Dian-Qian Self-Driving Tour (37) Earth Ribbon World Garden - Baili Azalea

Dian-Qian Self-Driving Tour (37) Earth Ribbon World Garden - Baili Azalea April 5 (Tuesday) Tongren - Bijie Weather: Cloudy, 7-13°C; today's highest altitude is 1775 meters. The Shiqian Hot Spring Town where we stayed last night is a newly built complex focused on Buddhist cultural creativity and hot spring health resort (Photo 7), including a garden-style hotel (Photo 8) and a hot spring water world (Photo 9). After breakfast, we had time to take a walk and take a deep breath in the fresh greenery. At 10 a.m., we left Tongren heading to Baili Azalea in Bijie. We had inquired about this place 10 days ago, and the staff at the scenic area kindly told us to come back in 10 days when the flowers would be in full bloom. When we asked again before coming yesterday, we were told that the flowers this year did not bloom well, and the scenic effect was only 50% of a normal year, with fewer tourists. Regardless, we lowered our expectations but still wanted to see it. Around 1 p.m., we arrived at the Jinpo Scenic Area of Baili Azalea (Photo 2). Baili Azalea Scenic Area (5A) It is actually a magnificent natural garden, characterized mainly by a large area of native azalea forest, stretching for a hundred miles, hence the name "Baili Azalea" (Photo 1). Baili Azalea Scenic Area is the world's only national forest park and national nature reserve for azaleas; it is an ecological tourism destination in China for spring flower viewing, summer cooling, autumn leisure, and winter snow appreciation (Photo 3). Preliminary investigations have identified 41 varieties of azaleas in the park, including Ma Ying Azalea, Large White Azalea, Shuihong Azalea, Dewdrop Azalea, and Clustered Azalea, covering all five subgenera of azaleas worldwide. It is known as "the world's largest natural garden" and enjoys the reputation of "Earth Ribbon, World Garden" (Photo 4). Normally, this season should see various azaleas blooming fiercely, covering the mountains with countless shapes and colors, a splendid spectacle. But this year's scenery was indeed poor, and many photographers who came specifically to shoot had the same feeling. Natural landscapes are like this—unpredictable and not to be forced. For travelers from afar, having visited is already satisfying, leaving no regrets (Photos 5, 6). Tomorrow we will continue touring in Bijie.