Walking on Qilian Mountain

After Daban Mountain, the peak of Qilian Mountain is in sight. In front of a tunnel in Yakou, I saw a street sign flash by: the altitude is 3792.75 meters. The sky was suddenly covered with thick clouds rising like smoke, milky white and gray, burning like a mountain fire. Desolate, beautiful, gloomy and huge mountains are getting bigger and bigger, and the snow is getting whiter and whiter. Hearing the creaking sound of the mountain peaks being brushed by the wind and cloud, the canyon echoed. But the snow is vivid, stubbornly white in the ravine, and refuses to die. But more water rushed down from the mountains, nourishing life and order on the earth, rivers, grasslands, forests, animals and humans, their cultures and customs, and all the desires embraced by life.

Qilian Mountain is the hometown of thousands of mountains. From 3 million to 70 million years ago, the Indian plate dived into the Eurasian plate, and Kunlun Mountain, Qilian Mountain and Qinling Mountain were born on this plateau that was raised in Himalayan orogeny, resulting in distortion, rolling, ravage and sorrow. After countless deaths and strangulation in the Ice Age, the wonders of the earth still exist, with running animals and overgrown plants. The waves of life are rough, stones are held high, mountains are clanked with iron bones, and the wounds of the earth are scarred. In Qilian Mountains, there are turbulent peaks stretching for 1000 km, including Daxue Mountain, Tolai Mountain, Tolai Mountain, Maye Mountain, Shule Mountain, Danghe Mountain, TourKenda Banshan Mountain, Qaidam Mountain, Harko Mountain and Zongwu Longshan Mountain. Its main peak is called Okazawa Wu Jie, with an altitude of 5,808 meters. There are Niuxinshan, Zhuo'er Mountain, Lenglongling and Gangshika Snow Mountain on our way ... We will go upstream along the Datong River.

Qilian Mountain is the north gate of Qinghai, the natural ecological barrier in the north of Qinghai, and the main road leading to the western regions. The southern line of the Silk Road passes through here. On this ancient road, countless camel bells, countless business trips and countless thieves have witnessed and lamented the majesty of Qilian. "Qilian is towering into the sky, and the accumulated flowers have not disappeared." (Deng Guo) Gentle and gentle, these two words are used beautifully. I don't know whether the poet refers to mountains, the beauty of snow peaks or clouds. Is it really just quiet and deep? "Look at Qilian immediately, Qifeng is high in the sky." (Chen Wei) Watchmen's poems are designed to improve the adventure of travel. "Qilian snow keeps coming, and there is less smoke all the way to the west." (Xu Ling) This desolate beauty expresses the long loneliness of officials in the Southern Dynasties during their missions.

China's wet island and China's wetlands all give her a good reputation. Because Qilian Mountain blocks Badain Jaran Desert, Tengger Desert, Kumseg Desert and Qaidam Gobi, and connects them together, it makes the land of China full of birds and flowers, green mountains and green waters. Qilian Mountain, like a great mother, sheltered all our sandstorms, pains and disasters. Its huge glaciers, abundant rainfall and numerous rivers are the gospel of all life. In the ancient folk songs of Qilian Mountain, it is called "the mountains and rivers are full of milk".

Yak scenic spot, the snow on the top of the mountain is like a magnificent white Great Wall, winding along the ridge and leading to the endless sky. This is the wonder of snow in Qilian Mountain. It outlines a long and continuous ridge with snow lines, separating the mountains from the sky. Such a towering Great Wall of Snow Line is unique on this planet.

We arrived at Qingshizui Town, Menyuan County, and had a rest there. We are about to enter the Qilian Mountain grassland, the most beautiful grassland in China. Menyuan is known as the "Little South of the Yangtze River" and is also a big estuary of Qilian Mountain, where strong winds blow all the year round. But because of the beautiful valleys and grasslands, it has become a great plain. Qilian Mountain has been completely presented to our eyes, more spectacular and majestic. Clouds are rolling up and touching the peaks, and the sound of Datong River symbolizes the vitality of Qilian Mountain. Datong River, which originated in Qilian Mountain, is a tributary of Huangshui, and Huangshui is a tributary of the Yellow River.

When I arrived at a place called Yangchangzigou, the grassland suddenly became clear, and the Qilian Mountain, which had a panoramic view, was completely covered with snow, like a huge white felt. Clouds leap into the sky, and the blue of the sky is wild blue, blue without any comments, blue that is shy and bare, blue that is ethereal and rich, which is the foil of white clouds and the eternal bed of Qilian Mountain. The snow on the higher peak was finally blocked by white clouds and melted into a haze. "There are long clouds and dark snow-capped mountains in Qinghai", which is a poem by Wang Changling. Qinghai has long clouds, which make the snow-capped mountains hazy and distant. "Darkness" is hidden, and what gradually disappears in the eyes is white. But in this valley, Qilian Mountain suddenly lit up. The sky that has been stained by white clouds for thousands of years and the magnificent mountains in agitation, laxity, leisure and silence show their wildness and nobility. The sky prepared by Qilian Mountain is stormy, hard and silent, shining with brilliant light, like a huge boundless aquamarine.

There is a scene of white flames flying here again, and the clouds are even more presumptuous. Below them, the ancient Mao Ge, the Mao Ge array across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the illusion of flying flags, the blood spattered in the battle and the burning body are all mighty images of Qilian Mountain. Hunting in Hengtai. It's cold and muggy. Qiangjia yellow sand returns to geese ... these peaks that sting the sky, the gods lying on the boundless earth. Metallic gray. It's snowing. Cold beast. The body destroyed by frost and snow, the white hair destroyed by time ... I can't describe these peaks and the snow on them for thousands of years. I am looking forward to this strange geological old man, but he is still very young.

I was lying on the grass, and a groundhog came out of the ground and stood looking up at me. The spruce forest belt on the mountainside is lush and magnificent. Spruce is the main tree species in Qinghai. You can climb Shanghai, which is 4 kilometers long. In addition to cedar and spruce, there are Pinus tabulaeformis, Pinus armandii, Sabina vulgaris and birch in Qilian Mountain ... The vegetation here is very similar to the depths of Tianshan Mountain. Wild animals include snow leopard, wild yak, white-lipped deer, musk deer, Ma Xiong, wild donkey, desert cat, jackal, argali, rock sheep, snow chicken, blue pheasant and swan. ...

The grasslands covered with blue five-star gold Mei Duo (Gentiana) and golden Harrigana (Lu Mei) are full of eagles soaring in the sky. I looked for Cordyceps sinensis and found nothing. Cordyceps sinensis is produced here and is the main source of income for local Tibetans.

The sun is like a torch, shining on the quiet cliffs of Qilian Mountain, layer by layer bright and brilliant. Snow-capped mountains spread out under the scorching sun on the plateau, and strips of snow rushed into the ravine. Some peaks are clean, as if getting rid of the entanglement of ice and snow, revealing its eternal texture. The snow on these mountains belongs to mythical tribes, not white clouds or hills, but they live on the Qilian Mountains and are divided into countless tribes and individuals, tenaciously maintaining white genes for people to look up to. Clouds are running, and I am chasing a flock of sheep. They are Han sheep with small tails, like pink wild mushrooms, blooming in the valley. Oh, there are so many purple azaleas in full bloom, the most gorgeous flowers in this season, too many, which are the ingredients of Tibetan braised mulberry. The flowers are large, single and pungent, also known as Senecio scandens. The fragrance spread all the way to the blue or white tents in the distance, where the herdsmen's kitchen smoke rose. The stream oozing from the Qilian Mountains makes the air moist and fragrant.

Suddenly I saw a huge nameplate beside the road, which read: Qilian Mountain Grassland!

This is the Qilian Mountain grassland! There are eight canyons in the middle of Qilian Mountain, among which Qilian Mountain grassland is the most beautiful grassland in China. Now, I am on the most beautiful grassland in China. A herd of yaks are grazing in the canyon. These yaks are not big. They are black, with long tails mopping the floor and long hairs floating in their bellies. Their life task is to eat grass. Like sheep, their teeth are lawn mowers and their stomachs are shredders. These domestic yaks are tame and timid. Some yaks doze off after eating, motionless, like a sculpture of a grassland, or meditating or practicing. Yaks are also sacred on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau full of gods. They just bury themselves in the grass, but they must be thinking about world events. The alpine meadows nourished by snow in Qilian Mountains nourish yaks on these plateaus, whether they are domestic yaks or fierce wild yaks. Wild yak is tall, the male shoulder is more than two meters high and weighs more than one ton. They evolved strong bodies under cruel living conditions to resist the cold, lack of oxygen and the bullying of countless natural enemies, and became great soldiers on the plateau. Writer Gu Yue told me that he once saw a sofa made of wild yak skulls in a local shepherd's house. Between the two corners, two strong men can sit.

We entered Qilian County, which was named after Qilian Mountain. It is in Qilian Mountain National Park, which means we have entered the hinterland of Qilian Mountain. Behind the Minmetals Hotel where we stayed is the holy mountain Amidongsuo (Niuxinshan) in Tibetan area, which is the symbol of Qilian County. In the past, its snow was an ice helmet, which did not melt all the year round. Today's mountains reflect the stones and rags that have been hidden for thousands of years. Why is it called Niu Xinshan? It means that the past snow and ice poured down, like the heart of a cow coated with white oil, which is very vivid. Now there is only a little snow in the cow's heart. The Babel River flows before our eyes, and the cliffs along the river are cut into legendary castles by wind and rain, like pavilions supported by stone pillars. Such geological landforms are really rare.

The Zall Mountain in Muma Yuma is 4328 meters above sea level, and we climbed the beacon tower of 3600 meters. Its mountains are Danxia landform with red gravel rising. On the cliff of red gravel eroded by years, the red waterfall pours down and stops at the moment of jumping. This magnificent leap, this shocking bloody cliff, is like a motionless army in a floating cloud. It is called the Cliff of a Thousand Troops. Wan Li, Longyan Collection, Hanque Frost and Autumn, Tiema Glacier, they have all experienced ... And this red cliff, like a red heart held by thousands of horses, is naked in a corner in the depths of Qilian Mountain, with a cold north wind, sandstorm and anger, armor wrapped in ice and cracked eyebrows ... On the other hand, on the other side of Babel River, there are lush trees, towering snow-capped mountains, long clouds curling and eagle wings whistling. ...

We entered the real Qilian Mountain National Park. Rabbits were running around, prairie dogs were cruising in groups, and birds were singing like rain in the forest. Although I can't see the snow leopard with my own eyes, I saw a specimen of a snow leopard here and relived the scene of five snow leopards that once sensationalized the world. These robust snow leopards, with their tails up high, are scratching the ground with their front paws and playing in the ice and snow. They travel at night and walk in the rocks. Their body hair is rich and their bellies are bulging, which shows that they are very comfortable and have no natural enemies. Although he is small, he is fierce and dexterous, and his fighting capacity is very strong. It is not a problem to prey on a 60-70 kg rock sheep. The specimen in front of us is squatting on a rock. It is full of heroic spirit, the ice is clean and white, but there are also spots embroidered by the creator for it, just like the mysterious symbol of its life. Snow Leopard is the darling of snow and cliff, the spirit beast on the cliff, the running ice and snow, and a piece of Kethleen in Qilian Mountain. Quiet, noble, agile, pure and spotless. Snow leopards have revived the passion and life of the Millennium snowfield in Qilian Mountains. This is elusive. On the precipice, in order to hunt a rock sheep, it also risked being smashed into pieces. Snow leopard is the snow king in the mountains. According to local animal experts, a snow leopard taken in by herders was put into the forest and put on a GPS electronic collar. According to the monitoring, it has crossed the south slope and entered the Gansu side, traveling for hundreds of kilometers, often catching blue sheep. According to experts, the range of snow leopard can reach 1000 km, so it is so difficult to find food in the long snow and towering mountains.

There are only seven or eight thousand snow leopards left on the earth, and there are two or three thousand snow leopards wandering in Qilian Mountains. The appearance of five snow leopards needs the support of a thousand blue sheep populations to survive. Snow leopards are the real aborigines on this mountain, retaining ancient genes and heroic blood.

How nice! Snow leopards and rock sheep live and wrestle on bare rocks in the mountains. In the forest and bushes, there are red deer and blue pheasants running; On the grassland, antelopes, vultures and marmots live; In the desert, there are wild bactrian camels, sand chickens and sand lizards cruising. ...

"Qinghai is green, the Yellow River is yellow, and there is the surging Jinsha River. The snow is boundless, the mountains are grey, and there are good pastures in Qilian Mountain. There are herds of horses, thousands of cows and sheep. The horse is fat and the wool is like snowflakes. " I heard this Qinghai folk song in the mouth of herdsmen. Surrounded by snow-capped mountains, forests, glaciers, grasslands, rivers, swamps, wetlands, mountains and wildlife, these distant and beautiful words are beyond the reach of ordinary people. But now, I'm used to walking and enjoying this huge mountain feast alone. How wonderful!

About the author:

Chen Yingsong, former vice chairman of Hubei Writers' Association and dean of College of Literature, is now a member of the National Committee of Chinese Writers' Association and a first-class writer. He is the author of novels such as Silence in the Woods, Rebirth of Soul, Hunter's Peak, Harvest from the Horizon, Emotional Fury, Aphasia Village, and more than 65,438+000 collections of novels, essays and poems. 40 volumes of Chen Yingsong's collected works and 3 volumes of Chen Yingsong Shennongjia series novels. His works have won the Lu Xun Literature Award, the Chinese Fiction Society Award and the National Excellent Works Award for Environmental Literature. His works have been translated into English, French, Russian, Spanish, Polish, Romanian, Japanese and Korean.