The Haba West Slope（哈巴西坡）is a challenging and less-traveled climbing route on Haba Snow Mountain, located in Yunnan Province. Less frequented than the popular south slope, it offers a more solitary and rugged experience, often through dense forests and alpine meadows, alongside icy cold lakes. It offers stunning views of the surrounding mountains, valleys, and glaciers and the remote nature of the route provides a sense of wilderness and untouched beauty unmatched by other destinations.
Day 1: Set off at 8am from The Bivou. Drive for about 3 hours, along the Yangtze River to reach Haba West Slope Hike Starting Point (Coffee House) at 3400m. The road to the starting point is narrow and bumpy. After a rest at Coffee House, we will walk for about 2 hours to Manyang Mountain Swing 3800m where we can take nice photos. After that, we will trek for another 1 hour or so to reach Twin Lake Campsite (4080m). Trek for a total of 6-7 km (Ascent of 600-700m, take estimated 3-4 hours). Overnight in tents or camp barracks at Twin Lake Campsite.
Day 2: 9.30am – 1.30pm: Twin Lake Campsite (4080m) – Twin Lake Pass (4250m) – Black Lake Pass (4400m) – Couple Lake Pass (4350m) – Curve Lake Pass (4250m) – Curve (aka Black) Lake Campsite (4100m). Trek 7 km (Ascent of 1000m, take 5-6 hours), going over a few mountain passes along the way. Overnight at Curve (Black) Lake Campsite.
Day 3: 9am – 1pm: Curve (aka Black) Lake Campsite (4100m) – Haba Village (2640m). Today’s trekking takes between 3-4 hours. After lunch at Haba Village, we will drive about 1.5 hours to the Upper Tiger Leaping Gorge which we will visit for about 1hour, walking down to the water’s edge (20-25 minutes) or take an escalator down for 70RMB per pax (return) to enjoy the choppy waters and spectacular Yangtze River. At about 5 pm, we will drive about 2-2.5 hours back to Lijiang. Overnight at The Bivou.
Two options for trekking for Day 4:
– Route 1 (Northern route): 10km Straight-forward relaxed descend to Haba Village (2700m).
– Route 2 (Southern route): 12km, ascent to a small mountain pass at 4250m, pass two small lakes, before descending to Haba Village (2700m).
