Whispers of the Great Mountains: A 3-Day Self-Driving Tour in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture

### Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture: A Journey into the Unknown **An Enigmatic Land Unveiled** Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, to me, […]

### Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture: A Journey into the Unknown

**An Enigmatic Land Unveiled**

Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, to me, is as unfamiliar and distant as its name suggests, filled with an air of mystery. In August, I had the fortune to attend the Torch Festival in Xichang and took the opportunity to explore the vast Liangshan by self-driving. However, the area is so expansive that the scenery I reached in three days was merely the tip of the iceberg.

**The Wild Allure of Liangshan**

Racing on the primitive mountain roads and exploring completely unfamiliar lands, I was captivated by the wild atmosphere. The confluence of the Jinsha River, Yalong River, and Dadu River makes the topography within Liangshan complex and diverse, with dense forests, a multitude of flora and fauna, interwoven mountains and canyons, towering peaks, and most of the mountains with altitudes exceeding 4000 meters.

**Cultural Tapestry of Liangshan**

Numerous ethnic minorities—Yi, Tibetan, Naxi, Mosuo, and others—have lived on this land for generations. Their mysterious and rich ethnic cultures have created an even more astonishing cultural landscape here. Deep in the mountains, there are homes where Yi women in traditional attire, with exquisite patterns and complex headdresses, carry out their daily work from sunrise to sunset, surrounded by returning flocks of sheep, with a firm gaze.

**Spiritual Enlightenment Amidst Nature**

The vast and spiritual natural scenery of Liangshan has enhanced my perceptiveness. In the ancient temples among the mountains, facing the Buddha, the silence of the mountains envelops me, and my heart seems to gain more wisdom and strength. Such a journey is entirely different from walking through the hustle and bustle of big cities. The high-saturation clear blue sky and white clouds on the plateau make everything seem hazy for a long time after I return. The brilliant sunlight in the mountains sweeps away the dust in my heart.

**An Unforgettable Journey**

An unforgettable journey, wandering in the wilderness, with the wind passing through the open fields, I felt freedom.

### Self-Driving Tour Route in Liangshan

**Day 1: Arrival and Exploration**

– Arrive in Xichang—Huili Ancient City (about 160 km, 2.5-hour drive)
– Red Impression for dinner
– Stay at Huili Muchun Hotel

**Day 2: Diverse Landscapes and Cultures**

– Mian Ning Yi Sea—Mian Ning Douhua Rice for lunch
– Meigu County—Dafengding
– Meigu Platinum Zhixiang Hotel—Muli (about 168 km, 4-hour drive)
– Muli Da Temple—Muli Da Temple Restaurant
– Shangri-La Lake
– Stay at Muli Quanji Hotel

**Day 3: The Final Leg**

– Depart for Lugu Lake (Sichuan entrance)—Lugu Lake
– Grandmother’s Banquet at Lugu Lake
– Return to Xichang via Mosuo Homestay (about 233 km, 6-hour drive)

### Precautions for the Journey

**Self-driving**

– Self-driving in Liangshan is mostly on mountain roads with complex road conditions, no highways, and often interrupted by cattle and sheep on the road. It is recommended to hire a local driver, and the car should be a four-wheel-drive off-road or SUV.

**Clothing**

– Experiencing the temperatures of all four seasons in a day is normal, so prepare both beautiful spring and summer dresses and warm windproof long-sleeved clothes and pants.
– There are abundant hot spring resources, so bring a swimsuit.
– The ultraviolet rays in the plateau area are strong, so pay attention to sun protection.

**Medicines**

– Bring pain relievers, anti-inflammatory drugs, cold medicine, motion sickness medicine, and stomach medicine. I personally experienced catching a cold on the first day of arrival.

**Water and Food**

– During the self-driving journey, most of the day is spent on the road, so prepare water and food to satiate hunger before getting in the car.

### The Gentle Old Times in Huili Ancient City

**Historical Charm**

Huili Ancient City is the only well-preserved Ming Dynasty fortress in the country, named for its principle of ‘meeting rivers and plains, and governing with fairness and reason.’ The city center still maintains a relatively complete Ming and Qing architecture. Shops on the streets are all one-story wooden buildings with green tile roofs.

**Authentic Experience**

Different from many ancient cities, it does not look like a tourist attraction. Shops and restaurants are like those we encounter downstairs from our daily residents, selling noodles that the common people like to eat, and selling some daily necessities.

**Hidden Treasures**

The streets and alleys hide a large number of MingZhonggulou
Zhonggulou was built in the twelfth year of the Qing Yongzheng period and was completed during the Qianlong period. It incorporates the ‘Five Stars Embracing the Moon’ rooftop design from the Imperial Palace Corner Tower, which is unique in Southwest China. The North Gate City Tower, which echoes Zhonggulou, was built at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. The ancient city is divided by Zhonggulou into a chessboard pattern with three miles and three, nine miles and nine, four streets, three passes, and twenty-three alleys, mainly along the north-south central axis.

Ke Jia Lane
Next to the North Gate City Tower, Ke Jia Lane is named after many Jinshi (advanced scholars) and Juren (candidates) who came from here. Walking into the Hu Family Courtyard in Ke Jia Lane, the residential courtyard of the Ming and Qing Dynasties with ‘three Jinshi in one family’ is also presented before us.

Jinjiang Academy
In Zhaojia Lane, it was built in the eighteenth year of the Qing Jiaqing period, and the existing lecture hall, Huiying Hall, and wing rooms. The lecture hall is a gable and beam wooden structure, with a Xumi seat corridor in front of the hall.

Wu Hou Temple
Located in the old street in the north of the city, it was built during the Ming Jiaqing period and has been renovated twice during the Qing Dynasty. It has a history of more than five hundred years. Dongyue Temple was built in the Qing Dynasty by Zhou Mian, the town’s pacifier. The temple is a quadrangle layout, known for its colorful reliefs.

Jingzhuang Temple
Built in the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty, it was built by the official Li Yi.

The Red Impression of Huili Cuisine
A must-visit restaurant when you come to Huili, it is very famous, and the official food program has come to film it. When you walk in, you are surrounded by the red atmosphere inside. It is said that the boss’s grandfather was an old meritorious serviceman who had made a special contribution, and there are introductions to his deeds in the restaurant. The layout is also themed around revolutionary education, and there is a bookshelf in the restaurant where guests can read at will.
The dishes are very distinctive. Huili is the hometown of pomegranates, and I didn’t expect to eat pomegranate flowers here. The pomegranate flowers are crisp and tasteless, but the truffle steamed egg is smooth and tender, very delicious. The whole restaurant has a high cost performance and is very lively. It is recommended to go early~
Name: Impression Red Theme Restaurant
Address: No. 26, West Street, Average: 60

Red Scenic Area Mian Ning Yi Sea
Recommended by ‘Chinese National Geography’ as a lesser-known Liangshan attraction, Yi Sea, the warm sun of the Daliang Mountains becomes mild when it reaches Yi Sea. The water is cool, there are few tourists, and Yi Sea is called ‘Wule Su Po’ in the Yi language, located in Mian Ning County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, with an altitude of more than 2000 meters. The air is transparent, and there will be no plateau reaction.
It is a mud and stone flow accumulation fan formed in the early Holocene, which has developed through multiple stages of accumulation, accompanied by earthquakes, resulting in a fault depression basin. Due to the abundant replenishment of groundwater, it has formed a high mountain freshwater lake. The area of Yi Sea is not large, and it takes about an hour to walk around the lake on foot. While walking and playing with water, the water is clear to the bottom. It is also the memorial site of General Liu Bocheng’s ‘Yi Sea Alliance,’ feeling the charm of red culture.
[Travel Guide]
Transportation: Very convenient, it takes more than ten minutes to reach the entrance of the scenic area after getting off the highway, and the road condition is good.
You need to park your car in the parking lot and walk to the water’s edge to enter the scenic area.
Ticket: 20
Dining: There is a small store in the scenic area, and there are also Yi ethnic streets on the side of the road to buy roasted pork and roasted potatoes.
Accommodation: There are hotels in the scenic area ranging from 600-1000 per night. You can also camp in the scenic area for an overnight fee of 50 yuan. You can bring your own tent or rent one, and a full set of barbecue equipment is provided.

Meigu Dafengding Nature Reserve
After several hours of mountain road and hard off-roading, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery of MeiguI was passing through the clouds!

Some Yi people still live here, relying on traditional farming and herding for a living. It is a forest ecosystem type nature reserve and a place where wild giant pandas often appear. There are also more than 30 rare animals and plants such as Sichuan snub-nosed monkeys, clouded leopards, black-necked cranes, Davidia involucrata, and fir trees living together.

From Dafengding, we stayed in Mei Gu County, which is located in the northeastern part of Liangshan Prefecture in Sichuan Province. The Yi population accounts for more than 98% of the total population of the county, making it a typical Yi settlement county and an area where Yi traditional culture is most intact and unique.

[Tour Guide]
√ Address: Meigu Dafengding Nature Reserve
√ Opening hours: Open all day
√ Play time: 2 hours
√ Note: Dafengding belongs to the border of Leshan Mabian and Liangshan Mei Gu. There are two entrances to the mountain. Currently, if both sides need to drive in, it is necessary to have local people lead the way or contact the relevant departments in advance.

Hidden Paradise Muli Da Temple

After a long journey, we arrived in Muli, which is one of the two Tibetan autonomous counties in the country. Some people say that Muli is the last pure land on earth. The American scholar Joseph F. Rock said it is: ‘A sacred place of the Buddhist kingdom’ and ‘God’s back garden.’

Muli has high mountains and deep valleys, with complex terrain. Along the mountain road, we go forward to see the Muli Da Temple at an altitude of 3600 meters. It is built among the overlapping mountains, surrounded by virgin forests, and the Litang River is flowing in front of the temple.

The exquisite temple is rarely visited by people, and the surroundings are silent. The temple has a history of more than 400 years since its establishment, with a main building made of wood and earth, showing the style of the Tang and Ming Dynasties. The Tibetan-style square fortress main hall, which is more than 20 meters high, is connected to hundreds of living rooms for lamas and monks. The main building is magnificent, with intricate carvings and murals that are fascinating, and there are dragons that are rarely seen in the Tibetan area.

Inside the temple, there is a nearly 10-meter-high statue of Maitreya Buddha. Walking around the Buddha, there is a wall behind the Buddha. You need to bend down and hunch over to pass through a very narrow hole to complete the action of walking around the circle. Lower your head and bow in humility to pay tribute to all things.

Address: Muli Da Temple, Muli County, Liangshan, Sichuan, Altitude: About 3600 meters, weak high-altitude reaction phenomenon
?: No admission fee
??? Parking: The temple has a square, free parking.

Chuntong Haizi Shangri-La Lake

The scenery of the mountains and waters that you reach after crossing the mountains and ridges is even more unforgettable. On the way to Muli, we pass by Shangri-La Lake, a plateau lake with floating islands of grassland in the water. The high saturation of blue and green, the fierce sun, the gentle waves, and the strong wind make it seem like the whole world is singing.

Shangri-La Lake, also known as Chuntonghaizi, has the most unique scenery of hundreds of floating grasslands in the lake. These floating islands are not fixed and change with the environment, showing a different view every day. In autumn, the floating islands turn into a golden yellow. On the shore, wildflowers are blooming, yaks are wandering, and horses are running. It is worth coming to play.

Navigation: Shangri-La Lake, Muli County, Liangshan, Sichuan, Note: The sun on the plateau is very strong, so be sure to protect yourself from the sun, and be careful when stepping on the grasslands.

Yanyuan County Apple Manor

Before heading to Lugu Lake, we first arrived at the Apple Manor in Yanyuan County. Yanyuan apples are a specialty of Yanyuan County, Sichuan Province, and a national geographical indication product of China. Passing through the lush forests and vast apple orchards, the apples are hanging on the branches, and you can touch them by opening the car window.

The apples here are crisp and refreshing, juicy and sweet, emitting a burst of fragrance. The entire apple manor is located in a plateau area at an altitude of 2600 meters, and the bright sunshine has created a unique taste for the fruit. There is a beautiful Bailin Lake in the manor, and there is a Bailin Academy by the lake with a style of HuizhouSichuan Version of Lugu Lake is Out of This World
Lugu Lake is 1 km long, and there are apple-themed children’s playgrounds, pet paradises, and poplar forest camping sites along the way.
Strolling around Lugu Lake until nightfall, the whole heart is healed. You don’t have to go to Dali, Yanyuan County in Liangshan, Sichuan shares the entire lake with Yunnan. The clear lake water is the gentle realm at the border of Sichuan and Yunnan. The alternating monsoons bring rich changes to the clouds on the plateau. The clouds not only float in the sky but also drift in the water. The ten thousand mu of grass sea surge in summer, and the Mosuo people row boats in the green wetlands, and the sunset glow covers the lake, illuminating the world like stars.

[Tour Guide]
√ Name: Lugu Lake
√ Address: Between Yanyuan County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, and Ninglang Yi Autonomous County, Lijiang City, Yunnan Province
√ Transportation: Park and buy tickets at the Sichuan entrance of Lugu Lake, then drive in
√ Ticket: 70 per person
√ Time: 8:00-18:00
√ Must-visit attractions at Lugu Lake
Grass Sea Wetland
In spring, it is a piece of green, and in autumn, it becomes a piece of rich withered yellow. In spring and summer, you can see the sea grass flowers on the lake.
Walking Marriage Bridge
A bridge across the grass sea, people who have been to Mosuo will step on the old wooden bridge to get married. There is a viewing platform south of the bridge where you can see the whole view of the grass sea and the walking marriage bridge.
After passing the walking marriage bridge, you will encounter a market selling local specialties and ethnic clothing, which is very cheap and can be bargained.
Goddess Bay
The lake surrounded by mountains has a view like a small Switzerland. The nearby bird-awakening mountain top is a viewing point overlooking the lake and mountain scenery.
Lovers Beach
At sunset, the Lover’s Beach has an open and calm water area, and the sky and sea are the same color, with the sunset glow falling into the water.
Staying overnight at Mosuo Homestay
In the evening, you can eat and stay near Lugu Lake. You can have fish from Lugu Lake and eat ‘water poppy’ wave-leaf sea buckthorn flowers. Most of the water poppies have withered in this season, but fortunately, you can taste and remember. The hotel you stay in at night is called Mosuo Homestay. The driver said it is the best local hotel, but you can’t find more hotel information.
Fish in Lugu Lake
Water poppy~
Each room is a separate building with complete facilities, and it is very quiet around. Compared with the city, the cost performance here is too high. You can take a morning walk to Lugu Lake. It is highly recommended~~