In this place in Tibet, I saw the bluest sea and the most beautiful sacred mountains

Starting from the Chengdu Plain with an altitude of more than 500 meters, we crossed several passes with an altitude of more than 4,000 meters to reach our destination of the day, Daofu. This is the day with the largest altitude span and is a big test for many people. If you have plenty of time, can take it easy and split it into two days to give yourself more time to adapt.

The highway is all the way from Chengdu to Kangding and the road conditions are very good. You can eat in Kangding after getting off the highway. Kangding is the capital of Garze Prefecture and the largest city in Garze Prefecture. It has a wide range of dining and accommodation options and good conditions. For those who are entering the plateau area for the first time or who have strong altitude sickness, it is recommended to stay in Kangding for one night to get used to it before moving forward.

Kangding is divided into the old city and the new city. The old city has more charm for tourists. The Zheduo River passes through the old town of Kangding, and the night view is very beautiful. There is a Kangding Love Song Square in the old city. You can also see Tibetan square dance in the square at night.

Not far from the square, there is the Liuliucheng Pedestrian Street, which has all kinds of daily necessities, specialties, delicacies, and religious supplies, as well as some Tibetan restaurants and teahouses.

Coming out of Kangding city, navigate directly to Kangding Airport and go to the parking lot of Kangding Airport to see Gongga Snow Mountain. Then navigate to Daofu County. Walking this way can bypass the Zheduoshan and Xinduqiao sections of 318 that are most prone to traffic jams, and go straight up diagonally to the north to enter 317.

The journey from Kangding to Daofu County will pass through many popular scenic spots in western Sichuan: Tagong Grassland, Tagong Temple, Moshi Park, etc. Since it is not the focus of this trip, I will not introduce it too much in this article. Those who are interested in Western Sichuan can read our previous guide about Western Sichuan.

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Qamdo is the second largest city in Tibet after Lhasa. This National Day coincides with the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Qamdo. The shops on the street are filled with flying national flags and colorful flags, creating a prosperous scene. It’s been a long time since I came out of Kangding to see a decent city, but I felt particularly friendly when I saw Qamdo.

The center of the main city of Qamdo is a commercial pedestrian street, Tea Horse Square. Many locals come here to hang out and bask in the sun. KFC, milk tea shops, hot pot restaurants, and many chain restaurants can be found here. It is indeed the largest city in eastern Tibet.

At the highest point of the main city of Qamdo, there is a temple of the earliest and largest Gelug sect in the Kham region, Qiang Balin Temple . This temple has a history of nearly 600 years. At its peak, there were as many as 5,000 monks, and the incense was prosperous all year round. It has the most spectacular sutra debate in Eastern Tibet.

The monks are very kind, but not many can speak Chinese. When the weather is nice, many monks will debate scriptures in the small forest next to the temple while basking in the sun. Although I couldn't understand it, it was quite interesting to hear them discussing the scriptures intensely and slapping each other from time to time.

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After leaving Qamdo, we left National Highway 317 and drove south onto Provincial Highway 303. This road is actually the famous ninth route into Tibet – Sichuan-Tibet Middle Line . The Sichuan-Tibet Middle Line is sandwiched between the 318 National Highway on the southern Sichuan-Tibet line and the 317 National Highway on the northern Sichuan-Tibet line. The scenery is very primitive and beautiful, but due to poor road conditions, few people have ever walked on it.

Most of this line is located on the Eastern Tibet Plateau, with the rolling Nu River winding through it, thus forming a very beautiful scenery corridor, snowy mountains, Haizi, rivers, wetlands, canyons...It can be said that our Eastern Tibet The journey only begins here.

It’s nearly 300 kilometers from Qamdo along Provincial Highway 303. Before entering Luolong County, there is a fork road heading south. After driving 20 kilometers inward, you can see a local sacred lake – Dolma Langcuo . It means Lake of the Goddess Tara in Tibetan. It is composed of 21 large and small lakes, naturally forming 21 lakes of Tara.

I heard from the locals that the water in Dolma Langcuo Lake will never dry up or overflow its embankment. It is a treasure gourd that "cannot drain until it is full", nourishing the land like Tara. It’s no wonder that there are signs indicating the National Secondary Drinking Water Protection Base everywhere here.

Dolma Langcuo is located deep in the virgin forest, and only our group of tourists disturbed it. A few wild rabbits pop out of the haystacks from time to time, and there are signs prohibiting poaching on the roadside. This must be the habitat of many wild animals.

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You can enter the Sanse Lake scenic spot by driving the navigation all the way out of Luolong County. It is still a scenic spot under development. The gate of the scenic spot has been built, but the management and charging have not yet started. I didn’t have high expectations for the Three Color Lake at first, just as a free attraction along the way. Because its popularity is so low, even my colleagues in the industry have never heard of it.

The three-color lake is composed of black lake, white lake and yellow lake . Although the three are only a few meters apart, their colors are completely different, which is very strange. According to legend, three generals under King Gesar died here, and the flowing blood dyed the lake into different colors.

Not long after entering Puyu San Village, you can see the sign for Baihu on the right. Following the direction of the sign, the car can drive not far from the edge of Baihu Lake.

The picture comes from Douyin @Loden Kambu Laoye

Baihu is not white as a whole, the lake is emerald green, but there are fine sands on the edge of the lake forming a white beach. There is a waterfall on the other side of the White Lake, which is formed by melted glacier water and is called the Divine Waterfall. You can walk along the plank road to the foot of the waterfall and feel the temperature of the waterfall up close. There is also a wooden house next to the White Lake, which looks like a scene from Switzerland.

Return to the cement road and continue driving in. There will be a big stone with Black Lake written on the right hand side. Park the car on the side of the road and follow the traces of the dirt road in. You can walk to the lake to feel the clarity of the Black Lake up close, or you can climb to the top of the nearby mountain to overlook the entire Black Lake.

Black LakeAlthough it is called a "black" lake, its color is azure. I don’t know if it’s because of the favorable weather, but I think Black Lake is the clearest and bluest plateau lake I’ve ever seen. It even has a blue gradient around the edges like the sea. If it weren't for the snow-capped mountains in the distance and the surrounding mountains, I would have had the illusion of being in the Maldives.

Compared to Black Lake and White Lake, Yellow Lake itself is much less beautiful. But when you climb up the hill from the Yellow Lake, you can see the ruins of an ancient castle called Dazong Castle. From the castle, you can overlook the Black Lake and Yellow Lake at the same time.

Not many people know about Sanse Lake, and even fewer people know that there is a ice lake in Sanse Lake. If you drive further, you can directly reach the shore of the glacier lake and face the thousands-year-old blue glacier. The locals call this glacier Khonlagangri Glacier. There is very little information about Konglagangri on the Internet. We only know that its main peak is 6,378 meters above sea level and is the glacier of Doug Glacier, Gongpu Glacier and Chachen Glacier. birthplace.

The glacial lake is a typical glacialmoraine lake. It has spent a whole summer, and there are still fallen ice blocks floating on the lake. There should be a lot of ice cubes falling from the glaciers floating on the glacial lake in spring. The scene must be very spectacular. Large amounts of black dust litter the glacier, accelerating its melting rate. Judging from satellite cloud images, this is already a dense area of ​​​​Nyenchen Tanglha Mountain glaciers. Unfortunately, time is limited and we cannot explore more deeply.

On the way out of Sanse Lake, I met elementary school students returning home from school. The back of the pickup truck was packed to the brim. We watched with fear, fearing that they would fall. But they were very happy, and kept giving us the Young Pioneer salute when they were driving. It's so funny and heartbreaking. But we know that it is not easy to spread basic education to such remote areas. I hope that conditions in all aspects will get better and better in the future, and children will be able to ride safer school buses.

The picture comes from Douyin@ poisonous talk about cars

Route traffic conditions

Sapu Sacred Mountain is the attraction I am most looking forward to during this trip. I have been paying close attention to Sapp since it first entered the public eye in 2017, and have been looking for suitable opportunities to find out. It can be said that it is the core of this trip to East Tibet.

Sapu Sacred Mountain Lake is a peak-cluster glacier landscape. The snowy mountains from left to right are: Sapp's wife, Sapp's illegitimate son after his wife cheated, Sapp's second son, Sapp's eldest son, Sapp and Sapp's daughter, and Sapp's doctor on the right and many other peaks. There are many interesting legends about the Tharp family.

The highest peak of Sapu Mountain is 6,956 meters above sea level, also known as "Sapu Gunlagab". It is one of the sacred mountains of this religion. It is covered with snow all year round, making it mysterious and stunning. Due to the high altitude, inconvenient transportation and poor road conditions, this breathtaking and mysterious glacier has been standing here quietly for thousands of years, hidden in the boudoir.

The weather was not good on the day we set out. After all the hardships, when we drove to the lake, the clouds were overcast and it even started to rain lightly. The Sapp family are deeply hidden in the dark clouds. Faced with such an unremarkable scenery, and considering the hardships we have gone through along the way, it is impossible not to be disappointed.

I took a few photos without any peaks exposed, and secretly vowed to do it again. My companions suggested driving further to the foot of the innermost glacier to have a look, but I actually lost my energy. But I couldn't resist my friend's enthusiasm, so I still got in the car. This section of the road is almost close to the cliff, and the lane is very narrow. When encountering a wrong car, one of the vehicles must back up to a wider area.

Unexpectedly, not long after the car drove out, the dark clouds began to slowly disperse and the sky cleared up. The perfect pyramid-shaped peak of Sapp's second son gradually emerged. At that moment, the sun poured down, and everything around me felt calm, and there was a magic that made people cry.

After going through another section of the road that was more difficult than before, our car finally stopped closer to Sap. You still need to hike a few hundred meters to the edge of the glacier lake. There are some ice cubes floating in the glacial lake, which fell from the ice tongue when the glacier melted in the spring.

Standing by the lake doing nothing, quietly watching the mountain peaks covered by clouds, then slowly revealed, and so on. Sapu Sacred Mountain, which others say is difficult to see, appeared many times in three hours, and I became attached to the Sacred Mountain.

When we were preparing to return, not long after we got in the car, the sky was covered with dark clouds and it started to rain with sleet and hail. Sapu Mountain was completely covered again until we drove away, never to be seen again, just as it was when we came. Goodbye, Tharp.

Tips: May and June every year is the cordyceps harvesting season. Non-local vehicles need to register at the Yangxiu Township Police Station and receive a special pass before entering the Sap area.

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On this day, we will go north from Ru County to explore another glacier-intensive area. For example, it is the core area for Tibetan Cordyceps trading and mining. The streets in the county are full of shops that wholesale and retail Cordyceps. If you come during the cordyceps harvesting season, it is best to check with the local police in advance to see if they can be released.

Damu Monastery is 65 kilometers away from the county seat. The skulls of the deceased are neatly arranged on the wooden frames around the sky burial platform. Skull Wall This is because the founder of the burial, Dapu Living Buddha, instructed the sky burial masters to feed the body to vultures and preserve the skull so that every living person would think of their own final resting place when they see it. This special custom is still preserved today.

From Ru County to Suo County, all navigation and maps will show the route from National Highway 558 to National Highway 317. The whole journey is 240 kilometers and takes nearly 5 hours.

In fact, there is a newly built road that can go directly from Ru County north to Suo County. This road has not yet been numbered, so it is not marked on all paper and electronic maps. Taking this road to Suoxian County can save 3 hours compared with the traditional journey.

This road really brings a lot of unexpected surprises. It was originally just a shortcut to save time, but I didn't expect the scenery to be so beautiful. We walked and stopped all the way, taking pictures from various angles, but we didn't save as much time as expected.

The saying "the most beautiful scenery is on the road" is a cliché, but it is indeed the truth! This section of the journey has vast grassland scenery, is also surrounded by snow-capped mountains, and is accompanied by streams formed by meltwater from plateau glaciers.

Climbing up the Kangqingla Pass at an altitude of 5,300 meters, heavy snow fell in the sky, and visibility dropped sharply. On the way down the mountain, the sky gradually cleared up again, and we were suddenly surrounded by snow-capped mountains. Continuing forward, leaving the embrace of the snow-capped mountains, we drove into a section of road as dark as coal, and suddenly hail fell. It was sunny, rainy, and snowy all the way, which was really wonderful.

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From the pass of National Highway 317 near Dingqing, Baqing and Suoxian counties, you can overlook a snow-white mountain peak. This is Bugia Snow Mountain . The main peak is 6,328 meters above sea level, making it the highest peak in eastern Tibet. From the satellite cloud map, this is also the most prominent and whitest among the densely snow-capped peaks in eastern Tibet.

The south side of Buga Snow Mountain is close to National Highway 317 and is very easy to reach. However, due to the south-facing sunlight, the glacier on the south side is covered with a large number of black dust patterns, making it less attractive for viewing. Therefore, it has not been particularly famous for many years.

In 2016, a National Geographic expedition team inspected the Bugia Snow Mountain glacier group and found that the Zanrong Glacier descending from the north side of the main peak of Bugia Snow Mountain has a drop of more than 2,100 meters, making it the largest known suspension glacier in the world at that time. The glacier is twice as large as the Hailuogou hanging glacier.

At the same time, the Panrong Glacier is cleaner and more spectacular, glowing blue-green with the sunlight. It is no exaggeration to say that it is the most beautiful of the most easily accessible blue glaciers.

Buga Sacred Mountain is one of the seven sacred mountains in Tibetan areas. It is also the highest peak in eastern Tibet and an important sacred mountain for our religion. On the way to the Zhurong Glacier, from time to time I saw Tibetan compatriots walking around the mountain together. I asked and only found out that they had completed the trek once. It takes at least five days, and everyone only carries a backpack. Except for a few people who have a hiking pole in their hands, there is no more professional equipment. I have to be impressed by the power of their belief.

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Casa Lake is right on the edge of National Highway 317. Many people only glance at it from a distance, take a few photos and leave in a hurry. Who knows that it takes only a few minutes to drive to the meadow by the lake, where you can not only enjoy Kasa up close? You can also see the beautiful scenery of Sa Lake and Jue Ri Temple on the other side of the lake.

When you walk to the lake, you will find something more interesting. The entire wooden trestle is surrounded by schools of fish, and there are even fish mouths open in the middle of the seams of the wooden boards - they are begging for food.

There is an act of releasing animals in Tibetan Buddhist beliefs. Tibetans with deep beliefs do not hunt or eat fish. They think Yu'er is a little immortal who has not yet become a Buddha through cultivation. Every year during special festivals in the Tibetan calendar, surrounding Tibetans would buy fish to be slaughtered from nearby markets, bring them in carts and release them.

These fish are released here by local people over many years. If you don’t eat fish and just release them, no wonder there are more and more fish in Casa Lake, and they are not afraid of people. Even if you don’t have food in hand, if you shout twice from the shore, the fish will gather here.

I've been here twice, and I got to know the boss well. I transferred money via WeChat, picked up a few packs of instant noodles, and went to the lake to feed the fish. Instant noodles are all at market price. During this period, we met several waves of local Tibetans and lamas who directly brought boxes of instant noodles to feed the fish. Although their income is not high, they are really not stingy at all when it comes to giving.

Giving is also a very important part of Tibetan culture. Ordinary people like me can't figure out those profound things, so just come to Kasa Lake to feed the fish and bask in the sun.

Route traffic conditions

Route traffic conditions