Is Zhangmu Port open? Zhangmu Port Travel Guide

Zhangmu Port is located on the border between China and Nepal. It is a gathering place for road trip fans all year round, and also the end of G3 18 line. The surrounding natural environment is extremely beautiful and rich, which is refreshing and worth visiting. Let's introduce it in detail below.

Is Zhangmu Port open?

National Highway 3 18, known as "China Landscape Avenue", ends not in Lhasa, but in the Sino-Nepalese Friendship Bridge in Zhangmu Town, nyalam county. The number of the last landmark is "5476".

20 15 On April 26th, an earthquake of magnitude 8. 1 occurred in Nepal, and the Zhangmu port on the border between China and Nepal was closed, forcing countless people to stop their dreams at the end of the "China Landscape Avenue".

On May 29th, 2005, Zhangmu Port reopened and held a grand ceremony. However, tourism services are not yet open.

From 0 10 to 10 at 10, after passing through Gangga Town, Dingri County, turn south. When we stood at the pass of Tongla Mountain and looked out, the tall Zhuoyou Peak in the east was 8200 meters above sea level.

In the thick clouds in the west, there is the Ma Xuefeng Group in Xixia at an altitude of 80 12 meters, and the road ahead is submerged in the long mountains.

After a desert pass, the last 80 kilometers of National Highway 3 18 remain. From Tongliao Pass, which is nearly 5200m above sea level, to Nyalam County, the altitude of 45km dropped by1000m, while from nyalam county City to Zhangmu Town, the terrain dropped sharply from 4200m above sea level to 2300m. The climate and landscape changes brought about by the rapid change of vertical height make us overwhelmed and unforgettable.

After passing the slightly deserted Nyalam County, the highway winds down and enters the deep Zhangmu Gorge.

The surrounding vegetation changes obviously, from blue-yellow alpine shrub meadow to subalpine coniferous forests such as fir and larch in the valley, and then to lush subtropical evergreen and semi-evergreen liana broad-leaved forest, showing obvious vertical distribution characteristics.

And we passed through the Friendship Tunnel, the last tunnel on the 3 18 line, and the humid air came to our faces. The cloud cover and cloud cover increased rapidly with the decrease of the mountain, and it rained lightly in the sky.

Just like the gap between two giant doors, there is also a gap in the Zhangmu Gorge in the Himalayas. During the rainy season from May to September every year, the warm and humid airflow in the southwest Indian Ocean winds from south to north, and is blocked by the northern mountains, where it condenses, forming an abundant rainfall environment.

Therefore, the Zhangmu area located on the southern slope of the Himalayas has the characteristics of subtropical maritime climate. According to relevant data, the average annual temperature of Cinnamomum camphora is between 10-20, the precipitation is 2000-2500mm, and the frost-free period is about 250 days.

Along one big slope after another, the road twists and turns downwards. When we are driving on the slippery asphalt road, when the canoe glides over the corner, we can't help but feel the fun of racing. This section of the road is a natural extension of the extreme scenery with snow peaks in the Himalayas, and it is also one of the most enjoyable driving sections on the 3 18 national highway.

The misty and magnificent Zhangmu Grand Canyon appeared before our eyes like a dream. The peaks on both sides of the road are like axes and knives, and the rivers in the deep valleys are rushing. The Woods under the steps are lush and pleasing to the eye. Birds singing in the distance from the forest are crisp and sweet, one after another, and the valley is filled with the sound of water, like pearls falling on a jade plate, playing gently, just like playing a gorgeous movement of water. If it weren't for the endless wasteland and snowy peaks a few hours ago, the image of the plateau would still be in our hearts, and we still have some doubts about returning to a mountain in Sichuan.

Abundant precipitation makes it a waterfall world. Countless waterfalls of different sizes flew down the verdant cliffs. Water falling from the sky collided with rocks, drawing white lines and splashing faint white fog in the air. With the wind blowing in the canyon, waterfalls hundreds of meters high abound and are very spectacular.

The falling gurgling water flows into the deep valley river, and the water is swift. The water vapor and fog at the bottom of the valley gradually rise and roll up, nourishing the surrounding green vegetation and providing a good habitat for countless animals. I often see monkeys hiding on the cliffs by the roadside. Very clever little guys, when we stop to shoot them, often disappear into the dense Woods soon. This kind of scenery with stillness in motion and stillness in motion makes us strongly feel the vigorous vitality of the canyon.

Some waterfalls hang directly above the highway, and cars repeatedly walk under the water curtain, enjoying the washing given by nature. The diffuse water mist, lining the deep cliffs on the roadside, makes driving very thrilling.

I remember a genius who made several big gaps in the Himalayas. The warm and humid airflow introduced into the Indian Ocean melted the snow all year round in the Himalayas and turned the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau into a land of plenty. It's interesting now: we can't blow a few kilometers of holes in the Himalayas, but the earth-shaking changes that nature showed us, in a few hours, in Zhangmu, we saw them with our own eyes, which made us feel the magic of heaven and earth.

When the car turned along the road, a small town halfway up the mountain appeared in front of us. Finally arrived at Zhangmu Town, the last administrative district of 3 18 National Highway.

Zhangmu Town was called "Tajue Gabu" in ancient times, which means "neighboring port" in Tibetan. It borders Nepal in the southeast and west, with an altitude of 2,300 meters, 730 kilometers from Lhasa and 90 kilometers from the capitals of Canada and Nepal. It has been an important branch of the ancient tea-horse road since ancient times. It is also the main channel for economic and cultural exchanges between China and Nepal, and the largest open port for China to the South Asian subcontinent.

The whole town is built on the hillside, hanging on the hillside like a mural. Modern buildings and some wooden houses are scattered on both sides of the road, overlapping and strewn at random from a distance, which looks like a miniature version of the famous "mountain city" Chongqing.

When we entered the town, we found a hotel to stay. The room is clean, but it is wet. The boss explained that it rains almost every day here, and most houses have this problem. The boss is a fellow villager in Suining, Sichuan. According to him, he only bought this hotel for 654.38 million yuan before the Spring Festival. Half of them are Sichuanese who do business from outside, and the rest are local Tibetans, Sherpas and Nepalese.

Zhangmu Town has a permanent population of more than 3,000 people. More than 0,000 Sherpas from Tibet/KLOC mainly live here, and it is still one of the unidentified ethnic groups in China. In our impression, they are always associated with mountaineering guides who climb extreme peaks such as Mount Everest. Here, almost all Sherpas are engaged in business activities, and many of them can speak many languages. They have lived in the border for many years and can use English, Nepali and Hindi.

The sky cleared up briefly, so we went out for a walk. Zhangmu Town is bustling with tourists and businessmen of all colors. On both sides of the narrow street, there are rows of beautiful buildings: hotels, foreign trade buildings, post and telecommunications buildings, office buildings and so on. The most striking thing is the villa-style architecture. These brightly colored western-style buildings stand out against the surrounding green mountains and green waters.

There are hundreds of shops of different sizes downstairs, including shops, coffee shops, bars and restaurants. These commodities include perfumes, cosmetic boxes, tea and various thread fabrics from India and Nepal. More are home appliances and clothing, shoes, children's toys and other department stores in the mainland. In addition to Chinese and Tibetan, some of these shops also have English and Nepalese characters, as well as some strange exotic customs.

Zhangmu Port is a national first-class trade port and the largest border trade center port in Tibet, with an annual trade volume of several hundred million yuan. A large number of Nepalese come to China to buy materials, and many Nepalese businessmen do business directly in Zhangmu Town. Through entrepot trade, it is said that multi-millionaires in small towns are not uncommon. They are the first people to get rich in Tibetan areas. Buying a house in Lhasa and even Chengdu has become a popular trend.

The next morning, we arrived at Zhangmu Port, which is the last few kilometers of National Highway 3 18. I will arrive at the port area soon. Every morning, Zhangmu Port is the most active time. There are many Chinese and foreign tourists waiting for transit visas. In addition to business travel and goods in the past, it is also the main channel for most tourists, tour groups and mountaineering teams climbing the Himalayas to enter and leave China.

Zhangmu Port is also an important channel for Indian and Nepalese believers to make pilgrimage to Ali, Tibet. It is located in Mabangyongcuo and Gangrenbo Qi Feng in Ali. It has an irreplaceable sacred position in the beliefs of Hindus, Jains and Tibetan Buddhists, who regard it as the center of the universe.

China and Nepal are bounded by Poqu River, a Sino-Nepalese friendship bridge built in 1964. This is an east-west reinforced concrete bridge connecting Tibet and Kathmandu, Nepal. It is also the western end of national highway 3 18, with an altitude of 1800 meters.

Line 3 18, known as "China Landscape Avenue", starts from Shanghai People's Square in the east, passes through Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Hubei, Chongqing, Sichuan and Tibet, and ends at this bridge, with a total length of 5,476 kilometers. It is the longest national highway in China and the most colorful national highway in China.

Nepalese call camphor wood "Kasa". 1965 Since the opening of the China-Nepal Highway, the economic exchanges between China and Nepal have become more and more frequent. It takes less than 90 kilometers to the south to reach Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.

Friendship Bridge is a symbol of the border between China and Nepal, and the border guards on the bridge are divided equally between the two countries. After passing the border inspection at the port, they crossed the Friendship Bridge and entered Nepal.

On the border of Friendship Bridge in China, Nepalese porters gathered in groups of three or five. They wait for the arrival of Nepalese trucks and earn meager handling and loading fees, many of whom are women. The endurance of Nepalese porters is amazing. It is said that the average load of male porters and female porters is equal to 93% and 66% of their body weight respectively. One fifth of a man's load is 125% of his own weight, and one back is actually 183% of his own weight. Of course, I think these sad and helpless data have nothing to be proud of.

Opposite the port of Nepal, there are many buildings and trucks parked at the foot of the mountain. There is border trade between China and Nepal. Nepal exports rice, flour, pepper and perfume to China, and China exports tea, salt, Tibetan medicine and various daily necessities to Nepal. On Panshan Highway, Nepalese drivers shuttle back and forth in colorful Tata trucks.

Tata truck is a beautiful scenery at Zhangmu Port, and it is also the main means of transport for goods trade between Nepal and China.

This kind of truck is produced by Tata Motors of India, and painted with various color patterns by South Asians who like bright colors. Some of them are people, some are animals, plants or fairy tales, which are very strange to us.

In the afternoon, we left Zhangmu Town to continue our trip to Tibet. Looking back at the corner for the last time, the green town of Zhangmu is like a watercolor painting hanging on a cliff.

At that time, we couldn't imagine that a year later, dozens of serious landslides induced by the earthquake in Nepal instantly turned Zhangmu Town into an island, and huge mountains flooded roads, houses and vehicles. Local residents had to leave this land as soon as possible with their wealth and dreams, and all of them moved to Sangzhuzi District, Shigatse City, 400 kilometers away, and neighboring Geelong gradually replaced its port status.

Some people say: Zhangmu Town is like a realistic sand painting altar city. From the secret frontier of semi-agriculture and semi-grazing to the prosperous border port, the jointing growth has lasted for more than 30 years.

However, it took only one month from unprecedented prosperity to desolate loneliness. Perhaps, for us, in addition to rejoicing, we should fear the blessings and disasters given by nature and share the way of harmony.

On May 29th, 2005, the rebuilt Zhangmu Port was reopened.