Photo Trip - Sichuan, Aba Province

[djinn]

Anyone interested in a photography trip in Sichuan, Aba province?

Plan:
We will rent a vehicle, throw all the gears into the vehicle and hit the road. We'll stop anywhere where scenery is good.

Area covered:
Some of the places we'll cover include Huanglong(黄龙),Jiuzhaigou(九寨沟),Nuoergai(诺尔盖),Hongyu an(红原) and Miyaluo(米亚罗). I have not really plan the route yet. I'm still gathering info from the drivers in Sichuan.

Cost:
Return flight to Chengdu - Around $600
Lodging + Meals + Transport should be around $1200 per pax. This depend number of people going.
Entrance fee - Will update later when route confirmed

Date and duration:
Apr, 9 days 8 nights. We'll stay in Chengdu on the 1st and last night.
For those who want to stay longer and cover other areas, we can discuss.

Warning:
For those who are very particular about cleanliness, is not suitable for the trip.

[wwjd82]

Hey. I hope to know more about this trip. Can email me at overseaphotography@gmail.com

[third3rdwheel]

Originally Posted by djinn Anyone interested in a photography trip in Sichuan, Aba province? Plan: We will rent a vehicle, throw all the gears into the vehicle and hit the road. We'll stop anywhere where scenery is good. Area covered: Some of the places we'll cover include Huanglong(黄龙),Jiuzhaigou(九寨沟),Nuoergai(诺尔盖),Hongyu an(红原) and Miyaluo(米亚罗). I have not really plan the route yet. I'm still gathering info from the drivers in Sichuan. Cost: Return flight to Chengdu - Around $600 Lodging + Meals + Transport should be around $1200 per pax. This depend number of people going. Entrance fee - Will update later when route confirmed Date and duration: Apr, 9 days 8 nights. We'll stay in Chengdu on the 1st and last night. For those who want to stay longer and cover other areas, we can discuss. Warning: For those who are very particular about cleanliness, is not suitable for the trip.

Hi,

This is a very beautiful but also difficult route, so very important to get an experienced driver. Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong are really very beautiful. This route is also where the earthquake happened last year, so important to check ground situation there today.

Jiuzhaigou is accessible by air today, but probably you will miss many of the scenic spots if you fly.

[Lord Soth]

Hi there, I've been to JiuZhaiGou before and will be glad to answer any of your questions.

For starters, here's some tips I can think of :-

1. Try to secure a private hire vehicle when in JiuZhaiGou.

That's because there is a public bus system in the park which follows a fixed route, e.g. A -> B -> C ............-> Y -> Z. At most times of the year, there are 10,000 people packed into each of the scenic spots there. You'll end up photographing the masses of people instead of the scenery if you don't plan ahead.

One advantage of getting your own private chartered bus (and guide) is that the driver can bring you to a location further down the standard public route. For e.g, if you notice that there are thousands of people at point B, you can drive on ahead and stop at point C and do your own private shoots before the rest of the public descend upon that particular location.

2. Best time to visit is early November

Why? Autumn is the "hot" season whereby the brown and red leaves of the trees compliment the beauty of the multicoloured pools of water. The native tourists are therefore there in the greatest numbers during that time.

In early November, the red/brown leaves are still present. However, the temperature is much lower than usual and so you can avoid the huge crowds then and get to take photos at your own leisure!

This tip was given to me by a native SiChuan tourguide.

[ferringi]

hi there, interested with the trip, please email the detail and nos. ppl to bhyeap@enjv.com.sg

[Hosea]

This is going to be an interesting trip...and best time to go is their Autumn, Oct-Nov period.
Do include the journey to Langmusi... if you are traveling along that loop.

Sharing some photos of these places I took.. hope to revisit these places again..

Have a great trip!!
Cheers



Click below web links to view my trip photos at :-


JiuZhaiGou

Mini slide show with music
Music Slide

It was raining and I got hard time to hide my camera from the rain.

HuangLong
It was snowing when I reached the peak of Huang Long. Really damn tired and cold and had no more strength left to do photography

Langmusi
The journey and not only the destination is what I was looking for... the journey to there
bring me back to the nomadic world.

[lestwe4get]

Doing the loop per Hosea's suggestion is better.

Not sure what to see in Miyaluo in Apr since the place is famous for Autumn colors.

GanNam is worth going (have not been there). Here is the link GanNam (southern Gansu which is bordering Sichuan) for your consideration
http://www.xblly.com/0xl.asp

[djinn]

Originally Posted by lestwe4get Doing the loop per Hosea's suggestion is better. Not sure what to see in Miyaluo in Apr since the place is famous for Autumn colors. GanNam is worth going (have not been there). Here is the link GanNam (southern Gansu which is bordering Sichuan) for your consideration http://www.xblly.com/0xl.asp

Maybe you are right. Maybe there is nothing to see in Miyaluo in Apr.

Anyway, I just returned from Sichuan yesterday. I was introduced to a driver over the weekend. He just quit his job. Before that, he was a driver and doing project in Aba province. He is willing to help us arrange for a fee.

I will talk to him these few days to find out what are the places worth visiting in Aba province.

I will come out with a detail plan ASAP.

[djinn]

Date confirmed:
25 Apr - 3 May.

Main attraction covered:
Huang Long （皇龙）
Jiu Zhai Gou （九寨沟）
Hua Hu （花湖）
Huang He Jiu Qu （黄河九曲）
Gu Er Gou （古尔沟）

We'll not charter a bus in Jiuzhaigou. Too expensive. Smallest one cost 3600 per bus per day.
Whether we can push all the way to Langmusi, have to depend on how much time we spend from Jiuzhaigou to Nuoergai.

For those interested, I will send a detail itinerary to you. Itinerary still open for discussion.

[rt7snap]

What is the travelling mode then?

[redwine]

OK, mid oct is the most colorful period for jiuzhaigou,
and yes, there will be tons of tourist everywhere
(after the earthquake, i can say though)

I would suggest you guys stay inside the park,
(you should be able to find some unofficial lodging inside)
as the typical tourist mass will arrive after 8am and left before 6pm.
if you wake up dawn, there will be some good scene to capture.

[djinn]

Originally Posted by rt7snap What is the travelling mode then?

You mean traveling mode in Jiuzhaigou or the rest of the journey?

We will rent a car for the trip but it Jiuzhaigou, we can only take their bus in the valley. 100 yuan for a day ticket.

Btw, Gu Er Gou has to be left out of the itinerary. The journey from Gu Er Gou to Chengdu has to pass by earthquake hit areas. Road condition is bad. Before the earthquake, the journey took 8 hrs to reach Chengdu. Now nobody knows.

Another way is that we take longer route through Ganzi county (甘孜州) and cover more areas, but that will take us another few more days.

[djinn]

Originally Posted by redwine OK, mid oct is the most colorful period for jiuzhaigou, and yes, there will be tons of tourist everywhere (after the earthquake, i can say though) I would suggest you guys stay inside the park, (you should be able to find some unofficial lodging inside) as the typical tourist mass will arrive after 8am and left before 6pm. if you wake up dawn, there will be some good scene to capture.

If it is mid Oct, I rather go Yading, which is also in Sichuan. I've been to both places and I would say the scenery in Yading is much nicer than Jiuzhaigou.

This trip, my main aim is to cover Nuo Er Gai. Perhaps the next trip, will try to cover Jiulong and Kangding areas.

[ManWearPants]

Originally Posted by djinn If it is mid Oct, I rather go Yading, which is also in Sichuan. I've been to both places and I would say the scenery in Yading is much nicer than Jiuzhaigou. This trip, my main aim is to cover Nuo Er Gai. Perhaps the next trip, will try to cover Jiulong and Kangding areas.

Yes, I have been to DaoCheng and YaDing. It is definitely fresh, untouched and rather primitive. But very tough journey. Not for the weak heartered. Also YaDing may not be open to tourists anymore due to internal conflicts between the ZangZhu and the Central government. I went the year before the SiChuan earthquake so not sure how much of it is affected by the quake.

[djinn]

Originally Posted by ManWearPants Yes, I have been to DaoCheng and YaDing. It is definitely fresh, untouched and rather primitive. But very tough journey. Not for the weak heartered. Also YaDing may not be open to tourists anymore due to internal conflicts between the ZangZhu and the Central government. I went the year before the SiChuan earthquake so not sure how much of it is affected by the quake.

It has re-opened last year. They're now building an airport there and start operating it next year. I guess next year the place is going to be flooded with tourist, just like Jiuzhaigou.

[ManWearPants]

Originally Posted by djinn It has re-opened last year. They're now building an airport there and start operating it next year. I guess next year the place is going to be flooded with tourist, just like Jiuzhaigou.

Been there once is good enough...got so many other places to go. Anyone keen on LiJiang and Shangri-la. Been there once but more of a recce from Chengdu to LiJiang. Now wants to go only LiJiang and Shangrila....in June or July.

[taskurgan]

Hi, actually planning a trip to sichuan also. Like to cover Yading and Dao cheng. anyone been there before? If a lone backpacker like me easy to acccess to these places? Thanks in advance!

[djinn]

Originally Posted by taskurgan Hi, actually planning a trip to sichuan also. Like to cover Yading and Dao cheng. anyone been there before? If a lone backpacker like me easy to acccess to these places? Thanks in advance!

Daocheng and Yading is quite easily access. I heard that they going to have a airport there next year.

But for now, there are 2 way to get there if you are going alone.
1. Take a bus from Chengdu to Daocheng. From Daocheng, hire a car to Yading.
2. Join a tour in Chengdu.

Other methods will be very expensive.

The best scenery is along the way. For both methods, you not able to get much shots along the way.

Originally Posted by ManWearPants Been there once is good enough...got so many other places to go. Anyone keen on LiJiang and Shangri-la. Been there once but more of a recce from Chengdu to LiJiang. Now wants to go only LiJiang and Shangrila....in June or July.

I have been to both places. Lijiang is a good choice, but, for me, Shangri'la is not worth going. Unless you are talking about going Shangri'la and enter into Sichuan through Derong. I've never been to Derong. I have seen the pictures. it's beautiful.

[djinn]

For those who want to travel to western Sichuan, I just received a news from Sichuan. The Chinese gov have put a restriction on tourists who are traveling into Tibetan region. Nobody know when it's going to lift. This trip I guess have to be canceled.

[taskurgan]

Daocheng and Yading is quite easily access. I heard that they going to have a airport there next year.

But for now, there are 2 way to get there if you are going alone.
1. Take a bus from Chengdu to Daocheng. From Daocheng, hire a car to Yading.
2. Join a tour in Chengdu.

Other methods will be very expensive.

The best scenery is along the way. For both methods, you not able to get much shots along the way.

Many thanks! Just got my visa! Will be going via Lijiang. flying to Kunming. Going next month. Hoepfully the restrictions will be lifted by then.