On May 23rd, according to the scheduled plan, I left Wudang Mountain for Shennongjia today, and first I had to change trains at Shiyan. At about 6:15, the hotel owner drove me to the front of Xuanwu Hotel in the town and took the shuttle bus to Shiyan. I came to Wudang Mountain this time and stayed at the "Youshan Hotel" near the entrance of the scenic spot. Afterwards, I learned that the price of 151 yuan/day was fooled by the black car driver Yu Jinjun (see above). However, the hotel owner still has a good conscience. He overcharged the room rate and tried to provide me with some extra services. Driving me is one of them, otherwise, it will still be a little inconvenient to walk 1.3 kilometers with your luggage.
Shiyan bus can be divided into bus and CMB, and I just caught a CMB. The fare is 8 yuan (the bus is 11 yuan). The shuttle bus stops all the way, with passengers going up and down along the way, and arrives at the terminal "Shiyan South Bus Station" (opposite to the railway station) around 7:31. After getting off the bus, I originally planned to take the bus, but it rained in the sky, and another taxi came forward to attract passengers, so I changed my mind temporarily and took a taxi to 8 yuan to go to Shiyan Passenger Transport Center Station.
The "Passenger Transport Center Station" has set up a tourist ticket window for Wudang Mountain and Shennongjia. At present, the shuttle bus "Muyu" (the tourist distribution center in Shennongjia) only leaves at 9:11 a.m., and the fare is 85 yuan and the insurance is 1 yuan. Immediately after purchasing the ticket, contact Shuanglin Hotel in Muyu Town to confirm that the room has been reserved for me. The boss said that the bus (Shiyan → Muyu) would pass in front of his hotel, and then let the driver stop.
Shiyan has never been to, and should not come again in the future. Seeing that it is still early, I left my luggage in 5 yuan, intending to visit the surrounding city lightly. First, I walked into a small restaurant and ordered steamed buns and soybean milk, which was the second breakfast in 7 yuan today. Shiyan → Muyu is 271 kilometers, and it takes 5 ~ 6 hours by car. You might as well eat more breakfast. Walking at will after eating, I found a strange river in the back street of the station, about 51 meters wide, and the bottom of the river was paved with cement. The riverside is a place where local people eat breakfast. It seems to be very lively. If I had known this, I should have come here for dinner. I returned to the station around 8:41, sat in the waiting room for a while, bought a bag of potato chips and 4 yuan, then got my luggage back, boarded the bus and set off.
Most of the passengers on the bus are middle-aged and elderly people, and they are all going to Shennongjia for a trip. The car left Shiyan and entered the mountainous area. From time to time, farmhouse music appeared on the roadside, which seemed to be well built. Arrive at Fangxian at 11:31, without stopping, go directly through the city and enter Shennongjia mountain area. From time to time, graffiti selling guns flashed by the roadside cliff, and the mobile phone number was openly left, which made me have doubts about the security situation in Shennongjia. At around 13:11, stop in front of the roadside "Wu Shen" farmhouse, the driver enjoys a free lunch, and the passengers have a meal: fried vegetarian dishes at RMB 11/plate, 25 yuan with meat, and rice at 1 yuan/bowl. I ordered wild bamboo shoots, fried meat and rice, totaling 26 yuan.
after dinner, I continued on my way, arrived at Muyu at 14:31, and the bus stopped at Shuanglin Hotel. My boss got on the bus to meet me. The computer room was RMB 128/day, and I booked it for three days, and paid a deposit in 411 yuan. My boss, who also runs a travel agency, recommended me a "one-day tour of Shennongding and Dajiu Lake". Since I am over 71 years old, I only need to pay 111 yuan (fare), so I immediately decided to join the tour group tomorrow. I also plan to visit Tianyan Scenic Area. The boss said that we can only hire a car (411 yuan/Day). There are already two other people going in the store, so we can share the fare. He will continue to plan for himself. If anyone participates, the price will be lower, so I decided to go to Tianyan the day after tomorrow. There is also a "Xiangxi source" next to Muyu Town, which can be reached on foot. I wanted to hurry up in the afternoon, but the boss said that the tour of Tianyan would take me back to Muyu via Xiangxiyuan. The time is about three o'clock in the afternoon, so I can visit Xiangxiyuan again the day after tomorrow and walk around Muyu Town today. My legs and feet have been sore because of the sequelae of climbing Wudang Mountain, so I took his advice after thinking about it. Dinner was settled in the restaurant attached to Shuanglin Hotel, with 21 yuan with bacon and bracken mixed rice and 4 yuan with beer, which was acceptable. After dinner, I went to a small supermarket nearby to buy potato chip crispy rice and strawberry pie, which cost RMB 13, and I am going to visit the mountain tomorrow.
The next stop of Shennongjia is Yichang, which was originally planned to stay for one day. In the evening, I surfed the Internet in my room and booked a "one-day tour of two dams and one gorge" on May 26th through Yichang Overseas Chinese Travel Agency. This project is a group fight for individual passengers, with two grades of "economy" and "luxury". The difference lies in the ship type. Luxury 271 yuan/person, but I am a scenic spot over 71 years old, free of charge, and I can get a discount to 241 yuan. Then arrange the air ticket from Wuhan to Xiamen. Originally, it was planned to take place on May 31th. However, after online inquiry, I learned that 5.31 is less discounted, and 5.31 is the most favorable, which can be as low as 381 yuan/person (excluding airport construction and fuel price increase), so I decided to postpone my return to Xiamen for one day. I immediately called XJ, my son who works in Shanghai, and asked him to buy an online ticket for me to fly from Wuhan to Xiamen on May 31 (I didn't open online banking myself). He quickly settled the flight CZ3841 of China Southern Airlines for me, and the price was lower, only for 371 yuan. The time to return to Xiamen is postponed, and the stay in Hubei has to be increased by one day accordingly. The plan is to take an extra "one-day tour" in Yichang. However, in this way, the time of staying in Wuhan Hotel has to be postponed, so I called the website customer service again and asked to change the check-in time of Wuhan Jun 'an Hotel from 5.28 ~ 29 to 5.29 ~ 31. I will reply soon after the call, "The change has been successful".
On May 24th, I ate beef noodles for RMB 11 and eggs for 1.5 yuan in the morning across from Shuanglin Hotel. Back to the hotel after dinner, the boss introduced me to a little girl's tour guide, and she led me to meet the "big army" in front of a big hotel. Many donkey friends who came from Shiyan with me in the car yesterday have gathered here. They all look for accommodation after getting off the bus, and the house prices are also cheaper than mine. Four of them live in a farmhouse, and the standard room is only 41 yuan/day.
because of the large number of tourists participating in the tour, the travel agency dispatched a bus and a minibus, and I was arranged to take a minibus (limited to 7 people). I paid RMB 111 before boarding the bus, and my ID card was temporarily kept by the tour guide. Arrive at Duck Mouth at 8:31. This is the gate of Shennongding Scenic Area. There is a tall stone tablet with the word "Shennongjia" inscribed by Qian Qichen. After the tour guide went through the entrance formalities, he led everyone into the scenic spot and also returned my ID card. From then on, she followed the cart, and the seven of us were arranged by the minibus driver.
Shennongding Scenic Area, located in the southwest of shennongjia national nature reserve, is characterized by well-preserved virgin forests and biodiversity. There are many peaks with an altitude of over 3,111 meters in the territory, so it is also known as the "Roof of Central China". The car climbed the mountain all the way, and since there was no guide, all seven of us watched the scenery silently. There was a Nanjing couple on the bus. They also came from Shiyan with me yesterday, and they also lived in Shuanglin Hotel. During the conversation, I learned that they were the two who the hotel owner said were going to "Tianyan" tomorrow.
We will arrive at Shennong Valley around 9: 11, and the driver will give us 21 minutes to guide us to the viewing platform on the roadside high slope. "Shennong Valley", formerly known as "Scenery Pass", is the first beautiful scenery in Shennongjia Scenic Area, and the local saying goes that "if you don't come to Scenery Pass, you will waste your time in Shennongjia". "Ya" means a narrow valley, and the word "Ya" is crowned with scenery, indicating that this valley has excellent scenery. Renaming it "Shennong Valley" is a recent event, and the name of the place called "Shennong" seems to be even louder. The observation deck is facing the pass of the "Scenic Pass". Standing on the platform, I can see the strange rocks at my feet like bamboo shoots and columns. The cliffs in front are deep and the mountains are green. The peaks in the distance are shrouded in mist, and the farther away they are, the more hazy they are, and they gradually enter the clouds.
According to a tour guide, the canyon in front of us originated from the "Yanshan Crustal Movement" in the dinosaur era, and the "Shennongjia" area gradually rose, causing the southern stratum to fracture, and then it was cut by running water. Over time, it gradually formed a canyon as deep as 1,111 meters. However, it is a pity that such a beautiful scenery can only be seen from afar, and it is impossible to have a close contact with it. Moreover, after deducting the time-consuming uphill and downhill, the 21 minutes given by the minibus driver can only allow me to set up a tripod and take a selfie of the next "visit here".
get on the bus and go on, then stop at a tall tower, which is also a scenic spot, called "watchtower". The tower is made of steel, which may be used for fire prevention observation, and tourists are not allowed to climb it. A boulder is the only attraction here, with the words "Shennongding" and an altitude of 3115.4M on it, indicating that the opposite mountain peak is the main peak of Shennongjia (Shennongding). However, there is another stone tablet nearby, which is only over 2811 meters above sea level. The two monuments are not far apart, but the elevation is more than 311 meters. I guess, the foot of this place should only be more than 2811 meters, and 3115.4 meters refers to the mountain peak in the distance opposite, that is, the altitude of Shennongding.
After staying for about 15 minutes, we continued to move forward, and stopped at a wide parking lot at 9:51. The driver said that this place is the best scenic spot in Shennongding Scenic Area, which is called "Slate Rock". He gave everyone 1 hours of free activities and asked us to return to our original place before 11:51. "Slate Rock" is 2161 meters above sea level. It is a mountain ridge with some strange-shaped stones scattered on it. Our tour itinerary is to take a loop along the wooden plank road, and there are warnings everywhere along the way, such as "Beware of poisonous snakes, don't leave the sidewalk" and "Beware of getting lost, don't leave the trail". Some caves are also hung with wooden signs of "Savage Habitat". According to some tour guides, this area is frequented by savages in Shennongjia. Savages' hair, feces and bamboo nests have been found in the bamboo forest of Arrow. However, I guess these are just legends or gimmicks. Our minibus driver (a native of Shennongjia) declared that he didn't believe there would be savages in Shennongjia area at all. After a turn, the overall impression of "slate" left me is "not in the first place". Essentially, it should belong to the limestone karst landform with underdeveloped development. Except that its "Stone Forest" is located at the top of the mountain and there is a legend of savage, the scenery can't be compared with the Castel landform in Guangxi, Yunnan and Guizhou at all, and the visibility is even worse than that of our scaly hidden stone forest in Yong 'an, Fujian.
after reporting to the minibus driver at the specified time and place, we went on by car and passed several alpine viewing platforms. Everyone asked to stop and watch, but the driver refused, because these items were not included in our tour itinerary. At 11:15, we arrived at the "Taiziya" scenic spot, and the driver let everyone off. He said that Taiziya is a ravine, and the main attraction is the virgin forest. We are now located at the entrance of Taiziya. There is only one road in Taiziya, which goes down all the way. It takes about 1 hours to reach the exit, and the driver will drive there to wait.
The name "Taiziya" comes from folklore that a prince once lived here. This prince is Li Xian who later became Tang Zhongzong, and he is also the son of Wu Zetian and Tang Gaozong. There is a "Three Provinces Taiwan" next to the entrance of the scenic spot. It is said that Li Xian was here in those days, "I live in three provinces in my day", but there is another saying that standing here can see three provinces (Chongqing, Shaanxi and Hubei).
Walk into the valley and go down the mountain along a wooden plank road, surrounded by verdant, tall and straight coniferous forests. Some big trees have wooden signs, which show that they are more than a thousand years old. However, I feel that there are many deceptive elements in this, because I have seen many ancient trees in the mountainous areas of Fujian that are only 511 ~ 611 years old, and they all look stronger than these "Millennium" ancient trees. On the way, I also crossed a large rhododendron forest, but unfortunately, the flowering period has passed and no rhododendron remains. However, from the pictures displayed by the roadside, it can be seen that if the flowering period can be caught up, the scenery in this area can definitely be described by Bai Juyi's poem "Looking back, peaches and plums are colorless, and hibiscus is not a flower".
at 11: 41, I walked out of the valley, got on the bus again and went to Dajiu Lake. The driver said it would take more than an hour to drive this distance. The low van seat made me feel uncomfortable, and Ms. Nanjing in the same car even asked to get off and vomit. At about 13:11, the bus stopped in front of a restaurant, which is the designated place for our individual group to eat, and another bus led by a tour guide also stopped here. However, most tourists bring their own dry food and choose to eat here, totaling less than 11 people. I am one of the diners, 38 yuan with bacon and lettuce, 15 yuan with vegetable and bean curd soup, and 2 yuan with rice, totaling 55 yuan. The Nanjing couple in the same car didn't eat because the lady didn't feel well. I asked if Tianyan would still go tomorrow. The man replied, "Enough!" .
After dinner, move on, aiming at "Dajiuhu Wetland Park". Dajiu Lake, also known as Jiuhuping, belongs to a typical subalpine basin. Its central area is wide and flat, with an altitude of 1,771-1,811 meters, and its periphery is surrounded by mountains of 2,211-2,611 meters. A small stream runs through the basin and connects nine lakes in series, hence the name of Dajiu Lake.
enter the park at around 14: 11. The main landscape here is one lake after another, and there are large grasslands around the lakes. According to a tour guide, these grasslands used to be wetlands, but now the weather is dry and the wetlands have become grasslands. The large-scale economic development, planting grass and raising livestock, and introducing off-season vegetables from high mountains since the 1981s have also aggravated this change. After the official listing of Dajiuhu National Wetland Park in 2119, the process of turning this wetland into grassland has been effectively curbed. According to the minibus driver, all the people engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry in the region will be moved out in the future, and the houses built will also be demolished. At that time, the whole wetland can be restored to its original appearance. The reason for such a big fight is mainly due to the needs of the "South-to-North Water Transfer Project". Danjiangkou Reservoir is the source of the middle route of the South-to-North Water Transfer Project, and the water of the reservoir comes from the Han River. One of the main tributaries of the Han River is blocking the river, and Dajiuhu Wetland is the source of blocking the river. Therefore, the water under our feet will flow to the capital Beijing in the future.
at 15: 31, I left Dajiu Lake, and then I was tortured by car for nearly two hours. I went backwards along the original road and went to Xiaolongtan Scenic Spot near the entrance of Shennongding Scenic Spot (Duck Mouth). On the way through Shennong Valley, I saw a large group of white clouds tumbling out from the bottom of the valley, and the scenery was spectacular. I asked to stop, but the driver still refused. He said it was just fog, not clouds, and there was nothing to see. In fact, besides planning to take a photo of the cloud scene, I asked to stop because I wanted to get off the bus to get some air and exercise my legs and feet. Sitting in this minivan for a long time was not only unbearable for the Nanjing lady, but also for me, who never gets carsick. The Nanjing couple told me clearly that the "Tianyan Scenic Area" of tomorrow has decided to give up, on the one hand, because it is too uncomfortable to take this minibus, and on the other hand, it is said that "Tianyan Scenic Area" is not a strange place.
At 17: 35, I arrived at Xiaolongtan, mainly to visit the Wildlife Rescue and Protection Center, among which the biggest attraction was a few golden monkeys. Golden monkey is a rare animal endemic to China, which is generally divided into Yunnan golden monkey, Guizhou golden monkey and Sichuan golden monkey. The golden monkey in Shennongjia is a subspecies of Sichuan golden monkey community. These monkeys in the protection center were treated after being injured, and now they have lost their ability to survive in the wild and can only stay here for the elderly. How many more