A few hours north on the road from Chengdu begins the ascent onto the Tibetan Plateau, starting with the Wolong National Nature Reserve. Located in Aba county, the reserve is regarded as the leading protected area for the Giant Panda.  It plays host to approximately 143 Giant Pandas, or 10% of the China’s total population.  Day hikers will surely notice the sudden elevation change.  For those who wish to get up close and personal with Giant Pandas, Red Pandas and Golden Monkeys in their natural environment, Wolong is an ideal destination.  

Aside from the pandas, Wolong also contains many other nature based characteristics and stunning cultural relics that make it a popular destination for nature-based tourism. Wolong falls within a region that has large Tibetan and Qiang ethnicity populations.  The steep, alpine mountain scenery includes more than 100 peaks over 5,000m (over 16,000 ft.), and contains over 5,000 flora species, including over 100 species of rhododendron alone.     

Visit Wolong on an Overland China journey:
Secrets of Sichuan
Hike the Hengduans: Sichuan's Endless Peaks