Yulong Mountain, a photo from Yunnan, South

Photographer's Note

Situated at the upper end of Dongba Valley, one takes a coach from Lijiang to an elevation of approximately 3000 masl, from there by cable car to 4505 masl, and climb the steps of the wooden walkway to the hut at 4680 masl. The last leg on foot can be very exhausting because of the thin air but canned oxygen is for sale at the bottom cable car station.

Following is a selective extract from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"Jade Dragon Snow Mountain -

Mount Satseto, known in Chinese as the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain ... is a mountain massif (also identified as a small mountain range) near Lijiang, in Yunnan province, southwestern China. Its highest peak is named Shanzidou 5,596 m or 18,360 ft). The view of the massif from the gardens at the Black Dragon Pool (Heilong Tan) in Lijiang is noted as one of China's finest views ...

Shanzidou has been climbed only once, on May 8, 1987, by an American expedition. The summit team comprised Phil Peralta-Ramos and Eric Perlman. They climbed snow gullies and limestone headwalls, and encountered high avalanche danger and sparse opportunities for protection. They rated the maximum technical difficulty of the rock at YDS 5.7. ...

The Jade Water Village is at the foot of the mountain. Many websites falsely describe the tourist facilities as a ski area. Others falsely claim the mountain holds the southernmost glacier in the Northern Hemisphere (there are glaciers in Mexico and in areas just north of the Equator in the Americas and Africa)."

Truly beautiful and not to be missed on a visit to Yunnan Province. Lijiang itself is a beautiful small city with very interesting local cultures situated in the high-elevation Dongba Valley where the Americans had a WW II air base which was subsequently destroyed by an earthquake.

SnapRJW, bebbetto, PecoBud, PecoBud, danos, Wanda1, worldcitizen, adores, ChrisJ, CLODO has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

SnapRJW (18722) 2012-03-27 12:38

Hello Dear Neels - Oh a place I long to visit and funny because I posted a 'mountain' scene today but yours is higher! A magnificent shot full of atmosphere. I marvel at the walkways which have been so neatly constructed. Are those monks in the red clothing? They make excellent splashes of colour in the grey and white scene. Smashing shot. Warm regards rosemary
PS We have been enjoying constant heavy rain here!

TopGeo (37994) 2012-03-27 12:42

Hello Neels! a beautiful photo of this imposing elements I like the composition and the attractive lights the architectural details are splendid, superb white and grey colours and the POV is excellent,
Best regards
Georgios

guld (1042) 2012-03-27 12:48

All I can say is WOW! What a fantastic capture! It is so good, I think it belongs to National Geographic.

holmertz (26932) 2012-03-27 12:59

Hello Neels,
This is a stunning composition. The view of grey steps along the grey mountain-sides, partly covered with snow, is aesthetically very appealing. The red flags and the many people in red clothes add great little spots of colours. The clouds cover the peaks very attractively too.
Regards,
Gert

dale54 (4922) 2012-03-27 13:22

well hello neels,simply love this,great job,great shot,love the little dots of red,the people are wearing! super POV too! have a great week! dr

bebbetto (12) 2012-03-27 13:45

Hello Neels.
Exciting vision. Perfect composition. The contrast of the red clothes against the snow is very attractive.
Regards

PecoBud (3778) 2012-03-27 14:15

OK, I must hike this before I die. Love the POV and the detail and clarity keep me staring endless at this photo. The colors amongst the snow and rock are excellent Neels, and I really thank you for posting this!!

TFS..........Buddy

thebest (3370) 2012-03-27 14:22

Hello!!

What a nice image I love the natural colours & the clothing fashion colour ' red ' really enhances the photo - excellent POV well done I would love to visit this mountain.

Kind regards,
Dawn.

npecanhuk (53901) 2012-03-27 18:51

Hello Neels!
A very nice and interesting picture of an exotic place!
Chosen pov, composition, exposure, colors and sharpness are all excellent features here!
TFS - congrats,
Cheers,
Neyvan

danos (73974) 2012-03-27 22:24

Hello Neels,
fascinating this part of the view of Yulong mountain, with the melted snows to show us the stairs and the kiosks as crossing the stony part of the place.I like its original beauty with the foggy atmosphere to make the image even more effective.

Regards,Danos

Wanda1 (13950) 2012-03-28 0:36

Hi Neels,
This looks like an elaborate system of walkways and stairs, I can imagine that it must be quite exhausting to reach the top especially with the thin air. I like the spots of red colour from the tiny people that stand out against the mostly monochromatic landscape. People also give a good sense of scale as they look dwarfed by the mountains.
Regards
Wanda

MJR (3147) 2012-03-28 3:15

Hi Neels,

A rare treat, a posting from the deep south, and even then an image of the far east !

I love this melange of grey, the cloud, the metalwork, the mountain all fusing into one glorious confection. The red highlights of course make it come alive, but the image would work as well without.

And, fully in the TE spirit, a wonderfully informative note. sSo TFS ..

rgds
Martin

worldcitizen (4852) 2012-03-30 9:12

Hello Neels,
This is an amazing scene. The way the stairs and walkways snake their way up the mountain is really interesting. It all looks so fragile, as though a strong blast of wind could blow it all down like a house of cards, but I am sure it must be stronger than it looks! The mountains are also beautiful, and so is all the activity, with small bursts of color popping up everywhere.

adores (28210) 2012-03-30 18:50

Hi Neels!
This is a different photo of Lijiang. At first glance I thought it had been taken in winter. Very impresive place. The people, the flags and the cabins give it some colour!I like your pov and the effetc of the clouds is just great!

sacavem (18572) 2012-04-04 8:47

Olá Neels,

The image of the winter are always very spectacular and lovely for looking,but pitying for the cold period. Mackerel sky and snow is perfect. Beautiful scene composed perfectly.

Cumprimentos,
Filipe

abmdsudi (26233) 2012-04-07 23:12

Hi Neels
Amazing Black Dragon mountain so well captured close up with some nice rock formations. A rewarding view indeed and we are treated to some remarkable snowy mountain scenery, a good combination of colours in the mid foreground with fine details of visual value. This image renders a breathtaking frosty view in this wonderful composition, the pathway leads in while the specks of vivid colors add the scale ref as well as effective focal and contrast. You have done well to get such a stunning shot, a good chilly shot. Well done.
Best regards

kabel (991) 2012-04-10 8:26

Hello Neels, Excellent composition in your misty mountain photograph. The splashes of red from the clothing add drama to the grey granite background. I agree with you that art is a high human endeavor and it keeps me trying to achieve a higher quality when I take photographs,
Have a great day,
Karen

foozi (7101) 2012-04-22 20:34

Hello Neels,
I really love your shots in China. They are very artistic like the Chinese paintings. The strokes are represented in your images, the tones and the composition are really splendid.
Such a lovely place and you show it so wonderful.
Congrats.

Regards,
Foozi

Bournazel (6072) 2012-04-30 3:27

Neels
Love the ambiance very much
Impressive walkway
Thanks
Vincent

patdeph (35738) 2012-04-30 8:18

hello Neels
I am very happy to see this picture, because last august I was in China and went to Lijiang.As I had no hot clothes, and because the journey was very expennsive, I decided not to go on this mountain.The pictures I saw were not beautiful enough to give me the desire to go there.But now, I think I have maybe missed something spectacular.This is superb!
Regards
Pascale

CLODO (24726) 2012-04-30 8:33

hello Neels

It seems it's cold up there, and the path is well designed not to loose tourists, even if they wear red cloth!
Regards
CLODO

finlay (1535) 2012-05-23 12:59

Neels

A very clear and sharp capture. The swirling mist adds to the feeling that this is a very remote location. I particularly like all the people in their jackets. They stand out vividly against the grey mountainside and white snow. Excellent!

Finlay

janspanelsky (81) 2013-04-08 6:33

Very interesting picture in terms of overall composition. The staircases, wooden huts and predominantly reddish clothed people with background of rocks with tops hidden in clouds makes almost surrealisticly looking blend. Would like to visit this place one day ;)