On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Jiangcheng outdoor enthusiasts trekked across the frozen Songhua Lake. The hikers walked on the ice.
Spring Festival is a time for family reunions, but Jiangcheng outdoor enthusiast Ding Shouyou, whose online alias is "Cold River Wave Rider," set off after the New Year's Eve dinner. From the first to the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, from Foshou Mountain in Jilin City to crossing the frozen Songhua Lake, and then to Beifenghuang Mountain in Heilongjiang, Ding Shouyou and his fellow outdoor enthusiasts celebrated a novel Spring Festival away from the dining table and banquet halls.
Preparing to hike after the New Year's Eve dinner on Lunar New Year’s Eve
Early on the 29th day of the 12th lunar month, after cleaning the house, taking a hot shower, putting on new clothes, and putting up carefully selected Spring Festival couplets, Ding Shouyou’s family began preparing for the New Year’s Eve dinner.
“We’ll have a rich-flavored New Year’s Eve dinner at home on Lunar New Year’s Eve,” said Ding’s wife, Ms. Cao. In the days leading up to the Spring Festival, she had already started buying ingredients for the dinner, and on Lunar New Year’s Eve, she was busy in the kitchen the whole time. The dishes on the table were abundant, and the family enjoyed a warm New Year’s Eve dinner together.
“Before the Spring Festival, my husband called from Beijing and said he would get together with outdoor enthusiasts on the first day of the Lunar New Year,” Ms. Cao said. Her husband is the vice-chairman of the Jilin City Winter Swimming Association. He has many friends across the country and often organizes outdoor hiking or winter swimming trips.
“I did hope he’d stay home and celebrate the New Year with us, but outdoor sports are part of his life, and this kind of activity has become a culture and a trend. From that perspective, I support him,” Ms. Cao said. This was the third time her husband had spent the Spring Festival with fellow outdoor enthusiasts.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Ms. Cao got up early to prepare a nutritious breakfast for her husband — milk, eggs, bread, and dumplings. Then, she packed some convenience food she bought from the supermarket into his hiking backpack and filled his thermos with hot water for him to eat along the way.
On the first day, a hundred outdoor enthusiasts gather at Foshou Mountain
Foshou Mountain is located at the junction of Duanji Village and Yaotun Village in Xiaobai Mountain Township, Fengman District, Jilin City. With an elevation of 430 meters, it is an extension of the Changbai Mountain range. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, over a hundred Jiangcheng outdoor enthusiasts, organized by Ding Shouyou, participated in this activity and climbed to the top of Foshou Mountain. They first took Bus No. 9 to Xiaofengman, walked several kilometers along an asphalt road, and then arrived at the foot of Foshou Mountain. After starting the climb, the Jiangcheng outdoor enthusiasts who love hiking successfully reached the “Buddha’s Palm” in just one morning.
After successfully reaching the summit of Foshou Mountain, the hikers descended and then walked along the eastern side of the Fengman Dam to the No. 33 bus stop. “I didn’t expect there to be over 100 people joining the hiking activity. It’s the first day of the Lunar New Year, and traditionally, the first day is when people stay home or visit relatives and friends,” Ding Shouyou said. When he was in Beijing, he posted online calling on everyone to have a happy and healthy Spring Festival. The slogan was “away from card tables, away from drinking parties, to have a fitness-focused and novel Spring Festival.”
That afternoon, Ding Shouyou returned home to pack his gear. At around 11 a.m. on the second day of the Lunar New Year, he and four other outdoor enthusiasts set off again, passing through Shulan and other places to Snow Valley in Heilongjiang to challenge the highest peak in Heilongjiang Province.
From the second to the fourth day: challenging Beifenghuang Mountain
Beifenghuang Mountain, with an elevation of 1,690 meters, is the highest peak in Heilongjiang Province. Ding Shouyou and four other outdoor enthusiasts — "Bug Carver," "Spider-Man," "Sunshine," and "Leisurely" — along with a guide and an accompanying staff member, spent three days crossing this high mountain and successfully reached the summit.
“The snow pits there were as deep as about 1.5 meters. Without a guide, it would have been really dangerous,” Ding Shouyou recalled. The guide was a local who chose a safer route for them. However, from the halfway point upward, the mountain path was rugged, and snow covered the short pine trees. Sometimes when you stepped down, you thought you were stepping on a pine branch, but actually, it was much deeper underneath, and you could sink so far you couldn't even touch the bottom.
“One wrong step and you’d definitely fall. The snow was so thick, and there were ‘ambushes’ everywhere,” Ding Shouyou said. The lead guide mentioned that the deepest parts were dozens of meters deep, and if someone fell in, they’d disappear instantly.
During the climb toward the summit, the waist-deep snow halfway up the mountain gradually turned into an icy crust as the weather got colder, becoming hard and slippery underfoot. “We set off for Heilongjiang on the second day of the Lunar New Year. After arriving, we rested for one night and started climbing early the next morning, which took two days. Along the way, we camped again at ‘Rezan,’ which is at an altitude of 1,370 meters. On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, we reached the summit,” Ding Shouyou recalled. There were no trees at the summit, only shrubs about one meter tall. The entire mountaintop was freezing cold, and the shrubs were covered in ice and snow, creating a very beautiful scene.
“Locals call this mountaintop ‘Datudingzi,’” Ding Shouyou said. After successfully reaching the summit that day, the hikers cheered excitedly, “Beifenghuang Mountain, here we come!”
On the fifth day: crossing Songhua Lake
On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Ding Shouyou returned home briefly before regathering with 13 other outdoor enthusiasts.
“This time, it’s a crossing of Songhua Lake. The ice has frozen solid, and the location is near Tangjiaweizi in Fengman District, Jilin City,” Ding Shouyou said. Although the ice had frozen, safety remained the top priority. Whether climbing Foshou Mountain, Beifenghuang Mountain, or crossing Songhua Lake, safety was the first consideration. Throughout the activities, there were no dangers or accidents, and the outdoor enthusiasts spent a peaceful and auspicious Spring Festival together.
In the team crossing the ice, there needed to be a leader at the front who could promptly alert others to dangers. There also needed to be people in the middle for support, and strong “guards” at the back to ensure timely rescue if anyone ran into trouble.
“Not only is team safety important, but you also need various personal protective measures, such as snow gaiters, so the snow doesn’t get into your boots,” Ding Shouyou said. Having years of experience in outdoor sports, he accumulated some expertise. So when some outdoor enthusiasts didn’t bring snow gaiters, he would lend them his own for those less experienced.
“To go out into nature to experience the snowy world and breathe fresh air, away from drinking parties and card tables, was the idea behind organizing this activity,” Ding Shouyou said. He hadn’t discussed it with his wife beforehand, but his family was quite supportive.