- Departing at 7 PM, we headed straight for the stargazing paradise—Bashan Mountain
- This month is an extraordinary one for astronomy enthusiasts and astrophotographers, as the Lyrid Meteor Shower has arrived as scheduled, peaking in the early hours of the 22nd. Since the experts had to work overtime this weekend, we decided to hit the road right after work on Friday, embarking on this trip directly to Bashan Mountain—the closest stargazing spot to Chengdu. The group consists of Low Carbon, Initial Heart, and me, with me playing the role of a mere bystander in this journey. Why do I say that? Read on to find out.
- Driving on the old Bashan Mountain road at night, covered in black ice, snow, and cow dung
- Since the completion and opening of the Bashan Mountain Tunnel, few people take the old road over the Bashan Mountain pass anymore. As this road gradually faded from people’s memory, an observation platform on the mountain was also forgotten. The old road lacks maintenance, now covered in snow, black ice, and frozen cow dung as hard as rocks—making it very difficult to drive. We proceeded cautiously, keeping our speed under 20 km/h.
- We successfully arrived at the Bashan Mountain observation platform
- After about a three-and-a-half-hour drive, we successfully reached the Bashan Mountain observation platform. It was around midnight by then. Our stargazing app indicated that the Milky Way would rise here around 2 AM. Because it was so cold, I stayed in the car the whole time and didn’t go out. Since the time hadn’t come yet, I regrettably missed the chance to see the sea of clouds. When the expert and Low Carbon returned to the car and asked why I didn’t go down to take some photos—there were sea clouds—I only realized after going down that the sea of clouds had already dissipated. What a pity; I could only capture the night sky of Bashan Mountain without the sea of clouds.
- At an altitude of 4,200 meters on Bashan Mountain, roasting marshmallows at -15°C at 1:30 AM—what kind of experience is that?
- The vast night sky is indeed fascinating, but the biggest issue is the cold—extremely cold. At this moment, a group of university dorm-mates, likely guys, were starting a fire. I originally wanted to borrow their fire to warm up, but when I walked over, I discovered they were preparing for a barbecue. So I happily joined their group. Through chatting, I learned that two of them had planned to barbecue at Qingcheng Mountain but were persuaded by two star-gazing enthusiast classmates to come here instead. Thus, we found ourselves roasting marshmallows at an altitude of 4,200 meters and around -15°C at 1:30 AM. Shooting stars is quite a laborious task, so I decided to eat my fill before taking photos. Thus, I played the bystander role, tasked with grilling lots and lots of marshmallows for everyone.
- Around 2 AM, the Milky Way slowly rose
- While we were in high spirits grilling, the expert called me to quickly go shoot the Milky Way. So I grabbed my camera and tripod, ran off, found a good spot, and captured the spectacular Milky Way.
- Looking up at this vast universe, how small humans are. I saw many meteors, but unfortunately, only managed to capture one. What can photos express? They can’t convey the grandeur I witnessed. These beautiful sights need to be experienced in person. Sadly, the orange glow in the photo is light pollution from the distant Chengdu urban area, highlighting how much pollution harms the night sky. After shooting for over an hour, I couldn’t stand the cold anymore—my feet were completely numb—so I retreated back into the car.
- The next day, the expert and Low Carbon
- At 6:30 AM, the alarm went off, reminding us to get up for the sunrise. But looking at the sunlight on the mountains behind, the sun seemed to have already risen. All we could do was cry helplessly.
- The Summit of the Panda Kingdom
- This is where we stargazed last night—it used to be a very famous observation platform.
- Happily ran over to take a souvenir photo
- Gazing at the mountains in the distance, the entire Bashan Mountain spread out before us—absolutely stunning.
- Driving back to Chengdu
- The scenery along the roadside was also incredibly beautiful
- The road we came on, covered in white snow
A herd of highland yaks. The older yaks remained calm and composed, some even standing in the middle of the road, not budging as cars approached—as if declaring, “This road is mine, this tree is mine; if you want to pass, leave a toll.” The younger yaks, inexperienced with the world, ran and dodged in panic at the sight of vehicles. Their little sprints were very cute, though some slipped on the icy, slippery road and surely got hurt from the fall.
Everyone should take the chance to visit the sea of clouds at this observation platform. Since the tunnel opened, almost no one takes the old road anymore. The fork is right at the tunnel entrance—one path goes through the tunnel over Bashan Mountain to Siguniang Mountain, while the other uphill fork crosses the pass over Bashan Mountain and passes this observation platform. In summer, Bashan Mountain is usually shrouded in clouds, making it hard to see the peaks or the sea of clouds. In winter, the chances of seeing them greatly increase. I’m not very skilled at astrophotography, so friends with similar interests, feel free to give me tips on how to edit starry sky photos.......