Nujiang-Dali Trip Feb 2008-part 1

i've returned from Nujiang -Dali (Yunnan) for more than a week already. i thank God He's taught me once again to rely on Him and Him alone, that all my cares and fears prior to the trip, He had already taken care of:

-i was blessed with almost clear beautiful weather most days during the trip while i was told by the locals it was snowing in Lijiang and heavy rain in Kunming. Dry weather was really very much appreciated because i had to do quite a bit of walking and the remaining journey travelling on buses winding around meandering roads along the river meant any bad weather conditions would add on to the risk of plunging into the river or face complete road blocks;

-though i've encountered landslides and fallen rocks along the way, i thank God they've always missed me;

-there are really more dogs in Nujiang than any where else i've been. Despite the very real threat of ferocious dogs running towards me and the regretable fact that the ultrasonic dog repeller wasn't delivered to me in time, the trekking pole i've brought managed to stop all from attacking me though they would not stop coming near me, barking and growling till i'm way out of their guarded territory;

-though the electrical outage caused by the snow storm was still not restored when i arrived at Bingzhongluo, there was still hot water for bathing at the hotel because the heaters run on solar energy..

With so much worries prior to this trip, what then propels me to continue to Nujiang on my own?

Well..many years ago, a missionary friend told me about a people hinging themselves on a hook and sliding along cables to get across a raging river- the River Nu in North Western Yunnan; this mode of crossing is called 'liusuo' (溜索). i've since then been very keen to try it myself. Some years back, i saw TianZhuangzhuang's film 'Delamu' (德拉姆) which featured Nujiang and the Ancient Tea Horse Caravan Route and my interest in the region was roused again but the journey did look quite challenging and so i procrastinated. A Taiwanese couple i met on my trip to Meili Snow Mountains made the trip there last year and recommended i do it before the proposed dams and electric power stations projects take off there. While researching, i read about a strange phenomena at a lake in that region called 'Obedient Lake' (听命湖)- so named because at the sound of voices, clouds will suddenly gather above the lake and in a short while rain will pour and as soon as it had arrived, it will abruptly stop till the next sound is projected. The phenomena had been tested and never failed to manifest. Of course there's a legend as well as a scientific explanation to it, in any case i was very keen to check it out....Finally, after reading a book called 'The Lost Shangbala--Hiking along the River Nu' (遗失的香巴拉-徒步怒江手记), i discovered that part of that region is also touted as the 'Shangrila' depicted in James Hilton's book 'The Lost Horizon' (from which sparked the search for Shangrila). The authors also described the wonderful encounters with the Christian and Catholic communities there and the heavenly acapella singing (taught by Western missionaries) that echo through the hills during church services......

That made up my mind to do the trip

Information below was extracted from http://www.chinatrekking.com/ -

An overview of Nujiang Gorge

Nujiang is one of the rivers within the Three Rivers Natural Reserve, a world heritage site listed by UNESCO. It is located throughout southwest China's Yunnan Province and flows into Myanmar, where it joins the Salween River and ends its journey at the India Ocean.
The Nujiang Gorge running from northwest Yunnan to Tibet lies in a narrow strip of land bordering Myanmar, sandwiched to the west by Gaoligong Mountain range and the Biluo Mountain range on the east. It runs through one of China's remotest areas, with carved canyons running through it. However, due to its inaccessibility, the Nujiang River has never been a popular tourism destination. Clinging to impossible places on the slopes hundreds of meters up from both sides of the river, farms belonging to the Lisu and Nu people dot the landscape. One cannot imagine people living on such steep inclines. Most mountain inhabitants live in wooden sheds and huts built on the side or even the top of the mountain.
Villages on the other bank of the river are accessed either by narrow hanging bridges constructed with small wooden planks strung together with rattan tied to trees; or by sliding on overhead cables that span the river. The cables are tied to trees on either side of the river and to cross, one is suspended from a rope loop attached to a harness worn around the waist. The scenery between Fugong and Gongshan is awe-inspiring with many cliffs, clear green river-water and water falls. The first hairpin bend came into sight near Bingzhongluo.
Catholicism, Tibetan Buddhism and local religions are very popular and co-exist peacefully in the region. Members in one family may have different religions ...........................