Baoshan Stone City 保山石头城

Baoshan Stone City is not really a city. It's a town of 100+ families perched on top of a rock outcrop. With city walls built around the already steep cliffs surrounding the town, the city was secure from attacks of mountain thieves in the past, and for now, has capped the number of families living in the town (at 108 homes, some books say.)

It's an 8-hour bumpy bus-ride away from Lijiang. Because it was low season, I was the only tourist during the 3 days I was there. I took some time walking around town, absorbing the view of the city from all angles, taking it slow, reading, talking to people, and after 3 days, I became a bit too attached.

They told me 9 out of 10 newborns here are boys, and it does look that way walking around town. It's also a real scatological disaster, with pigs, horses and chickens free to wander around the stone-paved alleys. Every evening, after a day of labour, people gather at the south and north gates on their way home , talking about corn, pigs, and anything else that comes to mind. An old man motioned for me to go over and offered me a freshly picked walnut, another old lady offered to open it for me by hammering my walnut with a piece of rock.

My last evening there, I sat at the north gate reading. Looking across the river valley, I know the second house up the mountain from the river belongs to Mr. He, a jolly man who took me across the valley and back on the rapid waters of the Jinsha River in his black rubber boat. The mountain ranges further away are the ranges that the nice man who trades an expensive fungus climbs over everyday, from daybreak until 3 in the morning sometimes, and then again at daybreak. He is also the nice man who guided me down the slippery trail to the river.

I continued with my book and before I managed to read another chapter, someone I recognized walked pass.
喂,你去哪? ("Yo. Where are you going?") I asked.
喂,去赶马.("Hey. Just taking the horses out.")
It's the young man I met yesterday, friend of the bus driver.
A chapter later, he came back through the North gate.
走吧！"Let's go." He said. To where exactly I don't know, but happy about being considered a friend, I just followed.

We walked pass the door of another young man I have met, squatting in front of his house. He came along and eventually offered to take me to a place. We sat down at the top of some stone steps, and as night fell, more and more people gathered. This is where old people come hang out everyday until 11 before they go home to bed, the young man told me.

A stone city with 108 (?) families. An ensemble movie involving the same characters in a new episode everyday.

The morning before I left, I went to say goodbye to everyone I've met in these 3 days. There's Grandpa Mu who used to build houses and make furniture, but have now discovered an alternate calling in making small sculptures for the occasional tourist; there's my sweet hostel keeper who fixed all my meals and told me she probably married too early; her sister-in-law who became deaf from meningitis at a young age and therefore did not marry and remained at home. All of them did not seem to care as much about my departure as I did. Afterall, I'm only the occasional tourist that chanced through, someone who doesn't belong to the movie.

On the way back to Lijiang, one of the town's young man who was also going to Lijiang asked me to get a drink with him. He is a talker, but quite a dull one, so I wasn't particularly interested in hanging out with him, but I did anyway, wanting to extend the connection to the stone city of Baoshan for just a little longer.





Traveler information:

Buses: Buses departs almost everyday at the Xiangshan Market 象山中央市场. Since the buses are private, whether or not there's a bus and at what time is up to the drivers. It's best to call Mr. Mu , the driver (tel: 135-7837-1814) ahead of time. 30-35 yuan + 160 yuan for entering the Yuelong Snow Mountain area. If you've already done that trip, may be you can try giving them your old ticket? Not sure if it works. Many also make special arrangements with the driver paying him a small fee and then hiding behind a local :p.

If you have rented your own car to get there, you can of course do both Yuelong Snow Mountains (the fake lime steps are on the way) and Baoshan Stone City all in one trip with the same entrance tickets.

Hostels: The driver will probably try to get you to stay at his hostel. It has decent rooms both with or without bathrooms, all facing the Jinsha River Valley. Around 30-50 yuan. When I was there, the showers weren't very hot. Meals around 5 yuan.

There's also a few other hostel in town, one is Mujia Hostel. Rooms are around 30 yuan (Bathrooms not attached to the rooms) and 15 yuan for a bed. Some rooms also have a view. Meals around 10 yuan.

Both places can arrange for guides to nearby caves, and for the 3-5 day hike to Lugu Lake.

Crossing the River: If you'd like to cross the river and climb halfway up the mountain to get a panoramic view of Baoshan Stone City, you can contact Mr. He (tel: 135-7837-2338), a very nice man who operates the rubber boat across the river for around 15-20 yuan each way. He can also arrange for lunch at his home, which is half way up the mountain and has a view of Baoshan Stone City. This is a half-day trip if you rise early. After arranging for a boat, you'll need to first get to the river. Go out of the north gate (at the bottom of the city), go down the stone steps on the left, turn right at the end of the steps, and descend the hill towards the river. The path isn't very obvious, so you'll need to make a few guesses if you're not with a local (like I was) and if you don't want to hire a guide. Some parts of the trail you'll need to get on all fours, and it's very slippery during rainy season.

Trail around town: It's very nice to skirt around the city, and to get a better idea of how it's built on the rock outcrop. You can follow the trail left of the north gate.

Lugu Lake: If you're planning to go to Lugu Lake anyway, you can consider the 3-5 day hike from here. You can then avoid the treacherously bumpy ride from Baoshan Stone City back to Lijiang, and again from Lijiang to Lugu Lake, which will take you 2 days anyway. The hostels can arrange for guides, if you'd like to do it with your own group without a guide, other people have posted instructions online. I couldn't find a hiking partner so I didn't actually do this trail.