Walking time: 2-3 days.

Access: Pingan, Jinkeng: See Getting there

Description:

Go first to Jinkeng, spend one day to visit several beautiful villages including the viewpoint, Dazhai, and Xiazhai. (Trail No. 5). The second day, walk from Jinkeng to Pingan (Trail no. 3, around 3 hours) and go further to Golden Zhuang Village via Old Zhuang Village (Trail No. 4, around 3 hours.) You can catch the bus for Longsheng on the road near Golden Zhuang Village. Avoid staying overnight in Pingan as it is expensive and noisy.

1. Huanglo Yao Village --> Pingan Village: a 45-minute ascent.
Get off the car/bus near the bridge in Huanglo, cross the bridge, follow the main route, look for a stone-step path up to the mountain. Climb all the way up among rice terraces and beautiful wooden houses. Reaching the parking of Pingan, you have to pay a Y25 entrance fee. From there another 5-minute walk, you will arrive in Pingan.

2. A wonderful circuit in Pingan: around one hour.
Follow the mark in the village for No.2 viewing spot, you would arrive in less than ten minutes. The view is spectacular (see the above photo). Then look for the mark for No. 1 viewing spot. The path stretches on the rice terraces above the village and provides a nice view over the village and the mountains.

3. Jinkeng - Pingan: 3 - 4 hours (New - 2008)
I did this trek in March 2008. I started from Tiantou village, half an hour walk from Dazhai. The guesthouse recommended me a guide (Y50). It took 1.5 hours to reach the Zhongliu village, and 2.5 hours to arrive at Pingan's No 1 viewpoint.

4. Pingan --> Old Zhuang Village --> Golden Zhuang Village: around 3 hours.
Instead of taking the bus from Pingan to Longsheng, why not hike to Golden Zhuang Village, and catch the bus descending from Pingan on the main road? Check the bus schedule before leaving Pingan. It takes around 30 minutes for the bus to reach the main road near Golden Zhuang Village from Pingan. I found a guide in Pingan for the trek (Y20-30). As you can see Old Zhuang Village from Pingan, you would not get lost while heading for the Old Zhuang village. But after Old Zhuang Village, the trail starts to descend, and you come across a lot of intersections. The Old Zhuang Village, not touched by tourism, still keeps its original charm. There is a pavilion overlooking the village, the rice terraces and the lower valley, and it offers a splendid view.

5. Walk around Jinkeng: Parking - Dazhai - Viewpoint - Xiaozhai: around 5 hours.

6. Jinkeng - Sishui(New - 2008)
One can also walk northward from Jinkeng's No1 view point to Sishui, via Dachongdou, Pingzhai, Yangmei Zhai village. Sishui is close to Longsheng town.

Visited in 2002,2005,2008.
Updated by Suyun in May, 2008