Attractions along the Way to Tibet – Haba Snow Mountain

Attractions along the Way to Tibet – Haba Snow Mountain

Haba is named by Naxi Nation language, which literally means the golden flower. Haba Snow Mountain is situated in the southeast part of Shangri-la opposite to the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. It is formed and influenced by the Himalaya Mountain Orogeny and the later tectonic movement. The highest peak of Haba Snow Mountain is 5396 meters high and the lowest river surface is only 1550 meters. The upper part of Haba Snow Mountain is relatively gentle but the lower part is full of steep cliffs. The whole Haba Snow Mountain looks so magnificent and breathtaking. The best time to climb Haba Snow Mountain is from November to February every year with less wind. Hence if you plan a Tibet tour along Yunnan-Tibet Highway during that time you may have a chance to enjoy the best view of Haba Snow Mountain.

Attractions along the Way to Tibet – Haba Snow Mountain Natural Reserves

Haba Snow Mountain Natural Reserves is situated in the southeast part of Shangri-la, about 120 kilometers far from the Shangri-la County. It covers an area of 21908 hectare. The main peak of Haba Snow Mountain is about 5396 meters high and the lowest elevation is about 1550 meters high. The height difference is 3896 meters. There are all snow peaks and steep cliffs, floating rocks shoals and lots of glaciers over 4000 meters high in Haba Snow Mountain Natural Reserves. The regions below 4000 meters are characteristic of the complicated climate of subtropical zone, cold temperate zone, and Frigid Zone, etc. The temperature difference from the top to the foot of Haba Snow Mountain is about 22.8 ?.

Haba Snow Mountain is covered by the snow all year around and highlights breathtaking sceneries in different seasons. There are also full of large numbers of faunas and floras, and rare medical materials such as highland frost vegetation, Alpine meadow and alpine bushes, firs, spruces, fir needles, evergreen broad-leaved forest belt, Chinese caterpillar fungus, fritillaria, gastrodia elata, snow lotus, orchid, lily, and wild peony, golden monkey, wild donkey, snow leopard, black bear, brown bear, wild boar, parrots and various wood thrush, etc. Besides, there are full of Alpine lakes in Haba Snow Mountain Natural Reserves, too.

There are some hanging ice waterfalls over 4700 meters high in Haba Mountain Natural Reserves. Those hanging glaciers are the oceanic warm glaciers of the southernmost latitude of China. The strange but significant horns and roche moutonnee, etc, on those glaciers are said to be the traces of the ancient glaciers traces. Some ancient glaciers have melted to be the moraine lakes. The Black Sea Lake is the most breathtaking and amazing. It is attractive that when people shout standing nearby the lakeside, it will rain nearby the lakes and sometimes the rain is heavy. It makes the Black Sea Lake more mysterious. There are some snow fish in the Black Sea Lake. When the weather is comfortable the fish will gather together in the shoal around.

In addition, there are many hanging waterfalls in Haba Snow Mountain Natural Reserves. Some of them are graceful and some of them are magnificent. The famous hanging waterfalls are Jianshan Waterfall and Dadiaoshui Waterfall, etc.