Shennongjia 神龙架

Shennongjia
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After arriving Wuhan 武汉 by train at 6:00 a.m. last Thur, I jumped to another bus immediately for Yichang 宜昌, the starting point of my Yangzi River trip 长江之旅. I had visited the Gezhou Dam 葛洲坝 and Xiling Gorge 西宁峡, one of the Three Gorges in Changjiang 长江(Yangzi River). I landed at a small town called Badong  巴东 from where I took an early bus to the remote northern part of Hubei Province, the Shennongjia district 湖北省神龙架.

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"Shennong" was an ancient Emperor who believed to be the founder of herbal medicine and agriculture in China.  The district is surrounded by densely forested mountains with abundant species of wild animal and plants, including some giant pines over a thousand years old. Shennongjia is also famed for the sightings of the "Wild Man" (an  ape-like creatures) in recent decades. This legendary "Wild Man" has added the area a mysterious feeling.

The legendary "Wild Man" has added the area a mysterious feeling

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The town now I stay is called Songbai 松柏. It's a small town surrounded by high green mountains. My room has a balcony facing a car park and the green mountain, for only 50 Yuan! When I was in Xiling Gorge, my traveling mood was hit by the cloudy and rainy weather. But the situation is different here, it's sunny and I'm happy. I hired a van for two days to explore the area. Shennongjia is a quiet and beautiful mountain area with few tourists.  This is really a paradise for those fond of photography. I was lucky to see the "sea of cloud" at the mountain top (Shennongding 神龙顶) the day before. It's really marvelous and incredible scenery! Come here if you enjoy beautiful landscape and can put up with the long bus journey on semi-paved road from the Yangzi River!

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Today is my rest day and the last day in Shennongjia. I hired another van to visit a nearby lake called Wushan Lake 武山湖, swam in an outdoor hot spring and relaxed in this sunny Monday.

Well, I have to go now as I will leave Shennongjia tomorrow and catch a bus at 5:30 a.m. back to Badong to continue my Yangzi River journey. My God, another 7-hour bus journey!