Wooden boats
To the islands.
Chensiyuan — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 祝鱼贵 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 祝鱼贵 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Evilbish — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Evilbish — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 祝鱼贵 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 祝鱼贵 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 祝鱼贵 — CC BY-SA 4.0
A clear mountain lake at 2,685 metres, the highest lake in Yunnan, split down the middle by the border between Ninglang County in Yunnan and Yanyuan County in Sichuan; green mountains surround it, and it has five islands, four peninsulas, fourteen bays and seventeen beaches. Its shores are home to the Mosuo people alongside other groups, known for an old family tradition in which the household is traced through the mother. Visitors ride the long wooden boats rowed by locals out to the small islands, circle the lake by road between villages and peninsulas such as Lige with its view over the water, and climb to viewpoints on the hills for wide views over the blue water. Tickets cost about CNY 70 on the Yunnan side, though some guides give 100, and boats start at about 50, per visitor guides. It is a long drive from Lijiang, so it is best to stay a night or two.
To the islands.
On the water.
Over the blue lake.
On the Yunnan-Sichuan border, about 200 km by road north-east of Lijiang
Choices are very few around the lake and local cooking uses a lot of cured pork, so bring food; Lijiang has restaurants run by Hui Muslims.