UKC

we are planning a trip to china this summer and are looking for a good peak to climb. we will be visiting yangshuo and getu but would like to find a fairly straight forward mountain to add to our itinerary. i've found info on treks along tiger leaping gorge and around some of the mountains but very little on getting up one.

recommendations for trekking companies would also be appreciated - as would any useful info on the area.

In reply to j4kub:

theres very little info because yunnan/sichuan is very undeveloped in contrast to nepal, pakistan, sth america.

lots of options exist, but its a matter of taking your chances with local operators who are notorious for not delivering, or doing much of the ground work yourself and being very self-reliant.
actual alpine climbing requires a degree of wrangling with the various chinese mountaineering associations, which is usually either an exercise in being ripped off, trusting agents or taking it on yourself and all that goes with that.
yunnan is hazy on its regulations, sichuan is even more so.

potential for under the radar trips exist, tho its a whole other subject.

for entry level trekking type stuff that takes you onto glaciers and into alpine terrain then have a look thru whats offered from operators in zhongdian (shangrila as its been dubiously renamed).

regarding tiger leaping gorge: dont be conned into treks offered thru it. its not too hard to walk thru in a long day, easily in 2, or get a taxi thru in a few hours.
its totally set up and has been for 15 years with no need for any business to be involved.

In reply to ice.solo:

thanks. as you suggest we'll see what's on offer when we get there. i'm really surprised trekking and mountaineering hasn't been developed more in this area - it looks great.

i've found bits of info on jade dragon snow mountain and haba snow mountain but no detail.

i also found this list of mountains in the area: http://peaklist.org/WWlists/ultras/china3.html

In reply to j4kub:

I was in Yunnan in October, my 3rd trip there since 1998. The only real mountain regularly climbed by groups is Haba. I'd checked it out in 2002 from the NW but didn't have time to try it. Normal route is from the east/NE? It looks pretty easy. I'd be very surprised to see anyone actually climbing to the summit of Jade Dragon (Yulongxueshan). I got detained by the forestry authorities at Baimang, walking out after an acclimatisation trip, and they tried to keep me overnight and take me to the police in Deqen the next day. I kept bluffing and talked my way out of it. The Baimang nature preserve is right by the road, it was my 3rd trip into it, but it is now apparently totally illegal to go in there. Even though they're ripping the schitt out of the surrounding hills with roads and hydro tunnels. The place is a mess.

I also visited the Yading area in Sichuan and it is now crazy developed - electric cars hired to go along a concrete pathway built into the main valley. No camping allowed in the park at all. New buildings everywhere. No climbing allowed.

Unless you can get Haba cheap, you need to either go illegal, well off the beaten path, or go somewhere else.

In reply to j4kub: :Starting to kick off a bit again. Often restrictions on foreigners entering the area can follow

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/unrest-spreads-tibetan-areas-china-041423032.html