TRAVELS TO JIUZHAIGOU WATERFALLS

Jiuzhaigou, compared with other high-traffic scenic spots in China, can be difficult to reach by land. The majority of tourists reach the valley by a ten-hour bus ride from Chengdu along the Min River canyon, which is prone to occasional minor rock-slides and, in the rainy season, mudslides that can add several hours to the trip. I'm glad we made it in a days drive :-)

The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan province, but also in Shaanxi and Gansu provinces. As a result of farming, deforestation, and other development, the giant panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived. The giant panda is a conservation reliant endangered species. A 2007 report shows 239 pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27 outside the country. Only 2000 remain in the wild...

The giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca, literall "black and white cat-foot" but also known as panda bear or simply panda, is a bear native to south central China. It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body.

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, or simply Chengdu Panda Base, is a non-profit research and breeding facility for giant pandas and other rare animals. It is located in Chengdu, Sichuan, People's Republic of China. Chengdu Panda Base was founded in 1987. It started with 6 giant pandas that were rescued from the wild. By 2008, it had 124 panda births, and the captive panda population has grown to 83.

The web of the female can reach up to 39 inches in width. The yellow threads appear rich gold in sunlight. The web has three layers: the central orb, plus two irregular layers in front of and behind the orb. The adult female is about 1 inch. The male is much smaller and is no bigger than 0.4 inches. The female has stripes of yellow and dark blue, with red near the rear of the abdomen.

The 2008 Sichuan earthquake had rendered the main expressway impassable, the only way now to reach the park being to use a much longer alternative route along narrow, potholed roads, passing evidence of the devastation that killed 68,000 people only two years previously. Bridges were fallen, landslides had covered the former road, burying cars just visible, crushed under rocks....... what a drive!

The Nuorilang Falls are situated, at an altitude of 2,365m at the junction of the Zechawa, Rize and Shuzheng valleys. Best viewed from the Shuzheng valley road the 250m wide veil of water flows out of the thick shrubs and bushes of Rize Gully to drop 24m into a small ravine below the road.

Jiuzhaigou Valley is part of the Min Mountains on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau and stretches over 72,000 hectares. It is known for its many multi-level waterfalls, colorful lakes, and snow-capped peaks. Its elevation ranges from 2,000 to 4,500 metres. Jiuzhaigou Valley was inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1992 and a World Biosphere Reserve in 1997.

Five Flower Lake at 2,472m altitude and just 5m deep is referred to as the soul of Jiuzhaigou. Its shallow cyan coloured waters provide the visitor with an outstanding display of is bottom sediments containing trees, bushes, and leaves in great array. Its waters drain via the peacock riverbed, claimed locally to be the shortest and most beautiful river in the world, to one of Jiuzhaigou’s most appealing waterfalls. The “Pearl Shoal Falls”

Mirror Lake is so named because of its ability to reflect the images of the surrounding mountains and forests. The lake, at an altitude of 2,410m, is in a sheltered section of the valley running east west which produces its glassy reflective surface. The outflow of “Mirror Lake” is through the “Rize Gully” a travertine ramp of small ponds and natural bonsai trees and bushes that lead directly to one of the great sights of Jiuzhaigou, The Nuorilang waterfall.

The shallow waters rush over the 160-m wide travertine shelf called ”Pearl Shoal” creating a noisy bubbling cascade which from a distance looks like a shawl of pearls draped across the hillside. The falls have a drop height of 21m and are 162m wide providing a spectacular display.

"Wow" is the word for this beautiful waterfall situated in Jiuzhaigou, China. Getting your eyes of this beautiful scenery is impossible, seems like your get hypnotized by nature at this place. The beautiful gushing milky waterfalls is surrounded by huge green hills on all sides, the milk waterfall stands out amid lush green hills

The Pearl Shoal Waterfall is one of the first of three waterfalls in the reserve. This waterfall is fairly typical of the cascades that run through the Jiuzhaigou Nature Reserve as the water tends to be rich in minerals (e.g. calcium carbonate or limestone), which gives it the cave-like textures (e.g. rounded bumpy ledges, alcoves, overhanging travertine, etc.) As for dimensions, the Pearl Shoal Waterfall has a width of about 163m and a height of 21m.

Jiuzhaigou, compared with other high-traffic scenic spots in China, can be difficult to reach by land. The majority of tourists reach the valley by a ten-hour bus ride from Chengdu along the Min River canyon, which is prone to occasional minor rock-slides and, in the rainy season, mudslides that can add several hours to the trip. I'm glad we made it in a days drive :-)

Jiuzhaigou is composed of three valleys arranged in a Y shape. The Rize and Zechawa valleys flow from the south and meet at the centre of the site where they form the Shuzheng valley, flowing north to the mouth of the valley. The mountainous watersheds of these gullies are lined with 55 km (34 mi) of roads for shuttle buses, as well as wooden board walks and small pavilions. The board walks are typically located on the opposite side of the lakes from the road, shielding them from disturbance by passing buses.

As the capital of Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Kading is a piece of land with various spectacular landscapes, such as vast grassland, beautiful high-plateau lakes, snow-capped mountains, stunning primitive forest, etc. Yala Holy Mountain is an important mountain to the local Tibetan, and the peak of it is 5820 meters(17,460 feet) above sea level.

Zheduo Mountain is located in Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Sichuan Province. Known as the first pass of the Kamba Area, the mountain is at an elevation of 4298 meters. Zheduo means "winding" in Tibetan Language, and means "a lot of winds" in Chinese, hence the name.