- Visit Chengdu – Home to the Giant Pandas
- Visit Chengdu – The Majestic Leshan Giant Buddha
- Visit Chengdu – Top 3 attractions in Chengdu
- Visit Guilin – Reed Flute Cave
- Visit Guilin – Plan Li River Cruise
- Day trip From Shanghai – Zhujiajiao Water Town
- Money Can buy Happiness at Shanghai Bund and Nanjing Road
- Visit Shanghai – Yuyuan Garden and Jade Buddha Temple
- Shanghai Travel : Top 5 Attractions in Shanghai
- Visit Zhangjiajie – How to Visit Tianmen Mountain
- Explore Zhangjiajie – How to Visit Baofeng Lake
- Visit Zhangjiajie – Avatar Mountains, Bailong Elevator, Golden Whip Stream
- Visit The Great Wall of China – Greatest Feat in human History
- Top 10 Must do things in Beijing – Travel China
- Travel China – Top 5 Attractions in China
Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one less traveled by.Robert Frost
Explore Zhangjiajie – How to Visit Baofeng Lake
After visiting the famous Tianmen Mountain – all we needed was a place where we could relax in the lap of nature – what best then visit Baofeng lake to the southeast of Zhangjiajie. This scenic area was developed more by chance – A peaceful gorge many years ago, the local people built a reservoir to store water for irrigation. The people dint expect the end product would be so scenic!
The water of the lake is sublimely clean as it’s an alpine lake. The green water of the lake gives the feeling of a jade surrounded by mountains on all its sides. Getting to the lake is slightly tricky if you would want to do it in a cost-effective way. Zhangjiajie is one of the most expensive tourist destinations in China so taking a Taxi would be quite extravagant. So how to go from Zhangjiajie to Baofeng lake?
At Zhangjiajie town, walk to the central bus station. Pass through the security at the entrance. There are no advance tickets as Tourists can buy tickets in the bus itself. Write your destination in Chinese – Wulingyuan Town [ 武陵源 ] – this comes very handy. Pass through Gate 1 and walk further down through the barriers and take a left. Here you could see various buses and also people calling out for buses to Wulingyuan – confirm with them and take one of these minibuses. These buses depart as soon as they are full. The Ticket cost is 20 yuan per person and it takes close to 1 hr 10 mins through beautiful countryside to Wuligyuan bus station.
Another option is to talk with the bus driver and tell him you are going to Baofeng Lake and he will deboard you at the entrance to Wulingyuan town. The lake is then a well-marked 10 mins walk from here. If you get down at the Wulingyuan bus terminal (like us) then take a cab from here which costs 15RMB to the lake.
Once at the ticket office you would need to purchase tickets for the lake (96 Yuan/person) and also the bus ticket (25 yuan/person). Board the bus and after a 10 mins uphill journey you would be at this beautiful lake. At the very first sight we fell in love with this place – there was so much calmness, serenity – it just leaves you awestruck. A perfect place to relax after a busy start at Tianmen Mountain.
We then boarded one of the many wooden boats for the cruise around the lake. At various points in the lake there are huts from which a beautiful girl walks out and renders a traditional folk song with her melodious voice – adding to the beauty of the lake. The crystal clear green waters, lush green peaks and a soothing song is all we needed to unwind midst our China exploration. The cruise lasted 20 mins and was well worth it.
Travelling China can be daunting at times. So please keep my travel tips for China handy – Click here.
Post the cruise, we took the bus back to the entrance gate and walked to the waterfall at the entrance. Pouring down from a hundred meters above with thunderous sound this is another key highlight at Baofeng Lake.
Alternatively, there is a path to hike the peaks which surround the Baofeng Lake. Instead of taking the bus, walk through the entry gate and a few meters ahead to your right you could see a path marked as “Flower Path” which ascends uphill. Its worth trying – but we ran out of time so had to give it a pass.
This was truly a memorable and a much needed relaxation break for the both of us. We then took the cab back to the bus terminal and took a bus back to Zhangjiajie – which was a crazy nerve racking drive with a super crazy driver imitating a F1 driver probably!! Travelling in a public mode with the locals while saving a lot of money does give us a unique insight into their life. Be it the lady who walked to us and asked if we were Arabs! Or be it the people who wanted to click pictures with us or be it the helpful old man who showed us the wrong way at Wuligyuan! or be it the road signboard which read – “Advocate Science, Don’t follow evil cults” – everything left a lasting memory on us.
If you have any questions around this please feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you at the very earliest.
This is Aldrin and my partner Amoli. We bring you "Earths Pilgrim" - a unique insight into our travel escapades while leaving life in a cubicle. If you are looking for some inspiration to break the shackles of a regular life, then you are the right place. Read more about us- Click here.