Above 1,500 m, forty minutes further up the road from Lugu. This is ginkgo, moso bamboo and cloud country; tea is one thing among several here, though it is the one that keeps.
Itineraries1
Wuxiu farm and the ginkgo groveDay tripWuxiu farm → a walk through the ginkgo → the lookout for the sea of cloud → moso bamboo charcoal → brew your own → a bamboo-charcoal hotpotThis is the largest ginkgo grove in Southeast Asia. It turns from late November into December, and those weeks are the reason to come.
Sights and trails
Shanlinxi forest resort
The flowers turn over several times a year: tulips and peonies January to March, hydrangea April to May, waterfalls and trails all year. Ten degrees or more cooler than the lowlands in summer.
The moso bamboo tunnel
It lines the whole road up from Lugu. The bamboo closes over the top so densely that noon inside feels like dusk.
Things you can do yourself
Making moso charcoal
Watch bamboo become charcoal, and buy the products. The charcoal hotpot is the local way to eat.
What is on, and when
November–DecemberThe ginkgo turns and the winter tea comes in — the two months most worth the drive up.
July–SeptemberThe escape from the heat. When the lowlands hit 35 °C it is in the low twenties up here.
Eat, sleep, travel
EatBamboo shoots, bamboo-tube rice, charcoal hotpot. Almost every restaurant up here revolves around bamboo.
SleepThere is a hotel inside the resort, with more choice down at Lugu and Xitou. Rooms vanish in ginkgo season — book a long way ahead.
TravelNo public transport goes all the way; there is a shuttle from Xitou. By car, County Road 121. The road is winding with rockfall sections — avoid it after dark.
