Mount Siguniang Overview
Mount Siguniang (Ngawa) Travel Overview introduces Mount Siguniang fast facts including the Basic Information, Population, Climate, Geography, Culture History, Economy, Natural Resources, landmarks, Administrative Diversions. Mount Siguniang is a world natural heritage, a national scenic spot, a national geological park, a national nature reserve, a world heritage of Sichuan Giant Panda Habitat, and one of the top ten mountaineering sites in China.
Basic Information
- Chinese Name: 四姑娘山
- Location: Xiaojin County of Ngawa Prefecture
- Administrative Category: Town
- Area: 577.69 square kilometers
- Population: 3312
- Main Ethnic Groups: Tibetan Qiang, Hui, Han
- Languages: Tibetan, Mandarin
- Important Festivals and Activities: Chaoshan Meeting, Mount Siguniang Climbing Festival, Mount Siguniang International Ice climbing Festival
- Famous Attractions: Mount Siguniang, Shuangqiaogou Valley, Changpinggou Valley, Haizigou Valley
Legend of Mount Siguniang
Siguniang mountain is revered as a holy mountain by local Tibetans. It is said that four beautiful and kind-hearted girls, in order to protect their beloved giant panda, fought with fierce demons, and finally became four tall and beautiful mountains, namely four girls mountain.
Geography of Mount Siguniang
Location
Siguniang Mountain Scenic Area is located in Siguniangshan Town, Xiaojin County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. It belongs to Qionglai Mountain of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and is 220 kilometers away from Chengdu. Siguniang Mountain is adjacent to Wolong National Nature Reserve with geographic coordinates between 102 42' 30 "-102 58' 40" east longitude and 30 54' 16 "-31 16' 21" north latitude.
Landform
Siguniang Mountain is located on the eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the first step of Chinese geomorphology. It belongs to the transition zone from the second step Sichuan Basin to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Its geotectonics belong to the Songpan-Ganzi fold zone in China's geosyncline region. Its geomorphological division belongs to the high mountain plateau region of western Sichuan, the sub-region of high mountains and canyons, and the high mountains and canyons in the middle reaches of Dadu River. The main landform types are: dry and warm valley (semi-arid valley), high mountain and extremely high mountain. The surface of Siguniang Mountain is mainly composed of Mesozoic and Paleozoic sandstone, slate, marble, limestone and crystalline limestone.
Mount Siguniang is steep mountain of modern glacier development. There are 52 snowy peaks above 5000 meters above sea level, covered with snow all year round. The main peak, Yaomei Mountain, 6,250 meters above sea level, is the highest peak in Qionglai Mountains, the second highest in Sichuan and the third highest in Hengduan Mountains.
People of Mount Siguniang
Mount Siguniang scenic spot is the main residential area of Jiarong Tibetan. Jiarong Tibetans are a branch of Tibetans. There are four ethnic groups living in Siguniang Mountain: Tibetan Qiang, Hui, Han. Tibetan has the largest population. Tibetans are one of the ancient members of many minority nationalities in China, distributed in Tibet, Qinghai, Sichuan, Gansu, Yunnan and other provinces. Tibetans are also divided into different branches due to different regions and dialects. The Tibetans living in the area of Siguniang Mountain are Jiarong Tibetans, and the Tibetan area calls this area "Rongba" (from rural areas).
Climate of Mount Siguniang
Mount Siguniang belongs to subtropical climate. Due to the wide difference of terrain elevation difference in the area, the mountain climate changes obviously with the change of altitude. From the Wori River Valley in the southwest corner of the protected area to the main peak, a complex climate vertical zone spectrum is formed, showing a climate zone spectrum with vertical distribution of temperate zone, cold temperate zone, sub-cold zone, cold zone and permafrost zone. The annual average temperature in the reserve is 5.9℃, and the average temperature at the top of Siguniang Mountain is -17.1℃. Frost-free period is 78 days. The dry rainy season is obvious in the area, with uneven distribution of precipitation seasons and regions, with annual rainfall of 931.5mm. There is plenty of sunshine, with the sunshine percentage as high as 51%, and the annual average sunshine hours of 2265 hours.
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Best Time to Visit Mount Siguniang
July and August are the best seasons for visiting Siguniang Mountain. During this period of time, the mountain is full of flowers, the flowers are like brocade, and you can go down to the valley to feel the coolness of the snow mountain water.
In addition, from the middle of October to the middle of November, the autumn scenery of Siguniang Mountain is like intoxicating wine, which may allow you to take the most beautiful photos in your life.
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Administrative Divisions of Siguniang Town
Siguniang Town has jurisdiction over five village committees, including Jinfeng(金锋), Changping(长坪), Shuangdiao(双碉), Shuangqiao(双桥) and Shaba(沙坝), 12 village groups, with a total population of 3312 (2017).
Transportation of Mount Siguniang
Siguniang Mountain is a well-known scenic spot very close to Chengdu, with a distance of about only 200 kilometers. There is no airport in Mount Siguniang. The nearest airport to Siguniang Mountain is Chengdu Shuangliu Airport. After arriving at the airport, you can take the airport bus to Minshan Hotel and transfer bus No.82 to Chadianzi Passenger Station, and then take the long-distance bus to Siguniang Mountain.
At IFS/Chunxi road of Chengdu, tourists can take the express to Mount Siguniang. The journey takes about 5 hours at the cost of 136 yuan for one-way trip and 272 for a round trip. You can book the ticket on WeChat Official Accounts of Express(成都景区直通车).
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Things to Do in Mount Siguniang
The natural ecology in Siguniang Mountain scenic spot is well protected and is known as “the Oriental Alps”. The beauty of Siguniang Mountain lies not only in the mountain, but also in the scenery related to the plateau, such as lakes, meadows, pastures, etc.
Top Attractions of Mount Siguniang
- Mount Siguniang
- Shuangqiaogou Valley
- Changpinggou Valley
- Haizigou Valley
- Dafeng Peak of Mount Siguniang
- Erfeng Peak of Mount Siguniang
- Sanfeng Peak of Mount Siguniang
- Yaomei Peak of Mount Siguniang
Economy of Siguniangshan Town
The agricultural foundation of Siguniangshan Town is stable. Annual grain output is over 220,000 kg, rape output is over 68,000 kg, and 3,491.5 mu of farmland is converted to forest.
The traffic and communication in Siguniangshan Town are convenient. It is 220km away from Chengdu and 60km away from the county seat. The cement road or asphalt road is fully connected, and the coverage of optical cable, mobile and Unicom is gradually expanding. The economic development of Siguniangshan Town has sufficient stamina, and the construction of tourist market town under planning and implementation has begun to take shape. Is moving towards a new tomorrow with strong momentum.
Tourism of Siguniangshan Town
Siguniangshan Town is rich in tourism resources and develops rapidly. It is famous for its national nature reserves, national scenic spots and national AAAA scenic spots-Siguniang Mountain scenic spot, which is composed of Shuangqiaogou, Changping valley, Haizigou and Siguniang Mountain "three valleys and one mountain". The mountain here is unique, with clear flowing water, green and ancient trees, and the natural ecology is intact. The organic combination of blue sky and white clouds, snow and ice mountain, meadow lake and various wild flowers is ever-changing, all day long, forming wonderful natural dynamic three-dimensional pictures. There are nearly 1,000 kinds of animals living here, of which 29 are protected animals of the first and second categories in the country.
All kinds of tourist service facilities in the scenic area are basically perfect. 19 hotels and restaurants have been opened with a reception capacity of more than 4500 people, offering various services such as sightseeing, rafting, mountaineering, crossing, camping, horse riding, singing and dancing, sheep roasting, etc.
Natural Resources of Mount Siguniang
Animal Resources
There are about 46 species of mammals in Siguniang Mountain, belonging to 7 orders and 20 families. There are 7 species of fish belonging to 2 orders and 3 families. There are 74 species of birds belonging to 3 orders and 27 families. There are 31 species of national protected animals, including 11 species of national first-class animals: 7 species of mammals including giant panda, golden monkey, forest musk deer, white-lipped deer, wildebeest, leopard and snow leopard, and 4 species of birds including Hu vulture, spotted-tailed hazel chicken, pheasant quail and green-tailed rainbow pheasant. There are 22 kinds of animals under the state's second-class protection, including macaque, jackal, black bear, brown bear, red panda, yellow-throated marten, stone marten, otter, forest musk deer, red deer, hyena, blue sheep, etc. Birds include blood pheasant, alpine vulture, pheasant quail, Tibetan pheasant, Tibetan snow chicken, grey forest bird, red-bellied tragopan, etc.
Plant Resources
The Siguniang Mountain region belongs to the coniferous forest zone of western Sichuan alpine canyon. The vegetation includes semi-arid valley vegetation such as seabuckthorn and sparse shrub, mountain evergreen coniferous forest (dark coniferous forest), deciduous broad-leaved mixed forest, subalpine shrub meadow zone, and sparse vegetation of alpine rocky beach in sequence. According to statistics, there are more than 120 families, more than 500 genera and more than 1200 species of higher plants. There are 4 species of wild plants under national level II key protection, including Sichuan sequoia, Picea meyeriana, unileaf clover, and peach blossom.
Honors of Mount Siguniang
- In 1982, Yaomei peak in Siguniang mountain scenic spot was named one of the first ten mountaineering sites in China.
- In 1994, Siguniang mountain scenic spot was listed as a national key scenic spot.
- In 1996, Siguniangshan scenic spot was listed in the national nature reserve list.
- In 2000, Siguniang mountain scenic spot became one of the first AAAA tourist areas in China.
- In 2001, Siguniang mountain scenic spot was rated as national AAAA scenic spot.
- In 2005, Siguniangshan scenic spot was approved as a national geopark.
- In 2006, Siguniang mountain scenic spot was listed as the world heritage of Sichuan Giant Panda habitat.
- In 2014, Siguniangshan National Nature Reserve won the title of "national environmental science base".
