On the fifth day of the total itinerary, September 2nd, Wednesday, visit Zhangjiajie Forest Park (the second day)

I woke up in the morning to find the sky drizzling with rain, which was depressing. Today's itinerary is for Yangjiajie, including Wulong Village and Tianbo Mansion, which were not visited yesterday. However, according to people from homestays, Wulong Village was closed due to a fire last year and is still under renovation, so they have no choice but to give up.

Yangjiajie Scenic Spot is located in the northwest of Zhangjiajie Forest Park, adjacent to Tianzi Mountain in the north, and connected with Yuanjiajie Scenic Spot in the east. It is a magical scenic spot discovered after Yuanjiajie, Suoxiyu and Tianzi Mountain in Wulingyuan National Scenic Spot Scenic Spot. This is a favorite place for backpackers and adventurous friends, mainly featuring primitive scenery and natural beauty. Its characteristic is the word "danger", with high mountains and narrow roads. Compared to places like Jinbian Creek and Yuanjiajie, this place appears quiet and mysterious.

The most famous attractions in the scenic area are Wulong Village, Tianbo Mansion, One Step Climbing to the Sky, and the Sky Corridor. Wulong Village and Tianbo Mansion are located to the north of Yangjiajie, while One Step Up to Heaven and the Sky Corridor are located to the south. Usually, go north first and then turn back to go south. Wulong Village used to be a place where bandits lived, with treacherous terrain; After passing through Wulong Village, you will arrive at Tianbo Mansion, which has over 10 natural stone walls of varying heights and spectacular scenery. Unfortunately, you cannot go there. There is an iron ladder to climb to the top of the mountain in one step, and the peak is flat, where you can overlook the surrounding beautiful scenery.

After breakfast, the rain decreased a lot. The boss's father drove us to the fork in the road station and stopped at a place along the way, saying it was a good place to see the sea of clouds. Generally speaking, if it rains the night before in Zhangjiajie, we can see the sea of clouds the next day.

Indeed, clusters of white clouds and mist slowly rose and floated from the depths of the canyon.

Unfortunately, it did not fill the entire valley and form a decent sea of clouds in the end.

I waited for a while, but the situation didn't improve. The boss's father said he couldn't see the sea of clouds today, so everyone got in the car and continued moving forward. Transfer to the scenic area transportation bus at Sanchaoluo Station to Wulongzhai Station. Although it is called Wulongzhai Station, it is actually still far away from Wulongzhai. In fact, this is the entrance of Yangjiajie Cableway, a large station where many tourist groups climb up the mountain, with a foot traffic no less than that of Bailong Tianti Station.

Walking towards the direction of the cableway station, I saw a directional sign pointing to a scenic spot called the "Natural Great Wall" at a fork in the road, so I went to take a look first.

It takes about 5 minutes to walk to reach the Natural Great Wall. It is reported that the "Natural Great Wall" is a unique peak wall wonder in Zhangjiajie, formed about 380 million years ago, earlier than the common peak pillars in scenic spots such as Tianzishan, Yuanjiajie, and Huangshizhai. Unlike peak columns, its shape is distributed in a long strip shape, and its extension direction is controlled by structural joints. It looks like a peak when viewed from the side and a wall when viewed from the horizontal, like a naturally formed Great Wall, with a magnificent and majestic atmosphere.

Unfortunately, here the sea of clouds has turned into a sea of fog, with visibility only a few dozen meters, and only the nearby scenery can be seen.

Walk back to the original fork in the road and head in another direction. After a few minutes, you will arrive at the next fork in the road. The small path on the right leads to Wulong Village and Tianbo Mansion, but is blocked by a rope. The sign next to it reads "Scenic area renovation, temporarily closed". I am a bit hesitant about which direction to take next, because before departure, I read someone else's travelogue that said there is a small path that can lead to reaching heaven in one step, much closer than the main road. But the homestay owner suggested that we don't go because the slippery road is dangerous in rainy weather. I checked the navigation on my phone and found that Gaode asked me to move forward, Baidu asked me to move backward, and finally chose the path pointed out by Gaode. Unexpectedly, the road pointed out by Gao De happened to be a deserted road, far away and with steep slopes up and down. In addition, the stone steps were covered in moss for a long time, and after being rained on, they became very slippery. Along the way, we only encountered two tourists who, like us, were using mobile navigation.

Continuing uphill for hundreds of meters from the Five Banners to worship Buddha, a rock peak stands tall on the ridge, which is called 'ascending to the sky in one step'.

Climbing to an altitude of 1130 meters, there are two 32 level iron ladders that are approximately 90 degrees perpendicular to the summit.

Daring to climb up, I found that the summit was flat, about 2-30 square meters, with iron fences around for protection. Standing at the top of the platform, one can enjoy the beautiful scenery around. At this moment, the weather suddenly improved, which was extremely exciting.

After taking the next step and climbing, I walked back directly. I made a mistake here and forgot to go to the 'air corridor'. Later, I regretted it deeply.

We quickly returned to the Yangjiajie Cableway Station by taking a small path, and then took a transportation bus back to Sanchakou Station. As usual, the boss's father was already waiting for us. He said it's still early and suggested that we go to the Grand View Tower to take a look. Considering that Tianbo Mansion was not successful and today's itinerary was a bit short, I accepted his suggestion.

From the Daguantai parking lot to the scenic area, you need to walk continuously for more than 600 steps, which is equivalent to a 30 story building. We have been walking for most of the day and are still hesitating whether to go down or not. The boss's father said that there is a saying among the locals, 'Zhangjiajie is beautiful or not, it all depends on your two legs.' This means that the more roads you walk in Zhangjiajie, the more beautiful scenery you will see. If you don't want to walk, you won't have any beautiful scenery to see.

One step is difficult to take

First come to the scenic spot, which is difficult to navigate in one step. There is a dangerous cliff here that, for some unknown reason, has cracked open a crack that is only 1 meter wide but 100 meters deep. It separates the front boulder, which is about 20 meters long, 2 meters wide, and hundreds of meters high, from the main body of the cliff, forming an excellent viewing platform. In the past, it was not easy to stand here and enjoy the scenery. Most tourists would often hesitate by the stream because it separated the two mountains, and only the brave could cross it in one step, hence the name "difficult to walk in one step". The boss's father told us that there was once a university professor (I don't remember the name of the university or the person) who jumped over safely, but unfortunately fell into an abyss and died when he jumped back (because the inside was high and the outside was low, it was easy to go but difficult to come back). After that, for safety reasons, this crack has been covered by iron mesh, allowing visitors to safely travel between the two peaks, but it is still extremely dangerous.

Although the observation deck is right across the street and looks very close, to reach it, one needs to circle around the canyon for half a circle.

I don't feel too tired going down, but the feeling of going up is not very pleasant.

It's still early today and the weather is good (the weather in the mountains is unpredictable, with rain and fog in the morning, but the clouds have already opened and the sun rises in the afternoon, with blue sky and white clouds). The boss's father took us to visit the old house scene area.

Laowuchang is an undeveloped scenic spot in Zhangjiajie. When making a travel guide to Zhangjiajie, I had already learned about the name "Laowuchang" and some magical rumors from the travelogues of other backpackers. Among the familiar names such as "Jinbian Creek", "Shili Gallery", "Yuanjiajie", and "Tianzishan", the place name "Laowuchang" appears very simple and primitive, as if it is a place rarely visited, or a deserted village, or an abandoned remote area. However, visitors who have been there are all amazed.

Before arriving in Zhangjiajie, I had already heard of the name "Laowuchang" from the little legends of backpackers. Among the familiar names such as "Jinbianxi" and "Shili Gallery", the place name "Laowuchang" appeared very simple and primitive, with a seemingly unremarkable appearance,

The old house scene area has an aerial platform with three sides facing the deep and suspended from the sky, with several acres of farmland on top, known as the aerial countryside. At the end of spring and the beginning of summer, wild azaleas bloom around the green farmland, transforming the aerial countryside into an aerial garden. When autumn comes, it is a golden hue. According to the boss's father, this piece of land was forcibly cultivated by a fellow villager in their village on this stone peak. It took several years, but in the end, they couldn't move it anymore, so they kept the middle piece. Unexpectedly, from a distance, it appeared heart-shaped. Later, it was discovered by hikers who came here to enjoy the wild scenery and named "Sky Countryside", which has since gained a great reputation.

Another famous attraction in Laowuchang is the "Gathering of Divine Soldiers".

In the deep valley, hundreds of stone peaks are densely arranged, resembling a group of majestic soldiers lining up to obey orders. Local legends say that this is where the divine soldiers of the King gather. Although the myth is unreliable, the stone peak is so concentrated and spectacular that it is rare in Wulingyuan National Scenic Spot.

The boss's father showed us the observation deck where the divine soldiers gathered, and we could only see a corner of the gathering (which felt quite spectacular). To see the whole picture, we had to walk for nearly 20 minutes, and it was not a regular sightseeing road, only a pedestrian path with no guardrails nearby. The boss's father doesn't recommend us to go, and I'm still a bit eager to try, but others say they've been tired all day and it's better not to go. If the minority obeys the majority, then they give up. Let's all return to the homestay together.

Unfinished to be continued