Traveling to Yunnan in winter, we walked the ancient tea-horse road several times from Nujiang River, Shangri-La, Lijiang, Puer to Xishuangbanna. When traveling to Sichuan, Shaanxi, Qinghai and Xizang, we also walked through the ancient tea-horse road many times. As an ancient transportation road, the Tea Horse Ancient Road is touched every time you step on it. Although it cannot be traveled completely, it is already deeply impressed and difficult to let go.

The ancient tea-horse road originated from the tea-horse exchanges in the Tang and Song Dynasties. Kangzang is an alpine area. Tibetan people need meat to withstand the harsh climate. They often eat meat without fruits and vegetables. They cannot dissolve oil and will lack vitamins in the long run. Princess Wencheng entered Tibet and brought with her the habit of drinking tea, which made up for this shortcoming to a certain extent. Tubo has mules, horses, furs, medicinal materials, etc., but does not produce tea. The mainland has tea, cloth, salt, etc., but lacks good horses. The demand relationship gave birth to the tea-horse market.

During the Tang and Song Dynasties, the tea imported into Tibetan areas from the mainland mainly came from the Qinghai-Tibet Road. Since the Tang Dynasty, tea from Mianyang, Shuzhou, Qiongzhou and other places in Sichuan flowed into Xizang, beginning the history of Tibetan tea drinking, and a road for tea to be exported to Xizang emerged. In the Tang Dynasty, the Qinghai-Tibet Road was the main transportation channel between Xizang and the Central Plains. The exchanges of envoys such as Qin and Wen Pin between Tang and Tibet, and Princess Wencheng's entry into Tibet all entered Tibet through Qinghai.

With the disintegration of the Tubo Dynasty, the Tibetan areas in the Song Dynasty were divided, and the Qinghai-Tibet Road lost its military and official role. After tea was introduced into Tibetan areas in the Tang Dynasty, tea had special functions of assisting digestion and removing greasy substances, which made drinking tea popular among animal husbandry people who drank meat and milk. All ethnic groups in the northwest sold horses along the border to buy tea leaves. In order to obtain war horses, the Song Dynasty decided to carry out tea-horse trade in the northwest and stipulated that tea from famous mountains could only be purchased by horses every year and not used by others, thus transforming the Qinghai-Tibet Road from a military and political road in the Tang Dynasty. It became a tea ceremony.

Starting from the Ming Dynasty, the Sichuan-Tibet Tea Ceremony was officially formed. The Ming government stipulated that Sichuan and Shaanxi provinces should receive tribute missions from Xizang in the two provinces respectively. Ming envoys also entered Tibet from Sichuan and Shaanxi respectively. In addition to paying for the "Chafa Horse" needs of Gansu and Qinghai Tibet, most of the remaining Sichuan tea was imported into Tibetan areas from Liya, and tea horse departments were set up in Yazhou and Diaomen. The main purpose of Tibetan monk leaders paying tribute to the Ming Dynasty was to obtain tea leaves, so they also paid tribute from Sichuan-Tibet Road. Therefore, the Sichuan-Tibet Tea Road, pioneered by the tea trade, also became an official road, replacing the status of Qinghai-Tibet Road.

The Qing Dynasty further strengthened the management of Kang District and Xizang, relaxed the export of tea to Tibet, and the Sichuan-Tibet tea ceremony became more prosperous. In this way, during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the "Xiaolu Tea Ceremony" was formed from Ya 'an, Tianquan Crossing Ma' anshan, Luding to Kangding, and the "Dalu Tea Ceremony" was formed from Ya 'an, Yingjing Crossing Daxiang Ridge, Feiyue Ridge, Luding to Kangding. Then Kangding passed through Yajiang, Litang, Batang, Jiangka, Chaya, and Changdu to Lhasa to form the South Road Tea Ceremony. From Kangding to Qianning, Daofu, Luhuo, Ganzi, Dege Crossing the Jinsha River to Changdu, and joins the South Road to Lhasa to form the North Road Tea Ceremony. This tea ceremony from Ya 'an to Kangding and Kangding to Lhasa is not only the Sichuan-Tibet Road in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but also the Sichuan-Tibet Road today.

In addition to the Qinghai-Tibet Line and the Sichuan-Tibet Line, the Ancient Tea Horse Road also has the Yunnan-Tibet Line. According to historical records, Tubo first received tea from the Tang Dynasty. During the Kaiyuan period to Tianbao period of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, relations between Tang and Tibet were very tense. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty made great achievements and had several large-scale wars with Tubo, most of which ended in failure. Therefore, it was not allowed to export tea to Tubo and put pressure on Tubo. Tubo did not give in to pressure and successfully formed an alliance with Nanzhao in Yunnan, where it obtained a large amount of tea and solved the need for tea drinking.

The transportation route between Nanzhao and Tubo is roughly similar to today's Dian-Tibet Highway. It starts from Dali, Yunnan, north to Jianchuan and Lijiang, passes through Tieqiao City and continues north along the river, passes through Zilan to Yulai and Yanjing, and then goes north along the Lancang River to Magan (Mangkang, Xizang) and Zuogong. It is divided into two routes to Xizang, one via Basu Bangda and Chaya to Chamdo, and the other goes straight from Basu Bangda to Bomi, and then passes through Nyingchi to Lhasa. Since Xishuangbanna Yiwu and Pu 'er are the main tea producing areas in Yunnan, the Yunnan-Tibet line extends to Pu' er and Xishuangbanna.

The Ancient Tea Horse Road is an ancient trade channel running through Yunnan, Sichuan and Xizang. Since tea was the bulk of materials transported and horse gangs were used as the means of transportation, it was called the Ancient Tea Horse Road by later generations. According to expert research, the ancient tea-horse road rose in the Tang and Song Dynasties, flourished in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, flourished in the Republic of China, and declined in the 1950s.

This channel can be called the highest altitude transmission channel for ancient civilization in the world. Most of it extends in an area of two to three thousand meters or even more than 6,000 meters. It spans more than ten latitudes and more than 20 longitude. It passes through my country's Yungui and Qinghai-Tibet two highest plateaus, crosses the Ailao Mountains, Wuliang Mountains, Hengduan Mountains and Himalayas, crosses the Jinsha River, Lancang River, Nujiang River, Yalong River and Yarlung Zangbo River, and finally cuts all the way into the South Asian subcontinent.

The tea consumption capacity of Kangzang people is ranked first in the world. They have three meals a day and cannot go without tea for a moment. Successive courts took advantage of the Tibetan tea addiction to take advantage of the situation and implemented the policy of "governing the border with tea" to strengthen the relationship between border areas such as Xizang and the central government. The thousand-year-old tea-horse ancient road not only promoted the formation and economic development of many towns along the Yunnan, Sichuan and Tibet areas, but also integrated the political, economic and cultural interactions and connections among various ethnic groups in the southwest, promoted the stability and consolidation of the southwest border, and left behind a unique scenery, profound connotation and unparalleled tourism resources in the world.

On December 13, I visited the ancient city of Dukezong. This is a Tibetan residential community with a history of more than 1300 years. The roads in the ancient city are centered on Dagui Mountain and are radially arranged in all directions. They look like a blooming eight-petal lotus in the plane and spatial pattern. Shape, in line with the beautiful "Shambhala" concept in Buddhist legends. On the undulating stone road, there are still deep horseshoe prints. They are the keepsake left by the caravan for time. For the caravan crossing the ancient tea-horse road, Dukezong was the first stop after entering Tibet and a quite comfortable journey after going through hardships.

With the passage of time, the ancient town, which was once the hub of the ancient tea-horse road in Yunnan and the center of material transfer and economic and cultural exchanges between Yunnan, Sichuan and Tibet, has disappeared, but you can still imagine the touching pictures and steaming life, the historical mark that has been accumulated for thousands of years increasingly demonstrates her heritage and charm. The glory of the past has sunk into the horizon, followed by an endless stream of tourists. There are many shops on both sides of the street. Modern and traditional coexistence coexist, and the splendor of the future will rise in the sky of the south.

Diqing is the last section of the ancient tea-horse road from Yunnan to Tibet. Historically, the ancient tea-horse road passed through the main road here for about 800 kilometers. At present, there are still 19 sections of completely preserved road sections in Diqing, starting from the Luotong River Ferry in the south, passing through the Zana Ancient Road and the Meili River Station, the Meili River Tibetan Cliff Rock Carvings, and northwest to Shuolayakou on the north side of the Meili Snow Mountain. It is the last stop of the Ancient Tea Horse Road from Yunnan to Tibet. This ancient road was formed more than 2,000 years ago. In the seventh century AD, it became a military route for Tubo to go south. Since then, it became a channel for tea-horse trade. It reached its peak in the Ming and Qing Dynasties and still plays a role in people-to-people exchanges between Yunnan and Tibet.

The twelve railing section of the Ancient Tea Horse Road is located in Hongqi Village, Hutiaoxia Town, Shangri-La City, 70 kilometers away from the urban area. It is located in Guanyin Rock on the way south. It was built in the third year of Yongzheng (1725). More than 80 industrial and commercial people in Zhongdian in Fujian, Shaanxi, Jiangxi and Yunnan Dali, Jianchuan, Lijiang, Heqing and other places invested in the construction. They cut stones at the waist of the cliff, winding up twelve floors. The road "lies on the cliff in the north and surrounds the deep trap in the south." The ancient road is an important pass for the mainland to enter Tibet in history. There are nearly three kilometers of cliff stone statues on the ancient posthouse road. The ancient road is pasted on the cliff of Guanyin Rock in the east and the deep gorges of the Gangqu River in the west. The terrain is dangerous and the journey is difficult. Since the Qing Dynasty, many literati and poets have written poems to engrave them or written articles to describe them.

The twenty-fourth turning section of the Ancient Tea Horse Road is located in Nuoyu Village, Tiger Leaping Gorge Town, Shangri-La. It is 108 kilometers away from the urban area of Shangri-La and has a total length of 38 kilometers. Most of it is manually paved and excavated. It is the important passage of Zhongdian County, an important town of the Ancient Tea Horse Road, such as Ninglang, Muli, and Lijiang. It is rugged and dangerous, running through the Tiger Leaping Gorge. It has now become a popular route for hiking in the Tiger Leaping Gorge Scenic Area and is very popular among domestic and foreign tourists.

The hollow tree section of the Ancient Tea Horse Road is located between Fuku Village, Shangjiang Township, Shangri-La City, and Xiangka Village, Xiaozhongdian Town. It has a total length of 33 kilometers. Along the way, there are Toudao Bridge, Erdao Bridge, Ganyafang, Sandao Bridge, Sidao Bridge, hollow tree, Guzheba, Qingxiang tree and other ancient and Red Army Long March relics. Historically, it was an important transportation route from the mainland to Diqing. In the spring of 1936, the Second and Sixth Army Corps of the Red Army entered Diqing. During the Battle of Ganyafang on the way, more than 40 Red Army commanders and soldiers died on this ancient road. In the early days of liberation, Yunnan's People's Liberation Army and Tibetan aid materials that entered Tibet to liberate Xizang also passed through this road. At present, this ancient road is a red route to re-embark on the Long March and receive revolutionary traditional education.

Most of the ancient tea-horse roads have long been replaced by modern transportation roads. However, the horse caravan leading from Bingzhongluo to southeastern Xizang still runs on the ancient tea-horse road. Villagers and tourists leading to Wuli Village must also enter and exit through this ancient road, so it is called the "Living Ancient Tea and Horse Road." On December 4, we entered Wuli Village from the lower reaches of the horse suspension bridge and walked the ancient tea-horse road upstream. This is a path cut out of a cliff. It is winding, desolate and steep. Without personal experience, you cannot feel the hardships of digging the road and the dangers of walking. On the way, we walked opposite the caravan and witnessed the caravan crossing the horse suspension bridge.

Lijiang is centrally located, has a low altitude and a suitable climate. Historically, it has become a very important material distribution center on the ancient tea-horse road. Tea, horses, salt, silverware, bronzes, leather products, dairy products, silk, glass products and other materials are gathered together. The good commercial atmosphere provides the Naxi people, who are naturally endowed with an adventurous spirit, with the necessary conditions to venture into the rivers and lakes. From then on, the Naxi horse gang opened the legendary story of "the bell rings in the mountains and the horse gang comes."

Shuhe Ancient Town is an important stop on the ancient tea and horse road between Yunnan and Tibet. It has been ground into a bright stone road, witnessing its former glory. There used to be tea shops, blacksmith shops, restaurants, etc. Here, horse gangs came to rest and provide supplies. Following the stone road, we came to the Family Exhibition Hall of the Former Residence of Tea Horse King. The courtyard is a typical two-square corner building. The basic architectural pattern follows the style and art of Naxi folk architecture. It was built in the late Republic of China and has been renovated since 1935. It is the former residence of Wang Jian, a famous Tibetan traveler on the Yunnan-Tibet route of the Ancient Tea Horse Road.

Tibetans are a special group with certain economic strength and integrating adventurers and business spirit. The Wang family in Shuhe moved to Lijiang during the Hongwu period of Ming Dynasty and was uniformly settled by the Mu's Tusi in Shiheyuan (Shuhe Ancient Town) near Baisha, the political and cultural center at that time. During the Yongzheng period (1723 AD), the Qing court implemented the policy of "changing the land and returning to the flow". The Wang family broke away from the jurisdiction of the Mu family's Tusi and began to rise as a family unit, resuming the handmade leather industry. At the beginning of the last century, Wang Run, who studied under Tibetan scholar Li Jingzhai, took the lead in emerging and became an outstanding figure in Lijiang. His brother Wang Jian followed closely and became famous and became a beautiful talk in Shuhe.
The ancient tea-horse road is naturally inseparable from tea, and Pu 'er is an important tea producing area in Yunnan. It is said that when Pu 'er tea first arrived in Xizang, it was packed in bamboo shoots. During the transportation for several months, the tea leaves had entered a natural fermentation state. They were carried up and down by horses. They were quite breathable and were not easy to mold and deteriorate, so the longer they took, the more tasteful they became. Coupled with the transportation of horse gangs, Pu 'er tea has become more precious after many hardships.
Arriving in Pu 'er City on the evening of the 19th, there were no other itinerary arrangements other than Xiniuping National Park. Regrettably, I got up at 4:30 in the morning on the 20th, jogged all the way along Pu 'er Avenue, and went to the Ancient City of Chama alone for a good stroll. Pu 'er has undulating mountains, and the Tropic of Cancer runs through the middle. It is the largest oasis on the Tropic of Cancer and is called "the world's paradise, the world of paradise" by the United Nations Environment Program. Walking in the quiet and deserted ancient tea-horse city, overlooking the vibrant Pu 'er Tea Mountain, tasting the long-standing tea-horse culture, and shuttling through the time of the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties is like a dream.

(Winter Travel Yunnan Diary 15 2020.11.28 - 12.23 Tour 1.18 was written in Zhuhai)

(Nujiang Tea Horse Ancient Road)

(Danger is everywhere)

(Cliffs and cliffs)

(Overgrown with weeds)

(Cutting cliffs to open the way)

(Successor of the Horse Gang)

(Revisiting the ancient tea-horse road)

(Horse and Horse Suspension Bridge)

(Zhengyi Gate, Xizhou Ancient Town)

(Dali Erhai Gate)

(Shuhe Ancient Tea and Horse Road Museum)

(Ancient Tea Horse Road Archway)

(Tea Horse Station)

(Former Residence of Tea Horse King)

(Exhibition of the Former Residence of Tea Horse King)

(Shuhe Sansheng Palace)

(Shuhe Ancient Street)

(Dukezong, an important town on the Tea Horse Ancient Road)

(Dukezong Guishan Park Sculpture)

(Dukezong Ancient City)

(Kimura Memorial Arch)

(Kimura Sculpture)

(Like the Naxi people)

(Like the trip)

(Like A Xiang)