)→Nanzhai public houses(南斋公房)

First of all, let me introduce a historic hiking to Gaoligongshan Mountain:  During the Western Han Dynasty, there was a Silk Road in the northern part of China from Changan to Central Asia and Western Asia, but few people knew about the Silk Road in the southwestern part of China. Actually, Southwest Silk Road started in 4^th century B.C. which was 200 years earlier than the North. Southwest Silk Road was called Shuyuandudao (“蜀身(音：yuan)毒道”) too, which started from Sichuan Chengdu and ended at India. In the western of Yunnan, it meandered hundreds of kilometres and stretched across the Gaoligongshan Mountain on the Nujiang River, which was divided into 3 roads, the north road, central road and south road. Go up from Baihualing (百花岭) and go through the Ertaipo (二台坡), Dafengbao (大风包) and Gangfang (岗房) to the peak of Nanzhai Public House (南斋公房), then go down from Xueshanyakou Pass (雪山垭口) to Samaba (撒马坝), Lijiapuzi (林家铺子)and Jiangzu (江苴村). Looking from the map, Nanzhai Public House （南斋公房）and Beizhai Public House （北斋公房） are uniformly distributed across at the south and north of Gaoligongshan Mountain. The way to the Nanzhai Public House is more mature and safe, which has been the first choice to hike the Gaoligongshan Mountain.

Travel Tips: Y
ou need to take 1. A 60L backpack; 2. Food for 4 times; 3. A set of dry clothes and a pair of socks (thick); 4. Torch, rent, sleeping bag, pest control oil, raincoat; 5. Silk stockings (don’t look down on them, when you meet with leech you will know how useful they are.)

When we got up at 8:00am on October 2ed, we had some Baoshan rice noodles. Because of the warm bed, we got up late and started from Xiaopingtian (小平田) at 9:20am, and we reached Baihualing Protection Station (百花岭保护站) at 10:20am. We invited a villager, Mr. Duan to lead us to hike, and Mr. Duan put our baggage on his motor and said he would wait us at Jiujiezi (旧街子), because the motor can go there.

Photo:A section of the road has caved in.

We started our hiking at 10:30am, and there is not heavy load ,so we had a extremely relaxing time at the beginning, but it was 11:45am when we arrived at Jiujiezi.

We didn’t say any words when were hiking, and we went through the gentle slope and steep hill. Finally we arrived at Ertaipo (二台坡) at about 1:45pm, and we seemed that our 50% energies had been exhausted.

The tour guide, Mr. Duan said that we would have lunch at Dafengbao, and I thought that we would go there for a moment. Although we knew about the moment in local people’s eyes, we still spent one hour to go there, and the flattered roads was fewer than the steep slopes, However we took a lot of backs,and everyone seemed tired enough that we slowed down and we didn’t have any happy atmospheres like the beginning. We had lunch simply at Dafengbao and kept going. Because we didn’t know the way well, so we were uncertain to hike and we just climbed and kept going with our head lowed.

Photo: Simple picnic lunch in Dafengbao (大峰包)

It was about 15:45pm that we arrived the Huangzhu River (黄竹河). The charming scenery couldn’t drop away the weary and we shuffled our heavy feet. Hearing the sound that the water hit the stone. Our sweat and the rain had blurred our eyes. After a moment rest, the tour guide urged us to keep going, because there was one third distance waiting for us.

Photo：Beautifull scenery of Huangzhu River (黄竹河)

 The rain turned heavy, and our guide kept going continuously. We saw our guide turn back after a while and told us: you walk so slowly and I need to go back for my torch will have any buttery, and it is so dangerous to go down. So all the men took the responsible for the new food bag. In truth, we went through 2 times training in the Yubeng Village (雨崩) and Dulong River (独龙江), and we knew clearly that energy and perseverance were needed in the hiking or climbing, so it took seven hours we started from 700 meter to 3000 meters and arrived at Siwang Valley (死亡谷), and if we kept going we just depended on our perseverance.
 

Photo：The ancient road-Siwanggu Valley  (死亡谷)

Siwanggu Valley (死亡谷) means death valley, it seems like a little bit scary, but we couldn’t care it when we went up. We passed the valley and it was dark that the hail began to fall. 17:30pm, the front people couldn’t be seen, and the followers were still behind. A person walked ten minutes and have a rest for two minutes. No matter how smooth the moss was, it had been a habit to sit on the ground. For the moment, the paterner’s courage became the motivation to keep on . Then four people couldn’t support them each other and just depend on themselves and their trekking poles. I had been nervous for tomorrow to go down for this moment, and as the saying goes that it is easy to go up the mountain and not easy to go down. The steep road and the stone step wetted by the rain. The emotions that feared difficulties became stronger.

It was18:45pm that we came to the Nanzhai Public House on the Gaoligongshan Mountain, but we were going to burst into tears that how people could live there, when we saw the dilapidated house facing us. After some disappointment, let me introduce the Nanzhai Public House: Nanzhai Public House is located on the Gaoligongshan Mountain which is about 3300 meters. Its name came from a story that a pious Buddhist’s volunteer who came there to do good deeds and offer food and accommodations for business man. In the history, Beizhai Public House (北斋公房) , Nanzhai Public House (南斋公房) and Hongmushudao (红木树道) were the 3 roads of South Silk Road from Baoshao to Tengchong. We didn’t care about the bitter of our mind, because my paterner (my mom) lit a pile of wet firewood at that time which made me cannot forget, while she was speaking all the time. Put on the heavy and dry clothes, and we began to dry our shoes and socks by the fire. Although we felt that we had run out of our energies that we couldn’t do anything, we still needed to put up the rents to have a rest. Before we hiking, the head of the Baihualing Protection Station reminded us not to put up the rent near the Public House’s eaves, because the house hasn’t been repaired for a long time, so the tiles on the proof fall down all the time especially the eaves, and we must be care of it. Go into the house, and we can that there are three rooms. The central one is to worship the mountain God ( it must be), so we separated into two places beside the house.

PS: Go up for five minutes from the Nanzhai Public House. There is a well which is in privacy  and half of it is covered .

Nanzhai Public House

 夜朦胧，房朦胧

It was too dark that I couldn’t figure out whether the water is clear in the well. After drawing water back and taking out the gas stove, instant noodle was delicious for this moment. To drink  the hot soup, for which the satisfaction has been reduced. Most of people’s desires are not generated until the substantial problem is solved, so for this moment our desires are from food and clothing.The weather turned so fast that the enthusiasts who were waiting to take photos couldn’t catch, and these people who prepared to take a photo of star trails can just look at them, which was that the sky filled with stars may be dark with cloud in a moment.

The temperature dropped down to 8 ° at night. When I got into the sleeping bag, my hands and feet became cold, but I couldn’t beat back the wave of sleepiness finally. And then the whole day of hiking and climbing came to an end with all kinds of strange sounds on this mountain, and I slept gently.

PS: Moisture-proof pad is needed. Even if you are sleeping in tents, and there is no cement, the next morning the tent is still soaked by vapor。

 Photo: Fire is so important at present.

October 3^rd, on the 7:30am , I would like to lie down for a while, but I really can’t stand the cold and concave ground, so I sat up. The distant clouds seemed dense and elastic. It seemed that we can reach them, but they were still far away. After eating some breakfast and packing the rucksack, we began to return.
Photo: The view of Gaoli Gongshan Mountain in the morning.

It was easier to go down the mountain than climb the mountain. Except for the slippery stone steps, it is unavoidable to fall, but a lot of things would be better when we got used to them. The weather is still up and down, and we were too lazy to wear and take off the raincoats, so we directly put them on until we went down to the Yellow Bamboo River. It was about 1:00pm that we desided to eat something here. We continued going down the mountain and unload the backpack to sit on the roadside. It seemed that something was moving on my shoes, and it was bad that we met the attack of the leeches, and it took us a lot of time and efforts to get them off with the trekking poles. We had lunch quickly, and the leeches seemed to give me infinite power, so I walked faster just to keep them away. From the initial fear to using the leaves to catch the leeches that climbed on the pants, I began to admire my brave, and I thought that people are forced to do things which was better to describe me who fighted the leeches with empty hands .

Photo：Muddy, wet and slippery road

It was 6:00pm when we returned to Baihualing Protection Station(百花岭保护站). It was Mr. Li who is the chief and poured water for us. A cup of hot water warmed hands and also warmed the communication of people, and Mr. Li had introduced a lot of Gaoligong mountain(高黎贡山). After going down I had realized that when the army of the Japanese was sieged in the Nanzhai public house by the army of Kuomintang,and Japanese just needed to eat people without supplies . According to some old people, when the Kuomintang attacked the House of Nan Zhai(南斋公房), they saw lots of dried meat hanging on the beam, which was the humid climate coused the meat could not be preserved for too long, so they made them dried, and those bodies had the obvious track that had been cut, which was the reason when they were sieged there were 300 Japanese, and finally only about one hundred people were found. After listening this story, our backs turned cool, our hearts rated up, and we said that it was better  to know it after going down.

War is so cruel that more historicaland the truth is unacceptable. According to the memory records of the War in Western Yunnan, most Japanese officers didn’t like to mention this matter, and this was a violation of human relations, did they want to think? But after all,  it was their own  effects, if there was no war there will be no such pain. Peace come so difficult, let us put hands together. Whoever the aggressors or defenders are, they still have their own helpless things.

PS: In the Battle of Western Yunnan, in order to retake Gaoligong Mountain which was the  traffic channel between Baoshao(保山) and Tengchong(腾冲). People of Tengchong and Baoshao took the food to the Kuomintang to the mountain. Because the terrain was dangerous, and the rice was heavy and hard to carry. The local people who were not only the man to help supply,, even the women also came together to go on the mountain to do some favor. On the way,  people ate raw rice, and thousands of people went to the mountain and 300 people died. When they came back there were more than 300 people died. Then the channel was eventually protected at the rate of 7-1, and it protected Kunming(昆明) and other cities.

Standing on the road, looking at the top of the mountain we had reached.

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