Travel Notes︱Autumn in the Mountains

I often went to the countryside when I was a child. It's not the majestic mountain in the photo. Maybe it's not even a "hill". It's too small to be called a "mountain", but it also brought a lot of fun to my childhood. My grandparents were playing mahjong in front of the door, and my cousin took me to play on the mountain behind. The ground vegetation on the mountain is negligible , and the red soil is exposed and even orange. If you go after it rains, the soles will become sticky and thickerIt’s like putting on platform shoes, and if it’s sunny squat down with your knees in your arms and slide down the hillside over and over again It's like sliding down a slide. I picked up some cockleburs (thorn balls) and secretly threw them on the clothes of adults and friends for fun. I watched the snakeberries that I wanted to eat but didn't dare to eat. I even picked the bamboo shoots as they sprouted. Just be careful not to cut your hands. When we were young, we were not materially developed, and most of them were “toys” given by nature. We could always create our own fun with our friends.

From the past, it was just an ordinary mountain. The smoke was misty and towering, looking like a decoration. I walked on the winding path into the mountain for more than an hour, climbing to the top of the mountain and descending to the valley. I didn't expect that there was another world in the mountain.

Luoxi Forest Park (Shaoyang City, Hunan Province) is not an ordinary park. I looked everywhere for the "entrance" but couldn't find it. I learned that this area is called "Luoxi Forest Park". The scenic spots are scattered all over the place and there is no gate. When asking for directions, you should not ask where the entrance to the park is. You should ask in which direction the attraction you want to go is. (The park has four major scenic areas: Wanzhang Rock Scenic Area, Gaodeng Mountain Scenic Area, Hunan-Guizhou Ancient Road Scenic Area and Gongxi Lake Scenic Area. Attractions: Longtou Sandiao Waterfall Group, Puzhao Temple, Baoyao Ancient Village, Bayu River Ecological Rafting, etc. ). We stayed at the Baoyao Inn Group, passed by " Puzhao Temple" and "Bayu River Ecological Drifting Point ", and arrived at the waterfall group. "Baoyao Ancient Village" is guessed to be a home in the mountains, not a man-made attraction concentrated for tourists to visit and take photos.

Isolated inn group

Baoyao Village

The rice harvesting and threshing are completed, and every household is sunbathing.

Encountered cattle and goats along the way

Within the Longtou Sandiao Waterfalls Scenic Area

Within the Longtou Sandiao Waterfalls Scenic Area

One of the waterfalls in the Longtou Sandiao Waterfall group

There is a small river near the inn where we are staying. After walking along it for a while, it disappears and then another small river appears. The scenery is very good while walking along the river. The local residents are scattered, there is no industry, there are very few tourists, and there is no pollution. The river water is crystal clear, and the pebbles on the bottom of the water have been washed round and smooth. I suspect it was artificially arranged, but there is no trace of artificiality, and this place does not require a lot of work. It can be said that "fish swim in the fine rocks, and it is unobstructed to look directly at. There are cold trees growing in the mountains on both sides of the bank. The spring water stirs the rocks, making a cool sound. The good birds sing to each other, and their chirping becomes a rhyme." Longtou Waterfall Group Scenic AreaThere are three small waterfalls from bottom to top. There are stairs connecting the three waterfall points , which are so steep that you need to walk tremblingly . In the mountains, there are local residents carrying bamboo baskets selling glutinous rice cakes (made of red bean paste + glutinous rice and then pressed and wrapped in leaves), sweet potatoes and corn. If you come here in the summer, you will be out of breath climbing the mountain, take a bite of cold potatoes, and then look at the green surroundings, it will be refreshing.

After finishing the tour in about an hour and a half, we headed back home. Why is it said that this place is isolated from the world? There are no supermarkets or restaurants. We can only eat at the inn where we stay. There is a canteen next to the inn. The dark brown wooden display case with transparent glass contains unknown snacks covered with a thick layer of dust, including instant noodles. In the afternoon of the first day I had already eaten a meal and wanted to change my taste. I went to Shaoyang to eat a 170KM mountain road. I had to walk the mountain road back and then go out again the next day. . One mountain pass is enough, and the body and mind cannot stand the torment. Originally I wanted to stay one more night, but although there were no entertainment facilities, darkness fell just after six o'clock in late autumn, and there was only the sound of insects and running water. It is clean enough, as if you have just stayed for a night and your heart has settled . But staying one more night meant that I had to eat three meals... After much hesitation I decided to go back to pick up my luggage and leave. It could be considered a desperate escape. I'm tired of looking at high-rise buildings, and suddenly everything in the countryside is fresh. The reliable freshness can't sustain me for a few more days. I can still bear the loneliness, but my appetite doesn't agree.

On the way out, I thought about this place. There is no work or commuting. You can "go to work" just by opening your eyes. There is no express delivery, no online shopping, no shopping in supermarkets Museums Wouldn't it be too much to watch exhibitions, movies, drink milk tea and play video games? boring. We browse Weibo, Douban, Tik Tok, Zhihu, articles on Taobao, watch movies, TV series, variety shows and documentaries. All kinds of information are constantly implanted in our brains, either planting grass or checking in with Internet celebrities. I’m not used to all this and going to a place where I don’t have to do anything. I recall how much fun I had in the mountains when I was a kid, and I couldn’t bear to go home every time school started. The innkeeper and his wife are young people similar to me. I think they can stay in the mountains peacefully because they have no distracting thoughts.

On the way back, I took the highway and passed by "Shuifu Temple" to have a look. A resort tourist area has been built next to mountains and rivers, with hotels, restaurants and entertainment facilities. Come here for two days on the weekend to have fun and take a breather between work and the trivialities of life. It is better to visit this kind of place in spring and summer, but autumn and winter are lonely. After driving around for a while, I continued on my way without making any further stops. The highway was closed, so I could only exit but not enter, so I took a detour and took the provincial highway. During the holiday, free express vehicles are all on the expressway, and there are not many provincial highway vehicles. Drive slowly and take in the scenery on the roadside for a unique experience.

Shuifu Temple

Unharvested rice, golden

Looking at the mountains in the distance, I wonder if there is another world in these mountains.

It's a coincidence, if I hadn't taken several wrong roads while looking for scenic spots and kept turning around. I spent too much energy on finding the way and found the scenic spots with little energy left to be surprised. After playing, I felt hungry and wanted to find another restaurant to eat, but it was impossible. After all, there was nothing in Dianping for dozens of kilometers around. I had to drive an hour on a mountain road to the inn because I was hungry and tired... I didn't make up my mind to return. If it weren't for the early return trip to Shuifu Temple, I wouldn't have been unable to get on the expressway and take the provincial road instead, let alone encounter this sea of ​​flowers. We played for a long time until it started to drizzle before we left. Thinking about it, I feel more and more magical. I went to the sunflower field a few years ago, but I haven’t had the chance to go back in the past two years. Did Dashan know that we were not enjoying ourselves enough and arranged such a meeting? Then I have to thank Dashan.

Encountering a field of sunflowers unexpectedly

Farmers in this area should make a living by growing sunflowers

From being full of expectations to trekking through mountains and rivers to running away to being overjoyed, this is what traveling during the National Day holiday is all about. Although I wouldn’t recommend it to my friends, I am still satisfied in retrospect. Seeing another world, experiencing another life, escaping is not a failure, it makes me cherish my daily life more. If you get it, that's good.