Best Place to See Autumn Leaves in Qinghai

Plan your Qinghai Tour in Autumn? With Xining as its capital city, Qinghai Province is situated on the northeastern part of Qingha –Tibetan Plateau, in the northwest of China, adjacent to Xinjiang on the northwest and Tibet on the south.

Qinghai has a varied landscapes  and diversity of ethic minorities such as Tibetans, Mogols, Hui, Tu, and Goloks with great religious life. This vast Qinghai is home to myriad Tibetan monasteries,  magic grasslands, also  the headwaters of the three of Asia largest rivers – the Yellow River, the Yangtze River and Mekong River.

The best time to visit Qinghai are summer and autumn. If you are looking for the best places for fall foliage in Qinghai, we are going to reveal you the best places to see the autumn leaves in Qinghai.  The best time to visit autumn leaves in Qinghai falls on October each year.

1. Autumn Color at Dalong Valley in Menyuan County 门源达隆沟秋景
Dalong Valley is located in Xianmi National Forest Park  in the east of Menyuan Hui Autonomous County under the administration of Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai Province. Haomen Township is the seat of Menyuan Hui Autonomous County. You drive along Minmen Road to the east direction for about 60 km, you will get to Dalong Valley. Haomen Township is about 108 km to the north of Xining City, the capital city of Qinghai.

The Dalong Valley is ringed by the mountains all sides with the valley sprawling from east to west. Over 20 households live in the valley. It is a laid back  and idyllic place, beautiful mountains and water, and soul-recharge fresh air.  The valley has a myriad species of plants  and flowers. This is an anachronistic hamlet. When autumn comes,  Dalong turns itself into a fairyland of colors.

Autumn Color at Dalong Valley in Menyuan County
Autumn Color at Dalong Valley in Menyuan County

2. Fall Foliage at the  Guide National Geopark  in Guide 贵德黄河青秋色
Guide County is is located in the east of  Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, about 114 km southwest of Xining, the capital city of Qinghai.  Guide County, 90.6 km long  (south – north ) and 63.4 wide (east – west), sprawls on the transitional belt between Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and Loess Plateau with the Yellow River passing through its north park ( 76.8km long within the county).

Guide is well known for the Guide National Geopark ( or Huangheqing National Geopark) within the county. The national geopark features  a varied splendor of landscapes – low  basins and hills, cascades of rivers, loess, high mountains and a spider web of valleys, a magnificent wetland in the northwest China. When autumn comes, Guide change  its colors and becomes a wonderful land.

3. Autumn Leaves at Zhalong Valley in Beishan National Forest Park at Huzhu 互助北山扎龙沟秋景
Huzhu is the only Tuzu ethnic minority autonomous county in China with the largest Tuzu population residing in the county. Huzhu is under the administration of Haidong city of Qinghai Province. Huzu is located in the east of Qinghai with its seat of county government about 50 km north of Xining.

Huzhu Beishan National Forest Geopark is located in the northeast of Huzu, about 11o km to the northeast of Xining. The park covers an area of 1127 square km at the altitude of 2100 m – 4300 m with 64.3% forest coverage, one of the perfect natural eco-systems in Qinghai. The park features a varied vertical spread of plants including alpine meadows, high mountain bushes, and coniferous forest.

Huzhu Beishan National Forest Geopark comprises  5 major scenic areas including Yuanpudaban, Langshidang, Kasuo Gorge, Zhalong Valley and Xiahe. The park also boasts the highest volcanic relics, creating a magical landscapes in the park – volcanic lava, glaciers, and Danxia landform. Zhalong Valley in the park is the best place to experience the autumn leaves when falls arrives at the park.

Autumn Leaves at Zhalong Valley in Beishan National Forest Park at Huzhu
Autumn Leaves at Zhalong Valley in Beishan National Forest Park at Huzhu

4. Shangwuzhuang Water Gorge at Huangzhong County 湟中上吾庄水峡秋色
Shangwuzhuang Water Gorge is located at the same name Shangwuzhuang Village in the northwest of Huangzhong County, about 50km west of Xining. The picturesque Shangwuzhuang Water Gorge Forest Park covers an area of 63331 hectares. A running river named Xinan River winds through the valley.

The forest park is a natural forest farm with a magnificent landscape, a long and deep water gorge flanked by the densely forested slopes with a varied species of plants and flowers. Autumn entices a consistent flow of visitors to comfort their eyes with the colorful autumn leaves.

 

Autumn Color at Shangwuzhuang Water Gorge at Huangzhong County
Autumn Color at Shangwuzhuang Water Gorge at Huangzhong County

5.  Diversifolius Poplar Forest Autumn View at Goldmud 格尔木胡杨林秋景
The Golmud diversifolius poplar forest is located in the Tuolahai Animal Husbandry Communiy of Guolemude Township, about 50 km west of Golmud city. The diversifoliu poplar forests spread on the Tuolahai shallow beaches and the low hills on the west river bank, 7 km north to south and 6 km east to west at the altitude of 2730m – 2813 m with a protection area  of 4200 hectares.

Golmud diversifoliu poplar forest was authorized as a provincial natural reserve in Qinghai. It is said that the diversifoliu poplar trees have unusual vitality that enable them to survive for 3,000 years by “living for one thousand years, standing still for another one thousand years after death, and remaining not rotten for one thousand years”.  The spectacular view of the autumn diversifoliu trees are stunning!

 Diversifolius Poplar Forest Autumn View at Goldmud
Diversifolius Poplar Forest Autumn View at Goldmud

6. The FallFoliage at Xining Botanical Garden 西宁植物园秋色
Xining Botanical Garden is a natural park on the Xishan Bay in the west of Xining. Previously a nursery garden, it was expanded into a botanical garden in  1980.

The garden is divided into two parts – Upper the  Mountain and Down the Mountain. It is a modern park featuring sightseeing, scientific research, education, landscaping and endangered species protection. It is definitely a wonderful place for leaf peeping in autumn.

The FallFoliage at Xining Botanical Garden
The FallFoliage at Xining Botanical Garden

Any questions, just drop  a line.

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