Prologue
Malilengjiu: Yi for a meadow where flowers bloom.
It is a tongue-twister and hard to remember. My friend repeated it for two days before she could barely remember it.
Although the flowering season had passed, amid Chengdu’s relentless heat and waves of hot air strong enough to fry an egg on the ground, this was a rare cool world, a haven from the summer heat.
1. Getting there and staying nearby
Unlike the wild mountains I have climbed before, Heizhugou is a formally operated national 4A scenic area with safety provisions. Its paths are well maintained, and railings and handrails protect the slightly risky spots. In unsuitable extreme weather such as torrential rain, its official WeChat account announces closures in advance. Anyone planning to go can search for and follow it beforehand.
Heizhugou lies in the Ebian Yi autonomous area of Leshan. It used to be remote and very inconvenient to reach; driving from Chengdu took a whole day. Now the Longhan Expressway is open, the journey takes about four hours: three on the expressway and one on a two-lane concrete road. Overall the road is good. Mountains stretch along the way, with lush vegetation, fresh air and sky-high negative oxygen ions. It feels like travelling through a forest, wonderfully relaxing and uplifting.
You can navigate directly to Heizhugou Scenic Area:
If you are escaping the heat, there is no need to rush: stop and enjoy things along the way. Between the expressway exit and the scenic area are many hotels and guesthouses, large and small, for different budgets. You can also stay in Ebian’s county town, with more choices for eating and sleeping.
We chose Gujing Village beside Heizhugou. It has dozens of guesthouses, backed by the scenic area; summer escapes and wellness stays have become an important village industry.
There is only one larger hotel in the village, Yunshang Gujing, built with local government funding. Separate wooden cabins each have a little balcony for watching sunrise in the morning and counting stars at night. The rooms are generally good, and there are performances in peak season. A standard twin room costs a little over four hundred yuan; visiting the scenic area comes with two shuttle tickets worth RMB 40.
Most guesthouses occupy homes built and run by local villagers. They are inexpensive, a little over a hundred yuan, making long summer stays good value. Cars from elsewhere fill their entrances, mostly Sichuan A and G plates. Many are clearly family trips, with elderly people and children thoroughly at ease. A greeting and a brief chat reveal that most have already stayed several days and are reluctant to leave.
The village has a few small shops selling drinks, snacks and daily necessities, though less variety than the city. Meals are mainly at guesthouses: barbecues, soup hotpots, wood-fired chicken and home-style dishes. That evening we tried a local speciality, roast suckling pig, tender and wonderfully tasty. I did feel a little guilty and quietly murmured ‘Amitabha’ a few times.
Do not worry that a barbecue will be too hot. While Chengdu’s night was 37℃, here it was only 24℃, with cool breezes. Everyone
could not help moving closer to the fire.
Even just for escaping the heat, this place was already very good. But since we had come, we might as well look around the scenic area.
2. Around Malilengjiu
From our Gujing Village hotel, a few minutes’ drive brought us to Heizhugou’s visitor centre, with a large free car park. Admission is RMB 50. The road is narrow and parking limited, so private cars cannot enter; you must take the transfer vehicle, whose ticket costs another RMB 20.
After a little over 10 minutes on the shuttle, you reach the main sight, Malilengjiu, an alpine meadow that is beautiful in flower season. Everywhere you look is green. The meadow rises and falls in pleasing layers, offering broad backdrops everywhere.
The circuit is almost three kilometres, with little shade. Though there was no sun that day, it was still July at the height of summer, and the ultraviolet rays had power. My friends and I all visibly darkened by two shades. Thankfully it was not hot, a very comfortable twenty-odd degrees.
A meadow surrounded by mountains.
The well-maintained scenic path has almost no ascent and is not tiring at all. Walking around, my spirits skipped along: la-di-da, la-di-da.
Horses graze on the hillside. Where has the horse herder gone?
A lone, peaceful little tree. I wonder if, like me, it often goes alone yet never feels lonely.
Near the foot of the mountain at the meadow’s edge is a patch of shade, with a row of tall trees. The information says this ancient tree is a thousand years old. A millennium of wind and frost has shaped its tenacious form, passing the strength of life to the world.
From naïve girls to middle-aged women, through all the passing years we have stayed together.
This floating bridge at the entrance is Malilengjiu’s landmark. Our circuit took over two hours, clicking away as we walked. Time to leave: next stop, Fengchaoyan.
Fengchaoyan
Another sight in Heizhugou, this is an out-and-back hike of 6-7km. Board the shuttle at Malilengjiu and tell the driver you want Fengchaoyan; the driver will remind you where to get off. Otherwise, you might be taken straight back to the visitor centre.
This is what the end of the Fengwoyan walk looks like.
The picture captures less than a tenth of its power. Mountain spring water pours down from above, strikes the rocks and scatters spray. The roaring water carries an intense chill straight towards you, making you shiver several times.
It is 3.5 kilometres one way from the start to here, with some climbing and undulation. Stone steps follow the stream throughout. The water grows louder and quieter, answering the birds singing in the forest to create nature’s beautiful music.
Ancient forest trees soar overhead, shutting out the sky and sun and keeping it wonderfully cool. After rain, the steps are a little slippery, with fallen, rotting leaves too, so watch your footing.
A look along the way:
The scenic area’s stone-slab path.
There are four or five suspension bridges like this, large and small, across the forest streams.
The stream winds through the woods, sometimes wild, sometimes gentle.
The uphill path along the way.
This is the entrance and exit. There are no forks: just follow the path, with no need to worry about getting lost.
Plunge into the dense forest and the scorching summer outside, along with life’s messy troubles, has already vanished, nothing to do with you any more…
Perhaps that is why we keep setting out: finding an antidote to life on the road.
3. How difficult is it?
Linking the two sights makes about 10km. My record shows 14 because I forgot to pause it during part of the shuttle ride. There is over 500 metres of ascent. Two friends who rarely exercise managed it comfortably, with only slightly sore legs the next day.
There were plenty of families with children, and also adults who gave up halfway.
This is a leisurely outing; do not make things hard for yourself. Walk and pause; when you no longer want to continue, simply turn back.
4. Tips
1. Mountain weather changes quickly and summers are rainy. Check forecasts and scenic-area notices before going so you do not make a wasted trip. But even that would not matter: stay a couple of days in the mountains, feel the breeze, listen to the rain, do nothing and think of nothing. Is that not happiness too?
2. From the expressway to the scenic area, the road is narrow and winding, with a zigzag section. Drive carefully: safety first.
3. Day and night temperatures differ greatly; bringing long sleeves and trousers is essential.
4. Coming out of Heizhugou brings you to Jinkouhe, not far from Dawashan. With enough time, the places can be linked into one trip, enjoying the scenery along the way.
A few dozen kilometres along the Longhan Expressway is Hanyuan. You can return to Chengdu on the Yaxi Expressway, making a loop.
That is what we did. Leaving Hanyuan towards Ya’an, we soon passed Longcanggou, another place for enjoying water and escaping the heat. We turned in for a look along the way. I will introduce it next time; thank you for following.
END. See you next time.
(Author: 女生要富氧)
