Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山) and Tiger Leaping Gorge (虎跳峡) (12/20/2011-12/21/2011)

These two places in northern Yunnan represent the necessary hiking segments within any of my long trips. The Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is named after the copious amounts of snow it's supposed to have (alas global warming) and I had to pass 4,000 meters in altitude before I really saw any - in the middle of December.  It was quite fun to hike on the snow covered mountain glacier at 4,600 meters but it wasn't the arduous trek I expected (as evidenced by the numerous wooden stairs).

Somewhere a little more challenging was Tiger Leaping Gorge, where my guide, a 50 year-old Naxi local, could outpace most people I know (given he hikes the ~1000 m vertical route nearly every day). Still, quite humbling.  The scenery is not given justice by these poor photographs, but I hope one can get the sense of just how steep and how large this gorge is. There were no safety fences, nets or any other scene-spoiling non-sense; just a few strategically placed iron chains to guard against slippage.

玉龙雪山:

虎跳峡: