Zhangjiajie: Day 3 (11/19/19)

Zhangjiajie Nation Forest Park was mind blowing yesterday, but I felt like going back for another day would be sort of like a cop-out, since I was already familiar with how to get there and what I would see. It would be beautiful of course, but the same beautiful I had already seen instead of something new. So in the spirit of always trying something new, I decided to visit a different location today and went with my host’s recommendation: Huanglong (Yellow Dragon) Cave.

The suggestions left for me said that I should be able to find a bus there, so I packed my day bag and set out to the bus depot I used to get to Tianzishanzhen, the mountain village above Zhangjiajie Park. In light of my last bus experience from there taking several hours longer than I thought, I decided right away that if it took all day to get there I would just ride back and call it a scenic drive. With that in mind I packed my day bag and set out around 10am. I spotted one of those moped coverings I saw in Chengdu on the way and stopped to investigate. It did indeed plug into the moped, confirming to me that it was heated as I had suspected.

It took me about an hour to walk to the bus depot, buy a ticket, and find the correct bus by matching the characters on my map to the bus signs (黄龙洞). But I had already done it once so I felt a lot more confident this time around. The ride itself was pretty uneventful and I ended up spending most of it staring out the window thinking about my trip so far, especially in the face of my time so far in China. I also played around with the idea of staying some extra time in Zhangjiajie rather than moving on to Xi’an, but nah, that’s just anxious me talking. I was pleasantly surprised when the bus started passing signs for Yellow Dragon Cave and pulled into a dedicated, well labeled parking lot around noon.

I couldn’t really tell where the cave ticket office or entrance were since there was a lack of maps around, so I just followed the crowd that got off the bus with me. They led me through a small tourist market, which I pretty much ignored, and across a bridge to a central square. The square’s main feature was a scholarly monkey statue, posed holding a Shakespearean skull, which I just adored. Off to the left was a large building with a sloped grassy roof that seemed closed since nobody was entering or exiting, while off to the right was a large shack serving as a ticket booth. I would have assumed it was a landscaping tool shed if the group I was following didn’t make a beeline for it.

Having acquired a ticket, I sat down for snack and to let the group get ahead of me so I’d have some space. I picked through the mandarins and bananas I bought from the store last night, enjoying a few minutes of quiet people watching, and read through the informational signs scattered about. They described Yellow Dragon Cave as an underground, 3D labyrinth complete with rivers, waterfalls, and towering stalagmites. I wanted to chase that feeling of wonderland excitement from the last two day so I actually hadn’t done really any research at all about what the cave contained. Which totally worked, as I was absolutely pumped after reading about what awaited.

I located a trash can for my fruit peels and followed the signs for “Cave Entrance”, which took me along a koi pond/river decorated with numerous bridges and waterwheels of all shapes and sizes. Waiting for my bus group to pass by was definitely the right call because the wheels started becoming more and more complex, turning into interlocking contraptions that moved water hundreds of feet along the bridges, and I took my time admiring them. They were almost mesmerizing to watch, kind of like videos of clock makers - there’s something in being able to understand how each individual part works and fits into the structure, but having such scale that you can’t see how it all works together. Though maybe that’s just my little monkey brain talking.

In any case, after about 30 minutes of slow-walking along the path I arrived at the cave entrance. There was a winding line set up, like for a busy theme park ride, but fortunately it was mostly empty except for my bus group from earlier and maybe a half dozen other folks. Everyone was just quietly waiting, either staring out over the balcony (we were a couple of stories up from the ground at that point) or watching the promotional TV. Which was playing a documentary in English with Mandarin subtitles - lucky me! Also, I’m pretty sure I recognized the voice-over. Not David Attenborough, but very similar. I didn’t know how long I would be waiting in line but everyone else seemed content to stand or sit on the railings so I leaned up against the balcony and enjoyed the soothing sounds of Mr. Documentary walking me through the sights of the Wulingyuan scenic area.

I think I waited about a half hour to enter the cave, which apparently came with a tour guide. She gave the tour in Mandarin of course but in a way I actually preferred that, since I didn’t feel bad about wandering off a little or letting myself fall behind the group to take pictures. One of the first things that struck me was the use of colored lights inside. I was used to caves being eternally beige, but here they used a rainbow of greens, yellows, purples, reds, and blues which made the whole place feel festive and made the contrast of different formations pop out. I actually really liked the effect, especially in the larger caverns where there would be like twenty different lights for one tunnel.

The entry led us through a set of tunnels about my height and to a fork, where the tunnel split into the Happiness Gate and the Wealthy Gate. The guide talked for a bit then every picked a gate and met up a few yards later where they rejoined. I opted for the Happiness Gate, mostly because it was less popular. After the gates the tunnels opened up into caverns, one of which sported a tied gate about 8 ft. tall. No clue what the guide said about it but I really liked the wavy stonework above. From there the caverns only got larger, growing building-sized. I’d say they were easily over 30 ft. tall, sometimes stretching to what must have been 40 or 50 ft! I mean it was MASSIVE!

The next sight was a subterranean boat tour of Music River, complete with towering pillars, aggressively slanted walls, a stalagmite resembling a devil’s head, passing under a bridge (yes, a literal bridge underground standing like two stories over our heads!), and themed music. It was definitely different than the cave tours of Wisconsin, leaning much more into the tourism aspect than a visitor in a natural environment. The huge caverns, bridges (yes, there were multiple), winding staircases, and interconnecting tunnels stretching a good 50 ft. above gave me heavy fantasy vibes like the Mines of Moria or dwarven city. Needless to say I was grinning like an idiot and extremely excited to see more.

We disembarked from the boats and walked up a set of switchbacks following a wide, slopped tunnel and into a base of a gigantic chimney. I had to crane my neck to see the top, which was easily over a hundred feet up. The signs named it the Yellow Soil Slope and the area was covered in knobbly stalagmites formed from several “waterfalls” in the chimney, giving the chamber a coral forest type feeling, where every formation was just a little taller than me. I didn’t see any rivers-turned-vertical so I assume that the slow drips from 130 feet above counted as waterfalls.

The guide led everyone on and I wandered about, taking my time to join them on the other end of the chamber, which must have been at least a football field away. I was in awe. I mean I keep saying it but this cave system is just colossal! Every chamber is a multi-minute walk to traverse and I haven’t been able to touch the ceiling since the entry tunnel!

When I did catch up, the group was examining an area called Rimstone Dam, where a large swath of floor fell away into shallow curvy basins a few inches deep. I would compare them to tide pools, but separated by twisty brain-like walls. It was cool, don’t get me wrong, I was more interested in just the sheer size of the cavern and the numerous waterfall landings about.

We moved on and entered the adjacent chamber which was peppered with stalagmites lit up in rainbow and fields of cave popcorn, tiny bumps of minerals stacked on top of each other to make hundreds of pinky-sized protrusions. The stalagmites were big here too, emerging from more brain-pools and standing well over our heads. We didn’t stay long though and were moved through a connecting tunnel to A FREAKING BRIDGE! I had totally forgotten about it from the boat ride earlier and seeing it sent me right back to thoughts of fantasy.

Across the bridge, we joined with another path and climbed further up on a series of tight switchbacks and into a long corridor that looked like it opened up in the distance. The guide pointed out a photo station and took a seat, indicating that we could wait for a photo with the large blue stalagmite-turned-pillar or continue down the path and into the next chamber. I certainly wasn’t in a rush to leave the cave and opted to wait for a photo, which I assumed I could pick up later like at a ski resort or Disney Land. Worst case, I don’t find the pickup spot and its no real loss.

From there I followed the corridor which opened up into more brain-pools (I kind of like that name for the squiggly Rimstone Dams, it sounds more exciting!) and twin pillars lit up in purple that apparently formed from dripping water while the rest of the chamber was eroded away, leaving them on top of an underground hill. Immediately after the next set of stairs was another enormous space, dominated by a stone dome with a hollow about halfway down. With tiny stalactites breaching the hollow, it looked like a giant mound opening its toothy maw and was named something after that image. Like the Devil Stone or Roaring Beast or something like that I can’t recall. It was an impressive sight and the rest of the cave followed suit!

Around the other side of Devil Stone (yea, that name sounds about right) was Huanglong Cave’s most famous area - Dragon’s Palace. A rolling chamber covered in what must have been hundreds of stalagmites (cancel that, upon further research there are over 1,700 pillars in this room alone), ranging from waist high to over 20 feet tall, many of which were less than a hand’s width thick. It was absolutely incredible. And I would liken the impact and wonder of it to walking among the giant pillars or Zhangjiajie Park yesterday. I was just dumbstruck as I walked on and on through the never-ending forest of stone. The unique formations were incredible too, just like in Zhangjiajie.

First was the Snow Pine - a 17 meter (55 foot) stalagmite that resembled a thin tree covered in frost from millions of years of water dripping down and splashing its minerals onto the pillar. That pillar alone would have made the entire day worth it and I could have stared at it for an hour, taking in the thousands of tiny drippings it was made of. But there was more to see, namely the Sea-Suppressing Needle - a 19 meter (62 foot) spike, no wider than a human fist at spots, that towered above everything else in the cave. Again, that natural wonder alone would have made the trip worth it.

I spent a solid half hour in the Dragon’s Palace, much of which was walking the many intertwining paths and stairs that gave a better look at certain areas or formations. I could have stayed all day, but my time was limited and all too soon the guide rounded us up and we had to make room for the next tour group. We took a different route out of the cave, passing above the Devil Stone and descending a near vertical shaft via tight switchback stairs. It deposited us into another massive cavern (though small compared to the previous giant spaces. Hmmm, its getting kind of difficult to relate that scale of everything I have to admit.) that continued downward and into another tight set of stairs, which wound along the cave walls above some of the paths we had taken before, now occupied by the next wave of tourists.

This trend of tight stairs leading to a new chamber to more stairs to another chamber and so on continued for some time, with each set of stairs becoming more cramped against the ceiling and each chamber shrinking until they were little more than places I couldn’t reach up and touch the ceiling.

Finally, we arrived at what had to be the bottom of our descent, since any further would put us underwater, and started down a stone walkway just above the water surface titled The Cultural Corridor. Here, the guide slowed from the rushing pace they had set after leaving Dragon’s Palace and began pointing out formations lit up above the waterline. And damn, was there a lot to see! Most of Huanglong Cave so far had smooth ceilings and everything worth seeing was on ground level. But here, the ceiling was filled wall to wall with groups of flutes (thin-walled hollow cylinders), plates (thin vertical slabs), cave popcorn, mineral deposits, and classic stalactites. It was like all the ceiling features of the cave had been jam-packed into one nearly flooded passage!

And with that the Cultural Corridor came to an end along with the tour. It sure felt like we were underground for hours, what with how much we saw, but looking back at my photo timestamps it was only like 90 minutes! I was extremely satisfied when we emerged and didn’t really want to rush back home so I meandered around what I’ll call the tourist crawl - a sprawling building offering an indoor walk back to the parking lot via a multitude of sights and shops including a yellow dragon relief, life-sized sculptures by the koi river, an extensive jade museum, a jewelry and jade store, and places to sit and relax next to the water.

After about half and hour wandering about I felt ready to move on and returned to the parking lot to find a bus. Which I failed to do. Heck I couldn’t even find a schedule or anything. So I considered my next course of action and set my eyes on what I assumed was a taxi dropping a family off, figuring that was a sure-fire way to get back to Zhangjiajie. I showed the guy my map to which he nodded and motioned for me to pay him - about 100 RMB ($15) which I thought was quite acceptable. So I hopped in and off we went for a short drive to some random small town where he pulled over and started demanding more money. I knew he was asking for money since he was making the same thumb-index circle as the inn keeper in Tianzishanzhen two days ago. I wasn’t particularly surprised but when he indicated 400 more RMB I shook my head and just got out of the car. He followed me while I walked back towards what looked like the center of town yelling but I wasn’t having any of his bullshit and waved him off until he left me alone.

So now I was in an unknown town between Huanglong Cave and Zhangjiajie. And my wallet was out of cash. Crap. I needed a map to actually find anything so I pulled up google maps on international data and took a look around. I found a nearby shopping center and figured I could find an ATM there, so off I went. I did, but it wouldn’t take my card. Turned around and walked a half mile to the nearest bank, but they’re ATM also wouldn’t take it. I figured I would need to get another human being involved so I found a Bank of China branch within walking distance that should be open and strolled over. Fortunately they were and with a little diplomacy and assistance from just about everyone in the bloody building I managed to withdraw what I figured would be enough cash for my remaining time in China.

With my money situation sorted out I asked the bank staff where I could get a bus to Zhangjiajie and they directed me to a street corner about a mile away, back near the center of town. I thanked them for their help and left feeling mighty pleased with my recovery. That’s the second time I’ve been stranded in a small town in China and I have to say I’m getting pretty good at surviving it. Only took my like 90 minutes to get everything sorted.

I found the target street corner and translated all the nearby signs until I found one pertaining to buses, which indicated I had a half hour to kill before the next bus. There was a small garden with benches nearby so I took a seat and people watched for a bit. During the whole wait the only people who walked by were a mother and child. The kid was pointing at me and looking up to mom which was very cute - good to know I still look the part of strange foreigner to kids.

I caught my bus no problem, confirmed it was headed to Zhangjiajie, and arrived back in town around sundown. I found dinner at a small restaurant near the stone fish place from a few days ago and enjoyed a massive bowl of chicken, carrots(?), and peanuts in a make-you-nose-run spicy sauce while thinking about my day and catching my journal up (I’m rather behind since coming to Zhangjiajie). This morning I had bought an overnight train ticket to Xi’an that doesn’t leave till tomorrow afternoon, so I’m planning to sleep in, go grocery shopping, and make the journey to my final city of China and the whole trip!