[2024 Markam Attraction] Travel Guide for Xizang Yanjing Millennium Ancient Salt Field (Updated Dec)

The 318 Sichuan-Tibet Highway is home to the breathtaking Mangkam Ancient Salt Fields.

🍁The Mangkam Ancient Salt Fields are the only place in the world that still uses the original method of sun-drying salt. With a history of over 1,300 years, the Naxi Township has dozens of natural salt wells, hundreds of salt workers, and over 3,000 salt fields. The salt fields stretch for miles along the east and west banks of the Lancang River, forming a beautiful layered landscape. 🍁The salt fields are a stunning sight along National Highway 214. Not only are they a great place to take photos, but they are also a hidden gem. The salt fields are a testament to the wonders of nature and the wisdom of humanity. The ancient salt fields lie quietly between the mountains and rivers of Mangkam. When the sun shines on them, the colorful salt fields glisten like magic, as if nature has spilled its palette. 🍁You can also see many villagers selling salt nearby, and there are free Tibetan villagers who will explain the salt fields to you. You can also see villagers working hard. The Mangkam Ancient Salt Fields are a miracle that has stood the test of time!

God's palette - Yanjing Millennium Ancient Salt Field.

Yanjing Millennium Ancient Salt Field 🌅 is a must-visit on the Yunnan-Tibet route to Tibet. This ancient salt field, with a history of 1,300 years, is the only place in China that still maintains the most original manual salt drying method. The salt fields are built on the mountain, and they are staggered and orderly, just like the eyeshadow palette of nature. Experience: Witness the whole process of salt farmers taking brine from the Lancang River, drying and concentrating, and then crystallizing into salt. Best time: It is recommended to go around 4 pm, when the light is soft and suitable for taking pictures. Food recommendation 🍽️: Try the butter tea made with local white salt and experience the unique flavor. Accommodation options 🏨: Hotels near Quzika Township or Naxi Ethnic Township in Yanjing Town, such as Mangkang Kawagebo Hotel, Tea Horse Ancient Road Hotel, etc., are convenient for going to the ancient salt field. Traffic guide 🚗 Self-driving: Drive along National Highway 214, with beautiful scenery along the way. Public transportation: Take a bus from Shangri-La or Deqin to Mangkang, and then transfer to Yanjing. Tips 💡 Tickets: 90 yuan/person, free in the off-season. Shooting suggestion: Bring a drone, overlook the salt field from the air, and the view is shocking.

The only ancient salt well in the world.

The mysterious land of Tibet on the snowy plateau has been rich in natural resources and profound cultural heritage since ancient times. On this vast land, there is a place called Mangkang, which is famous for its unique natural landscape and traditional salt-making techniques. The history of the ancient salt wells in Mangkang can be traced back to more than 1,300 years ago. The salt-making process is to guide the salt spring water into the salt pond through a simple channel built by hand; then, under the strong plateau sunlight, the water gradually evaporates, leaving a crystal rich in minerals; finally, after manual collection, cleaning and drying, a piece of white jade-like salt brick is born. The salt well is the only place in China that maintains the most primitive manual salt drying method. 📍Scenic spot address: Located in Naxi Ethnic Township, Mangkang County, 107 kilometers from the county seat, on both sides of the Lancang River on National Highway 214, 🚗Scenic spot traffic: Self-driving, pay attention to safety 👍️Must-visit attractions: Visit the ancient salt field 🎟️Ticket related: Free 💗Other tips: Self-driving from Mangkang County to National Highway 214, 105 kilometers to reach. After browsing, remember to buy some red salt, bathing is great for the skin. There are salt stalls temporarily set up by the scenic area Tibetans on the roadside, selling their own salt and local specialties. Food: You can try Jiajia noodles.

Mangkang Salt Wells, a thousand-year-old salt field: The living Tea Horse Road

Layer upon layer, orderly and picturesque, The thousand-year-old salt field is the most beautiful scenery by the banks of the Lancang River. - The thousand-year-old salt field is located on both sides of the Lancang River in Naxi Nationality Township, Mangkang County, Changdu City. The salt field has a long history, with more than a thousand years of history, and there are currently more than 3,000 salt pans. The 1300-year-old salt field is also known as the living Tea Horse Road. - The only place in the world that completely maintains the most primitive manual salt sun-drying method. The salt sun-drying technique has been listed in the national intangible cultural heritage protection, known as 'the work of the sun and wind' in Tibetan 'Chakarlo'. - The salt field is located by the Lancang River. Villagers take brine from natural brine wells on both banks with wooden barrels, pour it into the salt fields, and let the sun evaporate the water to produce coarse salt, which is then dried and processed into edible salt. The salt fields use local red clay as a base. When harvesting salt, the upper layer of white salt (snowflake salt) is used for consumption. The lower layer mixed with some red clay is purplish-red, known as peach blossom salt, which has a high yield and is used for health baths and feeding livestock. - |Mangkang Salt Wells| 📍Coordinates: Salt Well Town, Naxi Nationality Township, Mangkang County, Changdu Area 🎫Ticket: Free FREE - ⏰Best photography time: The blue hour before sunrise or after sunset is very photogenic. I personally recommend going one to two hours before sunset, as the canyon sunset is relatively early. Moreover, you can meet people working in the salt fields in the afternoon, and there won't be anyone early in the morning. - 💃Dressing tips: 1️⃣It is recommended to wear sports shoes or non-slip shoes, as the slope down to the salt field from the highway is steep and slippery, and quite difficult to walk. 2️⃣For photography, you can choose bright colors to form a stark contrast with the salt fields. 3️⃣Finally, it is advised to take photos civilly and not leave any trash behind.

The millennia-old salt fields of Tibet's Yanjing

The ancient salt fields of Mangkang Yanjing have a history of 1300 years. Located on both the east and west banks of the Lancang River in Naxi Nationality Township, Yanjing Town, Mangkang County, Tibet Autonomous Region, it is the only place in China that still preserves the most original manual salt sun-drying method. The salt fields of Yanjing not only retain a unique salt-making technique in the world, but what's more magical is that the salt produced from the same brine source, using the same equipment and the same processing skills, turns out to be red and white in color. The salt on the east bank of the Lancang River is white, known as 'white salt', while the salt on the west bank is light red, known as 'red salt', also called 'peach blossom salt'. Scenic spot introduction (Image 1), the sign is erected on the mountain road on the east bank of the Lancang River The 'white salt' on the east bank of the Lancang River (Image 2) The 'red salt' on the west bank of the Lancang River (Image 3) A close-up view of the 'red salt' drying process (Image 4) The rows of sheds are the salt fields, and the fortress-like structures in the distance are the brine wells (Image 5) The stalactite-like salt crystals hanging everywhere on the top of the sheds (Image 6) The red and white salt bought at Yanjing, the locals say to soak feet with red salt and eat white salt, but we used both for foot baths (Image 7) Yanjing's special delicacy 'Jiajia noodles', the highest record of this restaurant is 103 bowls, our highest record is only 12 bowls (Image 8) PS: 1. When we went there, the gate of the scenic area next to National Highway 214 (free of charge) was not open. A little further on, you can drive through another road. Visitors can only go to the west bank, and the road conditions after crossing the river were very bad at that time, and parking was extremely difficult. After parking, local residents would come to charge a fee (10 yuan), and we didn't care whether it was official or not, considering it as poverty alleviation. 2. There will be children following you selling salt, 10 yuan a bag, we also considered it as poverty alleviation and bought one bag of each white and red. 3. There is the only Catholic church in Tibet near Yanjing, worth a visit if you have time.

Have you ever seen the colorful salt pans, like an eyeshadow palette?

The ancient salt pans of Yanjing are the only place in Tibet today that still maintains the original hand-made salt drying. Located by the Lancang River and next to National Highway 214, it enjoys the reputation of "Thousand-Year Scroll of the Ancient Tea-Horse Road in Mangkang Salt Well" and is the first stop of the 21st century tourist route "Ancient Tea-Horse Road" into Tibet.

In the millennium ancient salt fields on the ancient road of tea and horses, where the Tibetans hand-made salt, the green brine is dried with artificial camels in the small squares of salt fields. The salt wells here are strong and strong, so the salt can be dried in a few days. . At that time, the people's tea came here to change the salt. Tibetans also liked to drink tea because of the lack of vegetables and other vitamins. Therefore, it has been a major town on the ancient tea-horse road since ancient times. There are two kinds of red salt and white salt. The price of white salt is slightly higher, but the two salts are coarse salt. Nowadays, they are no longer edible. They are only used for bathing and feeding livestock. However, local Tibetans still use this artificial sun. Salt, sit on the mountain, eat the mountain, sit on the water and eat water.

This is the destination of my long-distance strike from the Sichuan-Tibet line, Yanjing, the ancient village on the banks of the Li River. For thousands of years, no matter how the outside world changes, the people here have always followed only one ancient single business, drying salt. This section of the riverside produces brine. The villagers carry the brine from the deep well and pour it into the salt field. After the sun's exposure and the river breeze, it slowly condenses into white salt. This is the way of survival given by God. Today, there is still a unique ancient salt-making technique in the world. The salt of salt is called "the work of sunshine and wind". The small road under Yantian is rugged and narrow, and some places can't even stand the waist. If you don't pay attention, your head will slam on the front shelf and it will hurt. Under the rough salt field, it is covered with a thin white salt column, which is the result of years of infiltration of brine. With a light touch, the salt column slams and breaks. The ice is usually lying in your palm, and sticking out your tongue, it is pure salty. In March every year, the peach blossoms are in full bloom. At the peak of salt mining in Yanjing, the west bank is slightly slower, and the salt produced is light red, so it is also called peach salt what a romantic name! From the hard work, the most gorgeous flowers are coming out. A few old peach trees in the village are in full bloom, and the huge umbrella-shaped corolla covers almost the entire green area.