Heipu Tunnel

Heipu Tunnel

On the western bank of the Nujiang River lies the Gaoligong Mountain National Nature Reserve. The reserve spans 9 kilometers from east to west and 135 kilometers from north to south, covering a total area of 120,000 hectares. With steep mountain ridges and valleys arranged alternately from north to south, it boasts highly typical vertical zonation landscapes of alpine canyons and richly diverse flora and fauna.

It is a jewel in the Hengduan Mountains, with a forest coverage rate of 85%. The complex terrain of high mountains and deep valleys, along with the starkly varied ecological environment, provides favorable conditions for a wide range of plants and animals. The massive Gaoligong Mountain range blocks the intrusion of cold air currents from the northwest while retaining the warm, moist air from the Indian Ocean. As a result, this nature reserve, located at a high altitude yet low latitude, enjoys a typical subtropical climate. Between elevations of 1,600 to 2,800 meters on both the eastern and western slopes lies the core area of the reserve, which connects with the Eastern Himalayan region to form one of China’s most remarkable primeval broadleaf forests. Here, forest resources are extremely abundant, and rare plant species are found everywhere. These include the world’s largest species of rhododendron — the large-tree rhododendron, which is over 500 years old; the ancient relic plant known as the “green longevity star,” the national first-class protected and rare Taiwania flousiana; the original species of Yunnan cherry and Yunnan camellia, as well as other rare tree species, making it a forest that gathers many of China’s rare trees.

The north-south extending Hengduan Mountains are referred to by zoologists as a corridor between the northern and southern animal regions. It is hailed as the birthplace of “mammalian ancestor differentiation.” The reserve is home to a variety of wild animals, including 30 species under national protection. The antelope, which enjoys the same reputation as the giant panda and the Yunnan snub-nosed monkey, is an ancient native species of Gaoligong Mountain. Other wildlife includes gibbons, slow lorises, black-crested gibbons, gray leaf monkeys, bear macaques, red-faced monkeys, black musk deer, clouded leopards, golden cats, and civets. There are also more than 300 species of birds, such as the white-tailed red pheasant, Lady Amherst’s pheasant, silver pheasant, golden pheasant, Lady Amherst’s pheasant, red-bellied tragopan, and others.

In the central area of the nature reserve, the Dulongjiang Highway has been constructed. The Dulongjiang Highway passes through the Heipu Tunnel at the Fengxue Pass of Gaoligong Mountain, situated at an altitude of 3,200 meters and 51 kilometers from Gongshan County. It is the only route to Dulongjiang. Due to the diverse forest types and vertical vegetation distribution within the nature reserve, one can experience the four seasons of Gaoligong Mountain — spring, summer, autumn, and winter — all in a single day at Heipu Tunnel. Here, you can see the main ridge of Gaoligong Mountain resembling a great wall of ice and snow, as well as the “Shady Mountain and Floating Water” scenery of the Dishui River Double...