Basongcuo is really worth coming to! (Including Xin Cuo and Zhala Valley guides)

Is Basongcuo worth it? Here's the conclusion: If you're self-driving, it's highly recommended; but if you're taking a chartered car, you'll have to take the park shuttle bus and only visit one or two viewing platforms of Basongcuo, which might feel a bit monotonous～

🚗 Transportation:

We set off from Linzhi city, taking the Yaye Expressway, a scenic highway almost parallel to Route 318, weaving through numerous snow-capped mountains with the Niyang River beside us. Traffic is light, speed limit is 110 km/h, and the scenery is so beautiful you won’t want to blink!

⛽️ Refueling:

There is a PetroChina gas station at the entrance of Basongcuo Scenic Area. It’s recommended to fill up before entering because the roads to Xin Cuo consume a lot of fuel～

⛰️ Sightseeing:

1️⃣ Basongcuo: Focus on Dachela Viewing Platform and Lake Heart Island

The color of Basongcuo’s water changes with the light—sometimes turquoise, sometimes cobalt blue, and under cloudy skies, a deep blue. The entire scenic area is surrounded by snow mountains. Although not the most famous peaks, the mountains are majestic with great elevation differences, and some look very imposing!

As Linzhi’s earliest 5A scenic spot, the infrastructure is already very good. Basongcuo has many trails and viewing platforms. The ring road around the lake is in excellent condition, with two-way lanes, but watch out for small animals on the road (dogs, cows, pigs, monkeys). The road has many curves, so be cautious of oncoming traffic.

2️⃣ Xin Cuo: Be sure to navigate to "Xin Cuo Station"

The 20-kilometer washboard road to Xin Cuo is so bumpy it can make you dizzy. I recommend off-road drivers turn on four-wheel drive; although it consumes more fuel, it makes the drive much easier. The road isn’t difficult to drive, just very bumpy, with no particularly dangerous sections.

The scenery along the way is beautiful, with snow mountains on both sides and pastures at the foot of the mountains. Although the grass is just sprouting now, cattle and horses have already been driven to graze. Interestingly, if you go to Xin Cuo in the morning, you might encounter cows blocking the road. It was my first time experiencing dozens of cows completely blocking the way, which was quite a fun experience.

Xin Cuo Scenic Area is small; a 3-kilometer walk covers it all. But the natural and rich scenery inside—pastures, snow mountains, streams, alpine forests—is very clear in route, so no worries about getting lost. The sunshine feels warm on your skin, and I think anyone who comes here will feel better.

3️⃣ Cuogao Village and Zhala Valley: These two places are in the same direction, and the road conditions are very good.

Starting from Jieba Village, drive along the ring road around the lake to reach the end of Basongcuo, which is also a great photo spot (please don’t miss it). Then, the road no longer circles the lake but extends deeper to Cuogao Village and Zhala Valley. Cuogao Village was once rated one of the top ten most beautiful villages. The old village is under renovation, and villagers have moved to the new village. You can still enter the old village houses, which are quite distinctive.

The scenery of Zhala Valley is somewhat similar to Xin Cuo, but without the alpine pine forests, and the pastures are more expansive. This area is completely undeveloped, so there are no fixed routes—you can wander freely. What impressed me most was the large snow mountain behind Zhala Village with a huge elevation drop. I don’t remember its name, but in the morning light, it was bathed in light, looking like a giant wall behind the village, which was very striking!