Day 10: Rilong—Shuangqiao Gou

Early risers may catch the sunrise behind the peaks in Rilong, a vista touted for its singular beauty. We spend the full day exploring the dramatic scenery of nearby Siguniangshan National Park. Entering the 25-mile-long Shuangqiao Valley, we view snow-capped peaks in every direction, with Four Sisters Mountain towering above. The valley floor is 10,000 feet above sea level, and the highest mountains nearly double that. Explore the colorful geological features and mirror-like lakes of this subalpine terrain, following boardwalk trails that weave among occasional pagodas and prayer flags.

Highlights include the Yin-Yang Valley, Willow Bridge, Sun-Moon Mirror Mountain and Five-Colored Mountain with its rocks that glow red, yellow, green, blue and white. These high-altitude forests are native habitat for the endangered red panda, too. Deeper into the valley, we reach the Ginsenguo flatland, with a viewing deck overlooking highland swamps and snowy peaks, and Jiujia Lake, which is actually a group of four seasonal lakes and nine perennial ones—the legendary bathing pools for the “four sisters.”

Accommodation: Rilong Lotus Flower Hotel

Day 11: Dujiangyan Panda Valley / Chengdu 

Head back to Dujiangyan, where we’ll have the chance to visit Dujiangyan Panda Valley. This is a new facility that is both a panda research and breeding base and a center for conservation education. In natural environs, pandas are gradually habituated and returned to the wild. Reintroduction training experts from around the globe gather here for collaborative research. This quiet research base is landscaped with beautiful flowers and we may see pandas in transitional “dens” that are learning to live on their own in the natural surroundings. You'll see many red pandas here as well. This evening, celebrate our adventures at a festive farewell dinner.

Accommodation: Shangri-La Hotel

Shangri-La Hotel: Located just 25 minutes from the airport in Chengdu’s cosmopolitan Jinjiang District, the gleaming highrise Shangri-La offers spectacular views over the Jinjiang River and glittering city skyline.

Day 12: Chengdu / Depart

After a sumptuous buffet breakfast at our luxury hotel, transfer to the airport to meet departing flights.

Special Photo Departures: Apr 6, Apr 13, Oct 11, Oct 24 Wildflower Season: Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 6, Apr 9, Apr 13, Apr 18 Fall Foliage Season: Oct 8, Oct 11, Oct 15, Oct 22, Oct 24, Oct 29, Nov 5

Activity Level: Moderate. In order to participate in this trip, you must be able to walk unassisted (without the use of walking aids) at a steady pace for a minimum of two miles over uneven terrain. On a couple of these active days we will be at altitudes exceeding 10,000 feet above sea level. Our itinerary involves daily walks or hikes of varied lengths over pavement, boardwalks and dirt forest trails that can be muddy, slippery and uneven with roots and rocks (note that all walks can be more difficult to navigate during inclement weather).

Some activities involve walking up and down hills, including our visits to the panda bases and the golden monkey nature reserve. Our excursions in the Rilong area may require climbing multiple sets of stairs, many without handrails. The trip also involves several walking transfers through crowded train stations, many very early morning starts and long, full days of activities with little down time, all of which can be tiring. Some drives between locations are long (6-7 hours or longer depending on local conditions) and occur on winding roads that are often somewhat rough.

Please Note: Among many travelers, China tends to be known more for its history and culture than its nature. But we focus on the natural treasures most visitors miss, including an in-depth experience with the pandas of Sichuan province and a remote, rarely visited wildlife reserve where wild giant pandas live and breed, as well as a host of other rare animals and birds. Expedition Leader Brad Josephs, who helped create our itinerary, made this comment about it: “This itinerary trades time spent in polluted air, traffic, crowds and airports for beautiful, pristine mountain country. But we don’t always have 5-star restaurants or services, and English-speaking locals and hotel staff do not exist in many areas. Parts of the trip are more rustic, but the nature rewards are so worth it!”

That said, however, it's important to note that there is a fundamental difference between the wildlife experience in China and what you would experience on a typical African safari, for instance. Terrain here is heavily forested, and while wildlife abounds in natural areas, animals are not always easy to see or photograph. Many are expertly camouflaged or hidden within the vegetation, making them challenging to spot. To date, we have never seen a giant panda in the wild, as they are exceptionally elusive. But rangers have seen them, and we have seen signs of them, including chewed bamboo and scat.

Guests should not come to China expecting to see wild pandas, but it is exhilarating nonetheless to know we are in their midst. Weather can also affect wildlife sightings, and when it is inclement, animals may be more likely to take cover in the deep forest. However, our itinerary is carefully designed to capitalize on the very best opportunities to see rare Chinese wildlife, maximizing your chances. Our seasoned Expedition Leaders and local guides are experts at locating wildlife—and we encourage our guests to understand that the privilege of stepping into a wild, untouched world inside China is a reward in itself.

We do have multiple opportunities to see giant pandas up close, though—a highlight of our trip. These encounters occur not in the wild, but at China's panda research bases where the pandas live within a constructed setting that contains or mimics elements of their natural habitat. While the environment is more zoo-like, it provides a rare chance for hours of observing many pandas at close range, a privilege very few people get to enjoy. It's a moving opportunity not available anywhere else but Sichuan.