Jade Dragon Snow Mountain
Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (simplified Chinese: 玉龙雪山; traditional Chinese: 玉龍雪山; pinyin: Yùlóng Xuěshān; Naxi: Jingv'lv or Ngv'lv bbei jjuq) is a mountain massif or small mountain range in Yulong Naxi Autonomous County, Lijiang, in Yunnan province, China. Its highest peak is named Shanzidou[3] or Shan-Tzu-tou[4] (扇子陡) and it is 5,596 m (18,360 ft)[4][5][3] above sea level.
| Jade Dragon Snow Mountain | |
|---|---|
Jade Dragon Snow Mountain towering over nearby Lijiang | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 5,596 m (18,360 ft) |
| Prominence | 3,202 m (10,505 ft)[1] Ranked 71st |
| Listing | Ultra |
| Coordinates | 27°05′54″N 100°10′30″E / 27.09833°N 100.17500°E[1] |
| Geography | |
Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Yulong Naxi Autonomous County, Yunnan | |
| Parent range | Yulong Mountains |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1987 by Phil Peralta-Ramos and Eric Perlman[2] |
| Easiest route | East side: snow/rock climb[2] |
Etymology edit
The Chinese name, Yùlóng Xuěshān, translates directly as Jade Dragon Snow Mountain; it is sometimes translated as Mount Yulong or Yulong Snow Mountain.[6] The mountain's Naxi name is Mount Satseto.[7]
Geography edit
The Jade Dragon Snow Mountain massif forms the bulk of the larger Yulong Mountains, that stretch further north. The northwestern flank of the massif forms one side of the Tiger Leaping Gorge (Hǔtiào Xiá, 虎跳峡), which has a popular trekking route on the other side. In this gorge, the Jinsha (upper Yangtze) River descends dramatically between Jade Dragon and Haba Snow Mountain. The Yulong Mountains lie to the south of the Yun Range and are part of Southwest China's greater Hengduan Mountains.[8]
Settlements surrounding Jade Dragon Snow Mountain include Baisha Town to the south, Longpan Township to the west, Daju Township to the northeast, and Jade Water Village at the foot of the mountain to the east.
Exploration history edit
In 1938, an expedition led by the Australian lawyer, feminist, conservationist, and mountaineer, Marie Byles, failed to reach the summit due to bad weather.[9] Bitterly disappointed by this failure, she became a follower of Buddhist thought as a consequence.[10][11]
Shanzidou has been climbed only once,[12] on May 8, 1987, by an American expedition. The summit team comprised Phil Peralta-Ramos and Eric Perlman. They climbed snow gullies and limestone headwalls and encountered high avalanche danger and sparse opportunities for protection. They rated the maximum technical difficulty of the rock at YDS 5.7.[2]
The Austro-American botanist and explorer Joseph Rock spent many years living in the vicinity of Mt Satseto and wrote about the region and the Naxi people who occupy it. An interest in Rock later drew the travel writer Bruce Chatwin to the mountain, which he wrote about in an article that appeared in The New York Times[13] and later, retitled, in his essay collection What Am I Doing Here?.[14] Chatwin's article inspired many subsequent travellers, including Michael Palin,[15] to visit the region.
Tourism edit
The view of the massif from the gardens at the Black Dragon Pool (Heilong Tan) in Lijiang is noted as one of China's finest views.[citation needed] The mountain is part of Yulong Snow Mountain National Scenic Area and National Geological Park, an AAAAA-classified scenic area.[16] The Park operates a tourist cable car that climbs to an observation platform at an elevation of 4,506 m (14,783 ft), and there is also another higher observation platform, one of the highest in the world, at an elevation of 4,680 m (15,350 ft) for close views of the snow peak. Due to the extremely high elevation, many people become oxygen starved and carry cans of compressed oxygen to help. Some[who?] have criticized the cable for accelerating the melting of the snow and reducing the water retention by the mountain[citation needed].
The mountain was featured on Episode 4 of The Amazing Race 18.[17]
- Yak and cascading pools with the mountain in the background
- View of Jade Dragon Mountain
- Yulong Snow Mountain Waterfall
- Glacier on top of the mountain
- Yunnan Black-Dragon-Pool
- A view approximately 900m below the summit
- The characteristic of the Blue Moon Valley of Yulong Snow Mountain: water renowned for its "milk" color and its "pure" quality becomes blue when the weather is nice.
References edit
- ^ a b "China III – Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces". Peaklist.org. Retrieved 2014-08-25.
- ^ a b c Eric S. Perlman, "Yulong Shan", American Alpine Journal, 1988, p. 265.
- ^ a b Tianxin, Zhang; Takayoshi, Yamamura; Funilki, Yosuke (2005). "Conserving the comprehensive image of natural settings for World Heritage Sites: A case of the Yu-Long-Xue-Shan Snow Mountain as the landmark for the Old Town of Lijiang" (PDF). Xi'an, China: 1–7.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ a b Ives, Jack D. (1985). "Yulongxue Shan, Northwestern Yunnan, People's Republic of China: A Geoecological Expedition". Mountain Research and Development. 5 (4): 382–385. doi:10.2307/3673299. ISSN 0276-4741. JSTOR 3673299.
- ^ . www.lijiang.gov.cn. 2021-10-25. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
- ^ Zongxing Li (27 October 2014). Study on Climate Change in Southwestern China. Springer Science+Business Media. p. 57. ISBN 978-3-662-44741-3. ISSN 2190-5053. LCCN 2014951737.
- ^ . Exotissimo. Archived from the original on January 24, 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2012.
[Jade Dragon] mountain, also called Satseto in the Naxi language, takes its name from the God of War in the Dongba religion.
- ^ Atlas of China. Beijing, China: SinoMaps Press. 2006. ISBN 9787503141782.
- ^ Byles, Marie B. (June 1939). The Sansato Massif. Dunedin, New Zealand: New Zealand Alpine Club. pp. 18–24.
- ^ Julie Petersen. "Marie Byles: A Spirited Life". Reflections: The National Trust Quarterly (Feb–Apr 2005). The National Trust of Australia (NSW): 17–20.
- ^ Melbourne, The University of. "Byles, Marie Beuzeville – Biographical entry – Australian Women Lawyers as Active Citizens". www.womenaustralia.info. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
- ^ Tamotsu Nakamura, "East of the Himalaya", American Alpine Journal, 2003, p. 146.
- ^ Chatwin, Bruce. "In China, Rock's Kingdom", The New York Times, March 16, 1986
- ^ Chatwin, Bruce (1989) "Rock's World", in What Am I Doing Here?, Vintage, p.206
- ^ Palin, Michael (2005) "Himalaya – Day 82: Lugu Lake to Lijiang", Retrieved 2011-01-13
- ^ . China National Tourism Administration. 16 November 2008. Archived from the original on 4 April 2014. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
- ^ Franich, Darren (14 March 2011). "The Amazing Race recap: Zodiac Yak Attack". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 21 July 2020.