My hosts at the restaurant I ate warned me that the hike i will be attempting will take more than two hours, it was still early and I don’t really know what else to do if I don’t do the hike now. They recommended to hiking the next morning. I thought two hours isn’t really a lot of time and since it was not even noon yet, so I decided to proceed with the hike.
The hike branches off from the main bridge crossing the river to the Liusha Waterfalls. I walked past the village until all that is left were huge swathes of green. The path is well paved and takes me through rice fields. Some of the fields were terraced on the mountains much like the ones I see in northern Philippines.
I hardly saw any travelers there, most of the people I saw were villagers on their way to their fields. The villagers were probably used to visitors and didn’t mind me at all. Looking back at the path, all traces of civilization were gone. Well, except for the nice stone path for hikers.
This part of the village is criss-crossed by numerous streams which provides water to their fields. Even if the village is on a mountain, these streams ensure that there is water to grow water-intensive crops like rice.
Sometimes, in hikes like this you wonder whether it is safe to venture out on your own. I had no such concern and I just kept going. The path was flat all the way thankfully. At least I can enjoy this walk and appreciate nature. After all the jostling for position in Zhangjiajie, this time I have the whole place all to myself!
[xmlgm {http://www.worldwanderings.net/kml/Dehang.kmz} zoom=14]