2020-12-31 Siguniang, SiChuan

Photo/Writing CY Chang

Siguniang Mountain

Siguniang Mountain is very beautiful, but I have never been there. I wonder if I should go there during the long holiday at the end of December.
I booked a homestay in Changpinggou and left after confirming it. It was still cold in the evening. It snowed and fogged. At almost 4,000 meters, I still felt a lack of oxygen.
Clouds come and go, beautiful, snow on the mountain road anyway, just arrive at night

Changpingyi outdoor theme homestay is very good, the owner is a long-distance runner.
It was still hard to sleep on the first night, the temperature outside the window was minus 8 degC, and after a tough night, we set off for Shuangqiaogou late in the morning.
A 60-year-old man bought a half-price ticket and followed everyone else. The bus was clean and quiet, so he decided to reload and climb to 3,900 meters.

3900m

Carrying the whole set of Hasselblad and D850, I climbed to 3900 meters. Panting and still panting.
The wind on the snowy mountain brought the snow, and the warm sunshine helped me warm up. I took a few steps and took a break to catch my breath.

Hasselblad lens, Kodak 120 film to take photos of clouds and snow on Siguniang Mountain. The weight was really a problem. It was tiring but worth it.
After returning to Taiwan, I developed the film and scanned it into digital files. It looks really different, with a slightly retro yellow tint, making me feel like I’ve returned to the negative film era of 1990.

The hard-rocky feeling images taken by the D850 compared. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages.

The faith center still plays an important role. At 3700 meters without oxygen, should we pray for oxygen or good fortune?

After descending from 3,900 meters, I felt much better. The ice and water on the surface of the water formed a picture. I found several angles to take the picture. My hands were frozen. I quickly returned to the B&B, ate and rested.

Pain of Changpinggou

The next day, I really went into Changpinggou. The bus took me to the door. I thought it was okay to reload. I practiced yesterday, and my steps were light all the way.
This is the reddish-brown moss unique to Siguniang Mountain. In the autumn ice water.

Today, I walked around Yaomei Peak and got closer and closer. My fellow photographer, Jiu (Nine), took a photo for me. “For your Blind Date!”, he said.

Will’s note: Product below is out of stock at this moment.

Then the suffering began. I walked with Jiu and took photos while walking. I was surprised I actually walked into 8K. When I saw this scene, I calculated that I might miss the last bus, so I took the photo here.

Here is the most proud photo I took. The horse was absorbed in eating grass. Like kissing the earth.

The return journey was a pain. The camera on my shoulder was really heavy. I stopped and started on the way back. I wondered if I should not carry this weight next time.
Before returning to the scenic spot, I saw this wild friend looking at me in the woods. I took a picture of it without being clear.

In the evening, I returned to the B&B with Jiu and had hot pot early. Thank Jiu for secretly paying for the meal.
After some discussion, we decided to take photos of the Milky Way at night. We said hello to the top of the mountain without lights and brought our equipment.
The mountain was really dark, with a sky full of stars and a clear Milky Way. The photos were taken in freezing -8 degrees.

In the middle of the night, I looked at the distant Siguniang Mountain. I returned to the B&B and drank wine with Jiu and roasted the fire. At dawn, the whole family watched the starry sky I took.

Return trip

In the morning, I was too rush to say goodbye and drove back to Chongqing. After leaving the control point, I looked back at the mountain yesterday and wondered if I should stay a few more days.