The must-visit Genie South Route in October with snow-capped mountains and colorful forests is simply divine

In October, the Genie South Route looks like God spilled paint after a big drink! Snowy white mountains, golden meadows, and red colorful forests, even the lakes are showing gradients…

🎨 October’s exclusive color palette:
Snow Mountains: The golden sunlight hits the peaks “on time” every day, like crowning the sacred mountain with a golden crown
Colorful Forests: The Hoti River Valley bursts with red, yellow, and green, walking in feels like stepping into a Studio Ghibli animation
Meadows: The Yingge pasture is covered in gold, with cows and horses wandering around, every snapshot looks like “National Geographic style”
🗺️ South Route hiking nanny-level itinerary:
✔️ Classic route (essential section): Litang → Blacksmith Mountain Pass → Eye of Genie → Lenggu Temple → Hangda Camp → Hoti River Valley (about 40 km total, 4 days hiking), return ends at Blacksmith Mountain Pass, avoiding the high-risk section from Zawala Pass to Batang.

✔️ Reverse route: Batang → Zawala Pass → Gemu Village → Hoti River Valley → Hangda Camp → Lenggu Temple → Eye of Genie → Litang, but Zawala Pass road conditions are poor
Tips❗:
Plateau degradation takes centuries, please protect the environment
Do not touch prayer flags or mani stones, avoid making noise in religious sites.

Gentle slopes, don’t fear altitude sickness:
Acclimate early: Stay 1 night in Litang, no hair washing or bathing
Action rules: Walk slowly, no running or jumping, drink 2L+ water daily
Emergency: If vomiting or severe headache occurs, descend immediately; Litang Cordyceps Hotel offers oxygen
Medication aid: Stop exercising 1 week before departure, bring oxygen tablets (non-medical)!

🌟 Key spots guide
Eye of Genie
Best time: Early morning 6:00-7:30 (clear reflections with no wind)
Photo tips: Use a drone at 80 meters for spherical panorama, wear a red dress for silhouette shots
No lake access, no vehicles to protect the grassland

Lenggu Temple
Light hike about 4 km, 200m elevation gain, about 1 hour one way, full of mystery

Hoti River Valley
10 km of bomb crater road requires slow walking, marmots appear in the valley

🏨 Litang Cordyceps Hotel: your “lifesaver” before and after hiking!
Perfect location: Center of Litang County, stay here before hiking to acclimate, lie down directly after returning!
Experience highlights:
✔️ Certified by the Tourism Bureau (complete living facilities)
✔️ Room oxygen supply (full-area diffusion oxygen + oxygen chamber)
✔️ Local dishes + butter tea (warming stomach and fighting altitude sickness)

Hidden benefit: The hotel can arrange hiking groups, car rentals, and guides, saving you the trouble of finding resources yourself

Autumn’s red, yellow, and green interweave like an oil painting corridor
The Genie South Route in October, miss it and wait a year! Save this “palette hiking guide,” it’s the must-see C spot in Western Sichuan this autumn!
Litang Cordyceps Hotel (Ganzi Litang 318 National Highway Branch)