Backpacking through Southern China and Hiking Tiger Leaping Gorge

After having spent a couple weeks exploring China, I’d climbed the wild and rugged Great Wall, taught English in Xi’an, climbed the famous Huashan mountain, eaten spicy hot pot in Chengdu, and visited an old thatched cottage of a famous poet. But I was still looking for another thrilling adventure. After traveling by train for a couple days, I made my way to one of the most beautiful villages in China, Lijang.

Lijang is situated in-between mountains on all sides, towering above the manmade city. I stayed in a small guest house, with a couple of other travelers. And because I was actually a little sick during that time, I extended my stay to rest a couple days. And I’m so thankful I did, because I wouldn’t have met the people I did. I met a South Korean girl, Suin, who had been a well-experienced traveler, traveling for a few years to countless countries. I met an American girl, Kim, who had just finished teaching English in China for the past year. And I met a French guy, Vincent, who was once a web developer who quit his job to travel the world. While spending a couple days at the guest house, I found out that all three of the people I met wanted to hike Tiger Leaping Gorge. So we decided to take a chartered van together.

After an early start to the morning, we hopped on our bus for a smooth and straightforward ride to the trail start. Compared to my Great Wall public bus adventure, this was a piece of cake. I have to admit, it was nice taking private transport this time. After buying our tickets into the national park, our van dropped us off at the trail head. With all of our bags packed and situated, we strode off up the twisting streets.

The first 30 minutes of the hike was essentially just walking through a village. Once we got to the actual trail, we were faced with a near vertical, rocky path. A local man, tethered to a couple donkeys, sat close by. He approached us with keen eyes, gesturing to his donkeys. Fortunately, Suin spoke Mandarin fluently and told the man that we wouldn’t be needing any help from the animals. But he followed us anyway, obviously having done this before. So, with our new companion, we trekked on and up.

It was a fairly strenuous hike, and Kim and Suin eventually did accept the man’s offer to use the donkeys. Vincent and I trekked ahead, eventually meeting another couple of people. Coincidentally, we ran into another American girl and another South Korean girl, who had also just met on the trail. The American girl, Janelle, had been studying abroad in Shanghai. And the South Korean girl, Choi, was on holiday for a short time. After talking for some time, we realized that we were staying at the same guest house along the trail. So we continued to hike together.

The views were absolutely stunning. As we hiked up the brutal switchbacks, the snowy mountain range appeared larger and larger. We passed a few local shops or guest houses along the way. One man was actually selling marijuana along the side of the trail. Apparently, the plant grows wild in the mountains here. After taking many much-needed breaks along the way, we eventually made it to our guest house, The Tea Horse.

The view from the guest house was phenomenal. Kim and Suin made it not long after us. We checked in, and had a couple beers on top of the roof. Although the beer in China is light, it was such a rewarding refreshment at the top. And it was even better sharing with friends. Afterwards, we ate dinner together. I truly enjoyed being with this group of people. Everyone was kind, and had unique stories to tell. And although I dropped food with chopsticks on more than one occasion, I devoured the yak meat quickly. By the end of dinner, we were all so tired that we went to bed.

Waking up at 04:30 was the best decision I made on this trip. Without any lights to pollute the night sky, the stars shown with a brilliant light. The others had also made plans to get up this early, but no one was in sight. So, I stayed on top of the roof, listening to music, and staring at the endlessly marvelous expanse of our universe. This was one of the happiest moments of my travels in China. I was at peace with myself and what I was doing. The only thing that mattered was the current moment. I had met good people, ate delicious food, and seen wonderful sights.

Later that morning, we had breakfast and quickly headed on our way. Throughout the hike, we met goats, picked wild fruit, stared at stunning views, posed for many photos, chased waterfalls, and climbed steep ladders. At the end of the hike, we climbed down into the gorge itself and were rewarded with close up views of the water rushing through rocks lines with strata.

We climbed back up, had dinner, and took the bus back to Lijang. Janelle and I decided to travel together in Lijang for the next couple of days. We went to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, which was 4506 meters above sea level. We saw more of China’s stunning beauty by touching blue water, finding wild horses, and relaxing in a meadow on top of a mountain.

Heading down South in China was quite the experience that I won’t soon forget. I met many wonderful people, and had thrilling adventures with them all. And honestly, it was one of the happiest times of my life. I’m still uncertain as to why this was, but I felt like I was finally becoming the person I’ve always wanted to be. Socializing with people was easy. I was able to have great conversations, which led to greater friendships, which led to the greatest experiences.