Livin' In The Chonx

Wansheng 万盛 (2 days)

Wansheng is located south of Chongqing city. It seems not many people have heard of the area despite how much it has to offer. Once there you can visit a stone forest, trek through a long river gorge, and even go rafting. Read more below.

Getting There and Back: Buses (30 RMB) depart every 30 minutes from Chongqing’s Nanping Long Distance Bus Station for Wansheng from 7:00 am-7:30 pm (there are also buses departing from other stations but less frequently). There are two routes, one by highway (gaosu 高速) and one on old roads (laolu 老路). By highway it should take about 90 minutes to two hours. To return to Chongqing there are buses that pass through Wansheng on the way back to Chongqing that you can catch as late as 6 pm.
• Once in Wansheng you can catch local buses to each of the following places or negotiate to hire a driver. One person recommends taking a bus to Guanba and hiring a driver there to take you to the other destinations to save time.
• There are tours that can be arranged to Wansheng, these two-day tours include entrance fees, transportation, meals, and lodging and generally take you to all three of the locations listed below. A Google search of 万盛铜鼓滩 pulls up a dozen such tours. All in Chinese though, so get a little help if necessary.

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Black Mountain Valley
• Hei Shan Gu 黑山谷
• Admission 60 RMBLocated about 23 km outside of Wansheng, Black Mountain Valley is a 13 km long river valley highlighted by narrow gorges, waterfalls, birds, and butterflies. From the south entrance to the north entrance is a mostly walking down the mountain. For 20 RMB you can take a cable car down the first section from the South entrance. For the last 6 km the trail levels off and you can either continue trekking or take an electric bus (20 RMB) the rest of the way out to the north entrance. Walking the entire distance can take anywhere from 4-6 hours. There are hostels and inns located at both entrances, the north entrance has slightly more options, a little better quality, and the prices a little higher than what you will find at the south entrance. Check out this interactive map of the valley (Chinese only)  Getting There and Back: From Wansheng it’s another hour on a local bus (5 RMB) to the south entrance of Black Mountain Valley. Buses returning to Wansheng depart from the north entrance every 90 minutes until 5:30 pm.

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Stone Forest
• Shi Lin 石林
• Admission 50 RMB (price includes a cave tour and ethnic dance show); Hours 8:30 am-5 pm; Ethnic dance shows take place in the teahouse twice a day (11 am, 2 pm)This stone forest is said to be the second largest of its kind and rivals the one outside of Kunming in age and interest. (The admission price is certainly much lower) Because of its location atop a mountain this stone forest is often shrouded in clouds or mist. Bring along an umbrella or raingear as it often wet!  Getting There and Back: Local buses (5 RMB) take about an hour to get from Wansheng to the Stone Forest.

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Tong Gu Tan (Rafting)
• Tong Gu Tan 铜鼓滩 (Piao Liu 漂流)
• Admission 100 RMB for rafting; according to one source you can purchase discounted entrance tickets to four locations if purchased together here.Go rafting down the Podu river (坡渡河, aka YangDeng River 羊磴河) that runs between Chongqing and Guizhou. The scenery is reportedly gorgeous as you pass through Miao ethnic farming communities. Depending on water levels, rafting down the 11km stretch can take anywhere from 1-2 hours. There are changing rooms at both ends of the trip, so during the hot summer months it’s okay to get out and swim, keeping in mind that the water is cleaner at the beginning.  Getting There and Back: Take a local bus (5 RMB) from Wansheng to Guanba 关坝 (less than an hour). Then hire a driver or find a bus to 长塘口 (chang tang kou) where you take a raft to Tong Gu Tan.