As the source of the Sima River and the core area of Lyudong Mountain, the Golden Tea Valley serves as the home to Baojing Golden Tea, a national geographical indication agricultural product, and also one of the fifth batch of important agricultural cultural heritage sites in China. In this valley, one can visit traditional Miao villages, marvel at spectacular scenery, soak up local culture and taste delectable Miao cuisine.
Travel to traditional Miao villages
Aikou Village
With a history of more than 2,000 years, Aikou Village not only serves as a key node to Northwestern Hunan, but also links the Ancient Tea Horse Road in Yunnan and Guizhou, bringing foreign culture for the local Tujia and Miao ethnic groups. Aikou Village features the harmonious coexistence of “three surnames, three stockaded villages and three ethnic groups”. To be specific, it includes three stockaded villages, with people surnamed Xiang, Shi and Zhang belonging to the Tujia, Miao and Han ethnic groups respectively.
Huangjin Village
Huangjin Village gets its name for it is the birthplace of the Golden Tea. According to historical records, Lu Jie held the post of chief inspector of the metropolitan procuratorate in Huguang and Guizhou during the reign of Emperor Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty. He and over 100 subordinates contracted miasma when they passed through the village one day. At the sight of this, an old Miao lady then picked tea leaves and brewed them in soup, which cured Lu Jie and his subordinates immediately. Lu Jie gave one gold bar to the lady to express his gratitude, and reported the tea to the emperor as tribute. Since then, the Golden Tea has been enjoying the reputation that “one kilogram of tea is worth one kilogram of gold”. The tea not only acts as a crop in Huangjin Village with a long history of tea planting, but also represents a solemn and mysterious ancient culture from planting to processing.
Hangji Village
Hangji Village is known as a Miao village with 1,000 households in Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture. Nearly 500 households are located on the nine mountain ridges toward a small mesa in the center of the village, forming a spectacle in Hangji Village. In the stockaded village, the traditional Miao wooden houses with similar façade look antique and magnificent.
Appreciate the stunning scenery in Lyudong Mountain
According to the oral history of the Miao people, Lyudong Mountain served as a traffic hub to the southwest region when their ancestors migrated from the Yellow River Basin to Xiangxi. Therefore, Lyudong Mountain is regarded as a holy mountain of the Miao people, who always hold a sacrificial ceremony at the foot of the mountain during the Double Ninth Festival each year.
Situated in the west of the Golden Tea Valley, Lyudong Mountain can be reached with a 10-minute drive from Hangji Village, where one can take in undulating ranges, waterfalls and well-arranged Miao villages. On the top of the mountain, there are rocky pinnacles standing imposingly toward the sky and two caves in the shape of the Chinese character of “Lyu”.
Soak up Golden Tea Valley culture
Pick Golden Tea
With picturesque scenery, tea gardens are ubiquitous in the Golden Tea Valley, where visitors can experience tea-picking, tea-baking and tea-making.
Admire Miao Drum Dance
As an indispensable part of the Miao people’s daily life, drums were first used for sacrifice ceremonies in ancient times and then in production and life, and the Miao Drum Dance serves as the most characteristic dance of the Miao ethnic group. In the Golden Tea Valley, each Miao village boasts several Miao drum teams, and almost all villagers can play drums, be they men or women, children or the elderly. Therefore, visitors can enjoy the Miao Drum Dance while picking tea.
Listen to Miao folk songs
In addition to dancing, the Miao people are good at singing stirring Miao songs. In the Golden Tea Valley, one can be intoxicated by the melodious tunes sung by the Miao women in twos and threes while picking tea.
Sample Miao cuisine
The Miao cuisine features the flavor of sour and spicy. The special Miao dishes of the Golden Tea Valley like free-range chicken, sour fish, sausages and fish mint can wake up your taste buds.
Travel tips
East Line: Starting from Jishou City, one can drive about 25 minutes along S229 highway to pass through Majing’ao Town and reach Aikou Village of the Golden Tea Valley. After passing across Huangjin Village, Hangji Village and Lyudong Mountain successively, one can return to Jishou City from Jilue Township.
West Line: Starting from Jishou City, one can drive about 40 minutes to pass through Jilue Township and reach Lyudong Mountain. Then one can arrive at Hangji Village and travel to the Golden Tea Valley. From Aikou Village, one can return to Jishou City through Majing’ao Town.