Gongga East Slope 360° Viewing Platform - Red Rock Peak, Erlang Mountain Red Rock Peak Sea of Clouds and Starry Sky Viewing Guide
Preface
If you're in average shape but can walk a few steps without getting out of breath, and don't have any professional outdoor gear, but still want to see the sea of clouds, sunrise, starry sky, and Mount Gongga, then you can definitely plan it! Have you heard about the Red Rock Summit of Erlang Mountain?
Red Rock Top
Geographical location
Hongyanding is located at the junction of Luding County, Ganzi Prefecture, Sichuan Province and Tianquan County, Ya'an City, next to the first pass of Sichuan-Tibet Railway - Erlang Mountain Old 318 Highway Pass. It is 48 kilometers away from the highest peak in Sichuan - Gongga Mountain, and 15 kilometers away from Niubei Mountain. It is another 360° viewing platform discovered after Niubei Mountain.
Hongyanding, Niubei Mountain, Huajian Mountain, Guangtou Mountain, Niangniang Mountain and Wanggangping are collectively known as the six 360° viewing platforms on the east slope of Gongga Mountain, with excellent views!
Red Rock Topcheck the details
Hongyanding, hailed as even more beautiful than Niubei Mountain and a scenic spot closer to Gongga, is one of the six 360-degree viewing platforms on Erlang Mountain in Sichuan. It offers an ideal spot for appreciating the sea of clouds, sunrise, sunset, and the starry sky, the spectacle of the "sun and moon shining together." It's a paradise for photography enthusiasts. Recommended sunrise times are from 5:00 AM, sunset around 6:00 PM, and starry sky viewing from 1:00 AM to 4:00 AM. Erlang Mountain, the gateway to the old Sichuan-Tibet Highway 318, is also the premier viewing platform for visitors entering Gongga, Tibet. The sun shines on the golden mountain, the sea of clouds, the Buddha's light, and the starry sky are all visible. Forest coverage exceeds 95% of the area, and the area is teeming with negative oxygen ions.
Recommended month: All seasons
4952 recommendations, 3053 visits
Compared with Niubei Mountain, Hongyanding is closer to Mount Gongga, has a lower altitude (over 3,400 meters), a shorter hiking distance, more lush vegetation, and a higher safety factor.
The sunrise, sunset, sea of clouds, cloud waterfall, Gongga Snow Mountain, and starry sky and Milky Way that can be seen from Niubei Mountain can also be seen from Hongyanding, which is not much inferior.
How to get there?
The journey from Chengdu to the foot of Hongyan Peak is about 240 km and is expected to take 3.5 hours. 90% of the road is on the highway.
Navigation: Don’t take the expressway. Take Chengming Expressway to Ya’an, then transfer to Yakang Expressway, get off at Xingou, and take G318 National Highway to Erlang Mountain.
2 kilometers out of Erlangshan Tunnel is Bietuo Village. The bus can only drive here. The road up the mountain is the old 318 Highway that has been abandoned for more than 20 years. The road condition is poor, so you can only take a local car to go up. It takes about 40 minutes to reach the starting point of the hike.
Hiking starting point: Ganhaizi Reception Station
The altitude is about 2800m, and the end point Hongyanding is 3437m above sea level. The hiking distance is about 3km and it takes about 2-3 hours. The trail is very obvious, so there is no need to worry about getting lost. The road conditions are good and even children can complete the hike.
When you reach the foot of the high-voltage power tower, you are almost halfway there. If the weather is good, you can already see the Gongga Snow Mountain.
The road in the second half is wider and you only need to climb one more big slope to reach the top of the mountain.
Hongyanding scenery
The 360° panoramic viewing platform at the top of Hongyan Peak offers views of the sea of clouds, cloud waterfalls, starry sky, and sunrise in the east, the Gongga Snow Mountain in the west, and the Niubei Mountain and other peaks in the south. In the north, you can also see a row of seasonal snow-capped mountains about 5,000 meters high. The platform has a wide field of view and rich scenery, and is worthy of its reputation as a panoramic viewing platform.
Boundless sea of clouds
Erlang Mountain lies at the junction of the Sichuan Basin and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Its towering massif blocks moisture from the eastern plains, creating a breathtaking sea of clouds. Strolling among the clouds, one wonders whether this is a fairyland or the human world.
Magical Cloud Waterfall
Cloud waterfalls are waterfall-shaped orographic clouds that often appear in the morning or evening in humid weather, overflowing along the terrain and falling along the mountain.
As the name suggests, orographic clouds are moist air masses that are blown to places where the terrain is undulating by valley winds, monsoons, trade winds, and other forces. The air masses rise, cool, and condense to form clouds.
The clouds flow over the mountains in the direction of the wind and fall due to gravity, just like a waterfall, hence the name "Cloud Falls". As they sink down the leeward slope, the temperature gradually rises and the Cloud Falls gradually dissipates.
Sunset
Hongyanding is located on the east slope of Mount Gongga, the highest peak in Sichuan. When the sun sets near Mount Gongga, the tall mountain blocks the sun, forming a dreamy halo, which is beautiful beyond imagination.
Sunrise in the East
Every morning, the sun slowly rises from the horizon, and the color of the sky changes with the height of the sun: pink, purple, red, orange. It turns out that the sky can have so many colors.
Rizhao Jinshan
When the sun just rises from the east, the light is still relatively soft. The sunlight shines on the Gongga Snow Mountain in the west. The snow on the snow mountain shines golden under the sunlight, forming the magical Golden Mountain in the Sunlight.
Mysterious Buddha Light
Sometimes when you wake up in the morning, the top of the mountain is covered with fog and you can’t see what the sunrise looks like, but you don’t have to worry, the fog may also bring surprises.
Under the right conditions, the sunlight shining through the clouds will cast your shadow on the clouds behind you, which may form the even rarer Buddha's light.
Brilliant Starry Sky
Hongyanding is far away from the city, with little light pollution and a relatively high altitude. The air transparency is excellent. When the weather is ideal, you can see the brilliant starry sky and the Milky Way. If you catch a meteor shower, the picture will be simply beautiful.
Group viewing of snow-capped mountains
As one of the six viewing platforms on the east slope of Gongga Mountain, Hongyanding offers a magnificent view of dozens of Gongga Snow Mountain’s 5,000-, 6,000-, and 7,000-meter-high snow-capped peaks lined up in a row!
The snow-capped mountains such as Muya Gongga at 7556 meters, Zhongshan Peak at 6886 meters, Edgar Peak at 6618 meters, Langgemanyin at 6294 meters, Daduomanyin at 6380 meters, and Tianhaizi Mountain at 6070 meters are all in sight.
Other considerations
The temperature difference between day and night is large on the top of the mountain, so be sure to bring enough warm clothes
Bring a thermos cup so you can get hot water to drink at the mountaintop camp. Drinking more water will help you avoid altitude sickness.
The campsite on the top of the mountain provides dinner and breakfast, so you don't need to bring too much food and can go up the mountain lightly.
The living conditions on the top of Hongyan are quite harsh as they are all in large bunk beds. Friends with mysophobia are advised to bring their own sleeping bags.
Wear a hat and try not to let the wind blow on your forehead, as it can easily cause colds and altitude sickness.
You need to bring sunglasses and sunscreen, as the ultraviolet rays on the plateau are strong and it is easy to get sunburned.
