A Travel-Buff's Poetic Journey Through Zhangjiajie: Travelogue and Reflections
Recently I had the good fortune to visit beautiful, much-longed-for Zhangjiajie and take in its natural splendor, which benefited me greatly. I jotted down this travelogue, hoping readers can savor Zhangjiajie's magnificent scenery in these words and share my joy of touring it. Setting out from home, images of Zhangjiajie kept surfacing in my mind...
This article is compiled from the original travel notes on the "Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network" (33519.com); it is a record of trips from earlier years. Time-sensitive information such as ticket prices, schedules, and accommodation prices is subject to the latest announcements from scenic areas and transportation authorities; the itinerary ideas and attraction introductions still have reference value.
Recently, I had the good fortune to visit beautiful and alluring Zhangjiajie, where I took in Zhangjiajie's natural and elegant scenery, from which I benefited greatly. I jotted down this travelogue on a whim, hoping that my comrades can savor Zhangjiajie's magnificent landscapes in these words and share with me the joy of traveling through Zhangjiajie!
Setting out from home, Zhangjiajie's beautiful scenery kept surfacing in my mind. Although I had never been to Zhangjiajie before, I had long heard of its beautiful scenery — especially its wondrous mountains, wondrous waters, wondrous trees, and so on. Even more representative is its strong ethnic cultural character, which makes visitors linger and not want to leave. When our vehicle entered Zhangjiajie's territory, we immediately felt the charm of the beautiful scenery. Numerous fire-safety propaganda slogans caught my eye, letting me feel the strong atmosphere of Zhangjiajie's fire-safety publicity. The mountains and waters on both sides of the highway made one appreciate how charming our motherland's landscape is, and the rice paddies, houses, and flocks of sheep were full of strong rural accents and feelings!
We first came to Zhangjiajie's famous attraction — Huanglong Cave. At the cave entrance, I saw that the queue of visitors waiting to tour Huanglong Cave had already formed a very long line. One can imagine that Huanglong Cave is a must-visit place for anyone traveling to Zhangjiajie, and its reputation is naturally well known. Then we entered the cave and clearly felt the temperature difference between inside and outside. The cool air rushing toward us made me suspect I had walked into spring. The air inside the cave is well circulated, with a year-round temperature of around 20°C, making it an excellent summer resort. Walking further in, under the colored lights, a beautiful fairy-tale world unfolded. On both sides of the rugged stone-step path rose bizarrely shaped stone walls. Those stalagmites, stone pines, stone flowers, stone curtains, and stalactites were in a thousand postures, strange and bizarre, and their names were also full of wit — things like "Ten Thousand Stone Monster Cave," "Reclining Pine Wonder," "Immortal Heaven Water," and so on — vivid, fitting, and full of poetic flavor. Walking further, the cave became more and more open, and the scenery grew even more majestic, perilous, elegant, and colorful. The white and cream-colored stone curtains covering large stretches of rock walls — some hung on rock ledges more than ten meters high, some plunged straight to the ground — vigorous and upright, stretching with grace. The stone pillars connecting the cave ceiling to the ground — some several zhang tall, some as thick as a bucket, some as small as an old man's walking stick — were crystal clear like white jade, too beautiful to take in all at once. Even more novel and unique was the coloring — red, blue, cyan, green, yellow, white, purple — layer upon layer, brilliant and colorful, dazzling to the eyes. I felt as if I had become a sleepwalker, inadvertently intruding into this unpredictable and beautiful world, forgetting the world outside the cave, forgetting the companions beside me, forgetting myself... Coming out of the cave, the sky suddenly poured with heavy rain. Bathed in the misty rain were the rolling, layered mountains. I hid from the rain in a wooden corridor along with the other visitors. Who could have imagined that deep within the mountain's belly, such beautiful scenery would be concentrated — scenery carved and polished so exquisitely, so dazzlingly beautiful, so enchanting.
Early the next morning, we took a bus to another famous Zhangjiajie attraction — Tianzi Mountain. After about half an hour's drive, we arrived at the Tianzi Mountain cableway. Unable to contain our longing for Tianzi Mountain's beauty, we decided to take the cable car up. As the cable car moved, Tianzi Mountain's peculiar magnificence came into view. Those imposing peaks standing among the clouds and mist made me feel as if I had arrived in a fairyland — it was truly too beautiful! I kept using my camera to record every bit of the scenery. As the cable car neared the top of Tianzi Mountain, it felt especially fast, heading straight toward a huge rock on the opposite side as if about to crash into it. I gripped a handrail and closed my eyes, not daring to look. When we reached the summit, I looked back at where we had come from — sheer cliffs rising a thousand ren, precipices ten thousand zhang. I really couldn't believe we had just come up from there. I just kept breathing in the fresh air of nature. The highest among the peaks is Huangshizhai (Yellow Lion Village). At its top there is a flat area, with more than ten natural viewing platforms formed around it. Standing on the viewing platform and looking out, all of Zhangjiajie's beauty unfolds before your eyes. We came to a place called Dianjiangtai (Pointing-General Terrace). Looking down was a bottomless abyss. Opposite the terrace stood eight or nine peaks of varying sizes, neatly arrayed, like mighty generals with tiger backs and bear waists, waiting for the order to march. Then we came to the Tianzi Mountain viewing platform. Wow! I couldn't help crying out! The nearby mountains were lush and verdant, the distant mountains hazy and indistinct. Looking down from high above, peak after peak stood freely between heaven and earth. Their inherent solemnity, plus the mystery of the cloud vapor, made one want only to stand quietly, gaze quietly, concentrate and calm the spirit, and quietly enjoy this moment of transcendence.
Next, we also visited Helong Park, the National Forest Park, the Number One Bridge Under Heaven, the World's Number One Elevator, the Happy Lock, the Soul-Enchanting Landscape, the Natural Landscape, the "Imperial Brush Peak," "Fairy Presenting Flowers," Golden Whip Stream, and so on. In Helong Park, the huge statue of Marshal Helong stands majestically. He holds a tobacco pipe, his eyes gazing intently into the distance, and his beloved white horse nestles docilely by its master's side. Many visitors posed for photos here, fully expressing the people's respect and admiration for Marshal Helong! In the Golden Whip Stream scenic area, the stream winds its way from west to east, never drying up even in long droughts. Approaching Golden Whip Stream, everything is green to the eyes — even your clothes are tinted a pale green. Soften your footsteps and listen: the murmuring stream, accompanied by birdsong. As you walk, you suddenly feel a coolness and realize a gentle breeze is blowing. Waves of fragrance make you stop involuntarily and savor it carefully. In the clear, bottom-visible, spotless green water, fish swim happily, and red, green, and white pebbles glisten in the water; sunlight filters through the forest gaps, casting dappled shadows on the water's surface, giving one the tranquil, serene enjoyment of nature. Every time I saw a scene, I felt it was not just a visual enjoyment — the spiritual enjoyment lies in this: seeing scenery can bring you related shock or emotion. That feeling comes from the scenery's own beauty, as well as the stories, paintings, poetry, music, and so on born from the scenery. Thus, in the scenery you find your own consolation, triggering resonance, and you feel that you too are imperceptibly becoming part of the scenery, merging with it. Then shock or emotion arises, making it a journey of the soul, endlessly enjoying its charm. The following is provided by the guide: Golden Whip Stream is named after flowing past Golden Whip Rock. It threads through sheer cliffs and fantastic peaks. The stream valley has lush vegetation, and the stream water is clear in all four seasons. It is called a "landscape gallery" and "fairyland on earth." A poem praises it: "Clear clear flowing water, green green mountains; mountains like painted screens, people like immortals. If an immortal walks within the painting, one step, one gaze, one new heaven."
Golden Whip Stream is the most beautiful area in Wulingyuan, with a total length of 7.5 kilometers. The stream water is bright and clear, with varied cascades; small fish swim within it. Along the banks, flowers and grasses are elegant and beautiful. Walking along the stream is better than traveling through a painting.
Strolling along Golden Whip Stream in late autumn, the layered forest is dyed in every color. Among the verdant, dark-green fantastic peaks, a stream like a ribbon spreads and winds, adding even more charm. The moss-covered stone-slab path winds through secluded beauty. The mountains jut out, the stream is clear and quiet, birds chirp in the forest, and the water murmurs. On both banks are broken cliffs and sheer precipices, and the small path is covered in dense shade. Rare flowers and exotic grasses, famous trees and majestic peaks — all vie in wonder and splendor.
Walking forward along the winding, twisting mountain stream, every step reveals a natural painting. Divine Eagle Guarding the Whip, Cleaving the Mountain to Save the Mother, Meeting After a Thousand Li... everywhere you look is beautiful scenery, and everything you savor is a classic allusion. Culture and nature enhance each other, and beautiful scenery and mountains and waters bring out the best in each other. The fantastic peaks standing on both sides are upright and coldly stern, like giant teeth thrusting up from the earth into the sky, using stubbornness and transcendence to give force and beauty a new interpretation. Only the power of nature could carve out such outstanding, secluded, mysterious, and bizarrely wonderful scenery. Ancient trees blot out the sky; the peaks pierce through the cloud-waves formed by the tree canopy, standing solemnly in the firmament, leaving only a sliver of sky. Mountains appear wondrous because of water; water gains color because of mountains. Green water and perilous cliffs form one after another masterful painting, dressing the ten-li-long stream into a gallery of uncanny workmanship — winding and twisting, embroidering elegance and ethereal emptiness within its bends, meandering straight into the dim and distant.
The stream water is emerald green, set off by the green forest on the banks — pure and soft, with a luster that moves people. The plants are sometimes swaying gracefully, sometimes brilliantly colored, sometimes full of charm, sometimes solitary — naturally harmonious. The stream washes over green moss; the current is suited to both rushing and slowing, gurgling and tinkling. In "Record of the Peach Blossom Spring": "Following the stream, he forgot how far he had gone. Suddenly he encountered a peach blossom grove, with banks on both sides for several hundred paces, with no other trees mixed in; the fragrant grass was fresh and beautiful, and fallen blossoms were scattered in profusion..." At this moment, it truly felt like arriving in a land of peach blossoms beyond the world, without a doubt.
Gathering the spiritual essence of mountains and waters, containing the quintessence of nature, and embodying humanistic connotations, Golden Whip Stream is more like a recluse beauty of peerless elegance, hidden deep in her boudoir. In stillness, there are sparse shadows slanting across the clear, shallow water; in motion, it is like misty waves layered in green with rippling chaos. In its elegance and gentleness, it fully displays a beauty as pure as ice and bone-chilling.
Finally we ended our trip, but my heart was still in Zhangjiajie, longing for its mountains, longing for its waters, longing for its beautiful scenery, longing for everything there, longing for our simple and honest young guide. People all say Guilin's landscape is the best under heaven. Before, I firmly believed this, but after traveling to Zhangjiajie, I realized there is always a higher mountain beyond. Zhangjiajie is truly worthy of being called the best under heaven. Its fantastic mountains, bizarre rocks, graceful pools, and clear waters; mountains and rocks meeting form a heaven on earth; pools and waters joining form a paradise on earth. It made me feel that the sky is so blue, the earth so green, and Zhangjiajie so beautiful. If I have the chance, I will come to see you again!