Dunhuang Trip-Zhangye Danxia Landform-Day1

First of all, let me introduce the overall plan of this trip to Dunhuang. It will be a 4-day trip with a group. The plan is as follows:

I was so excited the night before yesterday that I packed up after work. The luggage went to Shanghai Hongqiao Airport and prepared to depart for Lanzhou, Gansu. In fact, the main focus of this trip is to worship the greatest world wonder "Mogao Grottoes". Although it is late in May, the temperature in Gansu during this period is still quite low. The temperature difference between day and night is large, and it is not as hot as Shanghai. You still need to bring a jacket. I heard that it will snow there around the 20th.

? We arrived in Lanzhou around 1 a.m. and a tour guide took us to a nearby hotel to arrange accommodation. We were so sleepy that we fell asleep in the end because we had to get up at 5:30 to eat something. For breakfast, we only had Lanzhou beef. Ramen, because it's near the airport and it's relatively remote, there's nothing there, the taste is okay, but it's a bit strong for eating noodles so early in the morning.

6:30 It takes about 1.5 hours to take the bus to Lanzhou Railway Station and take the train to Zhangye City. The bus ride is really tiring. For me, 4 hours is almost enough to rest, and it’s okay to wake up. The spirit set off with the large army. It takes about 2.5 hours by train from Lanzhou to Zhangye. We arrived in Zhangye around 11:00. After arriving in Zhangye, another tour guide received us and was responsible for the arrangements for the last two days. The tour guide received us and we took another 2 hours of bus ride to today’s destination: Zhangye Danxia National Geopark.

In the morning, I encountered beautiful scenery on the high-speed train from Lanzhou to Zhangye: the Qilian Mountains. The mountains are covered with snow. The highest altitude of the Qilian Mountains is about 5,000 meters. At present, in order to protect the ecological environment, the Qilian Mountains have banned external tours. , just appreciate her beauty from a distance.

It looks quite low from a distance, but in fact the altitude is quite high. There is snow all year round.

At about 12 noon, we arrived at the scenic spot and had lunch nearby. Because it was the off-season, there were not many tourist groups, so it was relatively relaxed.

We took a group photo at the gate of Zhangye Danxia National Geopark:

Then we entered the scenic spot and started the core of today’s itinerary. Everyone was very excited. Let’s take some special photos of the gate first. :

The son of the Gate God Dragon is different from the picture in the book, a bit scary:

Panorama map of the scenic spot:

Before starting the following introduction, let me introduce it first It is convenient to better understand the situation of Xia Danxia landform.

1. Geographical location

Zhangye City, located in the middle section of the Hexi Corridor in Gansu Province, was one of the four counties in Hexi in ancient times. The origin of the name: In 121 BC, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent Huo Qubing to conquer the west. After defeating the Huns, Zhangye County was established. It means "cut off the arms of the Huns and open the armpit of China to connect the Western Regions". The name is quite interesting. It can be seen that geographical location was very important at that time. The poem about Zhangye is even more beautiful: "If you don't look at the snow on the top of the Qilian Mountains, you mistake Zhangye for the south of the Yangtze River." Isn't the beautiful scenery of "a lake full of mountains, half a city with tower shadows, a continuous stream of reeds, and ancient temples everywhere" more beautiful than Jiangnan?

2. Causes of formation

Danxia refers to the isolated peaks and steep strange rocks formed by red sandy conglomerate peeled off by long-term weathering and water erosion. The Danxia landform here developed from the Pre-Jurassic to the Tertiary Period, about 2 million years ago. Danxia landforms are mainly distributed in China, the western United States, Central Europe and Australia, with the widest distribution in China.

3. Honorary evaluation

A national AAAA-level scenic spot, in 2009, it was rated as "one of the six most beautiful strange landforms in China" by "Illustrations of the World and National Geography"; in 2011, It was rated as "one of the top ten magical geographical wonders in the world" by the highly authoritative and oriented National Geographic magazine.

4. Landscape area

The landscape area mainly includes two major landscape areas: Binggou Danxia Scenic Area and Colorful Danxia Scenic Area, which are about 12 kilometers apart. Binggou Danxia Scenic Area is mainly located in Kangle Township and Baiyin Township, Sunan County, Zhangye City, and Colorful Danxia Scenic Area is mainly located in Nijiaying Township, Linze County. This time we went to the Colorful Danxia Scenic Area, and this one was the best.

5. Film and television shooting base

The endless red mountains in Zhang Yimou's "Three Guns" are the Zhangye Danxia landform.

Zhang Yimou is very fond of Zhangye's colorful Danxia. The movie "The Great Wall" released in 2016 was also shot in Zhangye Danxia. It has the most beautiful clouds in the sky and the most beautiful landscape on the ground. William and Tovar Chased by the Khitans.

"Detective Di Renjie III" released in 2008 was also filmed in Zhangye Danxia.

Let’s start visiting the hospital:

There are four viewing decks in the entire scenic area, 1-4. Our route is to go to the No. 2 viewing deck to watch the sunset and sleep. Beautiful landforms; go to No. 1 Sightseeing Platform to see colorful clouds and Danxia landforms; skip No. 3. It is said that there are camels on it. The tour guide said that there are no more camels now and there is nothing to see. There are indeed no special attractions when the car passes by. Go directly to the comprehensive viewing platform Viewpoint No. 4, this is the most beautiful scenic spot, the finale.

The first distinctive Danxia landform, so beautiful (No. 2 Scenic Spot)

The second Danxia landform: Sleeping Beauty (No. 2 Scenic Spot)

p>

I wonder if you can see the individual shape?

There is long hair in the middle covering the head, and then lying flat, there is a little feeling. Since there is no special travel column introduction, I just listened to the tour guide’s explanation.

Here is another panoramic view of the two landforms above:

Here is another personal photo

The third characteristic Danxia: large scallop (No. 1 Sightseeing Platform )

Look at a group of colorful Danxias below: (No. 1 Observation Deck)

Entering No. 4 Observation Deck, the tour guide took a very interesting photo for us and asked us: " Do you want to film an armed scene? "Eighteen Palms of the Dragon. Of course I can't miss it. It seems that I am only so interested in it, and others don't react at all." Haha, forget it, picture above:

Featured Danxia landform: Shengui Wentian (No. 4 Sightseeing Platform)

Featured Danxia landform: Little Potala Palace (No. 4) Scenic Spot)

Featured Danxia Landform: Dragon Playing with Fire (No. 4 Scenic Spot)

The Danxia scenery is so beautiful, I was so mesmerized after the tour, seeing such a natural " The "uncanny" scenery is like entering a fairyland, making you feel happy! I couldn't help but take two more photos:

After that, I took the travel agency bus to the hotel where I stayed in Jiayuguan City for dinner. The journey took about three hours. I went to eat near the hotel around 8:30. This time is good for my stomach. I have been hungry for a long time, and I have already bought some bread in the car to fill my stomach. At this time in Jiayuguan City, the sky was still bright and clear, and it would probably not get dark until around 9:30. Sure enough, after we finished eating, the weather started to feel a little gray.

Sure enough, the day is longer than in Shanghai. It must have been dark in the magical city at this time!

After dinner and checking into the hotel, I could finally rest. I didn’t feel tired on the first day, but after a day of running around, my mouth was dry, and the climate was dry, and my mind was filled with all kinds of fruits. , just drinking water is no longer useful, so after putting the luggage in the hotel, I asked a few friends to go downstairs to hunt for prey!

At the end of a day’s travel, it’s perfect to have a good sleep at night!

Link to the travel article for the second day: Trip to Dunhuang-Crescent Spring + Mingsha Mountain-Day2