Alpine Rhododendron
Name in Chinese: 喇叭河自然保护区 [lǎ ba hé zì rán bǎo hù qū]
Location: Tianquan county, Ya’an city, Sichuan province, China
Duration of the tour: One and Half a Day
Opening time: Sun.-Sat. 08:30a.m.-05:00p.m.
Tour Highlights: Summer Resort; Hiking; Wildlife Watching
In the north of SW China’s Sichuan province lies Labahe Nature Reserve, a nature wonderland that serves as a critical habitat for a rich diversity of rare species including Giant panda, Red panda, the Golden snub-nosed Monkey, Sichuan Takin, Sambar Deer and Marten, making it a vital stronghold for biodiversity conservation in Southwest China.
Labahe reserve also acts as a natural botanic garden, home to a wealth of rare varieties of plants including Dove Tree, Alpine Azalea Tetracentron Sinense Oliv, Katsura tree, which have been put under China’s national first-level protected plants list.
Sprawling 234 square kilometers and sitting at an altitude of 3,700 metes, Labahe Nature Reserve boasts a collection of breathtaking offers nature wonders to be hold from towering snow-capped mountains and primeval forests to grassy meadows and alpine lakes.
Must-see attractions are Jiaoshan Peak and Sambar Deer Lake
Jiaoshan Peak is perched at an altitude of 3,700 meters. It treats visitors to fabulous panoramic views of the reserve, as well as stunning vistas of sunrise and the rolling cloud sea. With an altitude of 2,400 meters, Sambar deer lake is an alpine lake where herds of Sambar deer are often seen drinking water. The lake is a destination for all seasons: in spring, the surrounding grassland is adored with a vibrant profusion of flowers bursting with a riot of colors while summer is the best time to enjoy the surreal vistas of pristine alpine lakes reflecting the surrounding snowy peak under the dazzling blue sky; when autumn approaches, it brings a fascinating palate of warm hue-woods and forests are adored in fiery red and golden yellow; then comes the winter wonderland where the ground is blanked in white carpet of snow.
What is even worth mentioning is that Labahe reserve offers night safaris for those seeking quality views of nocturnal critters, promising nature lovers a once-in-a-lifetime experience!
Some 62 miles to the east of Labahe Reserve sits Bifengxia Gorge Scenic Area, which distinguishes itself for the ingenious combination of its panda base, mountains, forests, waterfalls, and cliffs. Tourists are well advised to do the two destinations in one trip, which typically takes 3 days at a relaxed pace.
How to get to Labahe Nature Reserve
The scenic area is about 140 mi from Chengdu with a travel time of 4 hours. Tourists can fly to Chengdu from most of major cities within Mainland China. Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU) is one of two airports serving Chengdu, which now mainly serves domestic flights around China. The other one is Chengdu Tianfu International Airport (TFU), which also operates domestic flights and took over all international routes from Shuangliu International Airport. Currently, there are 30 international routes to most of major cities abroad, such as, Hongkong, Moscow, Taibei, Seoul, Phuket, Istanbul, Sydney, Cairo, Los Angeles, Bangkok, Osaka, Hanoi,Singapore, Tashkent, Kuala Lumpur, Nha Trang, Toronto, Vancouver, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Paris, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington. Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is located 18 km (11 mi) south of the city center, the journey from the airport to the city center takes about 35min while Tianfu International Airport is 65 kilometers (40 mi) southeast of the city center, taking about one hour.
As the major rail hub in southwest China, Chengdu possesses an extensive rail network, operating around 250 high-speed trains on a daily basis. It well connects to over 100 cities nationwide, making it super convenient to reach Chengdu from other popular tourist destinations, such as Xi’an, Chongqing, Beijing, Shanghai, Guilin, Zhangjiajie, Lanzhou, Hongkong, etc.
