Braving the West Sichuan and Gannan with Kids! These 5 Pitfalls Made Me Want to Be a Yak Herder

Sisters! Hardcore summer vacation crossing the 318 National Highway with a 9-year-old, the snowy mountains and grasslands are so beautiful they bring tears, but altitude sickness headaches are even worse! My kid fell chasing marmots at 4000 meters and got covered in mud, and this exhausted mom’s nose froze from oxygen intake... Tearfully organizing a 7-day survival guide, after reading it you can save yourself from buying ten oxygen tanks‼️

🗻 Deadly itinerary (oxygen deficiency warning)
Day 1⃣️: Rent a car in Chengdu 👉 Drive to Hongyuan County until exhausted 👉 Wache Prayer Flag Forest
Day 2⃣️: Climb the plank road at the First Bend of the Yellow River 👉 Oxygen overload in Aba County
Day 3⃣️: Morning mist shoot at Langyi Monastery 👉 Frozen solid at Lianbaoyeze 🧊
Day 4⃣️: Drone crash at Awan Cang Wetland 👉 Pray to Buddha at Langmu Temple
Day 5⃣️: Horseback riding at Zhagana until sore 👉 Star-gazing and freezing at Tibetan-style guesthouse
Day 6⃣️: Rock Road makes you vomit breakfast 👉 Buy out all the plasters at Xiahe County pharmacy
Day 7⃣️: Spin prayer wheels at Labrang Monastery 👉 Legs go weak at Ganjia Secret Realm cliff 👉 Cry while returning car in Lanzhou

✨ Lianbaoyeze, the Gate to the Demon World
A real-life "Lord of the Rings" that shocked the whole family! As soon as we entered the park, my kid held a branch shouting, "I'm a Hobbit!" But at the 4520-meter viewing platform, he was gasping for air like a bellows... When the rocky mountains reflected in the lake, the whole family pulled out phones to snap photos like crazy 📸

✨ Zhagana Fairy Beach
A fairy tale village all filtered? Nope, it’s all sweat! Two-hour queue for the popular swing, my kid squatted picking wildflowers and got chased by bees for over 100 meters... But the barley cakes at the Tibetan family’s house were so fragrant my kid ate five pieces with butter tea!

✨ Ganjia Secret Realm White Stone Cliff
Who understands the thrill at the cliff’s edge! The "martial arts movie" shots I took of my kid had him shaking like a sieve, and the drone almost got blown away to Qinghai by the wind... The only consolation was the spring water in the white stone cave, so cold it instantly awakened the soul ❄️

✨ Langmu Temple Sky Burial Platform
The cultural shock was intense! Seeing vultures circling from afar, my kid suddenly covered his eyes and shouted, "Mom, let’s run away!" On the way down, he kept asking, "Why do people turn into stars?" ✨

💣 Life-saving Pitfall Guide
1⃣️ Never trust that Rock Road is passable by sedan! The chassis scraped sparks, and my kid’s snacks all bounced out the window 😭
2⃣️ Don’t visit the First Bend of the Yellow River in the afternoon! The plank road is so hot you could fry an egg, and the ice cream I bought for my kid melted into the Yellow River...
3⃣️ Don’t let kids randomly touch the prayer wheels at Gemo Monastery! The copper handles burn like a screaming chicken 🐔
4⃣️ Don’t wear white shoes in Ganjia Secret Realm! Cow dung and mud combined to turn my AJ sneakers into archaeological relics

🍜 Foodie Battlefield
✔️ Yak yogurt at Faxi Hotel, Gemo Monastery, Aba County 🥛 So sour it feels like your soul leaves your body but the more you eat, the more addictive it gets
✔️ Tsampa dipped in honey at Zhagana Tibetan guesthouse 🍯 Sweet and glutinous, a savior for altitude sickness taste buds
✔️ Freshly grilled lamb skewers by the roadside at Langmu Temple 🍖 The sizzling fat is more energizing than an alarm clock
✖️ Beware of a certain internet-famous Tibetan cheese bag! The fishy smell made my kid throw up rainbows 🌈

📸 Perfect Photo Ops
1⃣️ Wache Prayer Flag Forest (let kids throw Longda paper for authentic Tibetan-style shots)
2⃣️ Lianbaoyeze 4520 Viewing Platform (pretend to wield a sword challenging the demon world)
3⃣️ Zhagana Dari Viewing Platform (shoot smoke and morning light at sunrise)
4⃣️ Ganjia Secret Realm Octagonal Ancient City (wear a red dress to shoot cliff knights)

🏔 Accommodation Hits and Misses
✔️ Faxi Hotel, Gemo Monastery, Aba County: Floor heating saves frozen bodies! Snow-capped golden peaks visible from the windowsill
✔️ Yunju Tibetan Guesthouse, Zhagana: Owner gave my kid a prayer wheel pendant and showed us the Milky Way at night 🌌
✖️ A certain internet-famous grassland tent: Yaks bumped the tent at midnight, my kid thought it was an earthquake and cried until dehydrated
✖️ A guesthouse at Langmu Temple: Shower water as little as tears, toilet seat so cold it bounced my butt up

⚠️ Life-saving Essentials List
✔️ Children's pulse oximeter (scared me nearly crazy when it showed 83 at 4520 meters)
✔️ Thick windbreaker (the wind at the mountain pass can blow skinny people away)
✔️ Non-slip hiking shoes (white stone cliff’s gravel is slippery enough to make you dance mechanically)
✔️ Self-heating rice (lifesaver when Tibetan food doesn’t suit your taste)
✔️ Car urinal bag (toilets on the 318 National Highway are so far apart you could hold it forever)

On the flight back, my kid suddenly pulled out a stone: "Mom, I stole the demon world gem from Lianbaoyeze!" Scared this exhausted mom into chanting prayers all night... Although we had to use three oxygen tanks daily, seeing his crooked "little snowy mountain yak" drawing made the suffering worthwhile!

(💡 Soul warning: Put a full-coverage sun protection mask on your kid! The highland UV can give you "Tibetan-style blush" in half an hour...)