A Dog-Friendly Road Trip Through Xuancheng, Anhui: Chujia Tan, Dragon Boats, Mountain Roads and Local Life

Xuancheng is located in Anhui Province, China.

On this road trip, we passed the Yangtze River section near Wuhu. Along the highway, we saw a road sign that said “North Ningguo.” I looked it up and found out that this area is also known for producing walnuts.

If you keep driving from the eastern entrance of the Wannan Sichuan-Tibet Route, you will eventually reach Xuancheng. The Wannan Sichuan-Tibet Route is often considered one of the most beautiful self-driving routes in China, and the Ningguo section is especially well known.

This time, we stayed at a local guesthouse in Xuancheng. After checking in, we realized that our room had a huge window. From the window, we could see the mountains in the distance, as well as the vegetable gardens and orchards around the farmhouse.

Whenever we travel with Xiongben, we always bring a lot of things.

Besides paintbrushes, a drone, a GoPro, tea tools, a small ladder, and a coffee grinding kit, can you guess what else we bring?

Bedsheets, a broom, and a dustpan. Haha.

Because Xiongben sleeps on the bed with us, we always bring our own bedsheet. This helps him keep his usual sleeping routine, while also making sure we do not cause any trouble for the guesthouse owner or future guests.

Cleaning tools are also something we use every time we stay at a guesthouse. After arriving, we usually check and clean the room first to make sure there are no small objects, food crumbs, or anything that a dog might accidentally swallow.

Traveling with a dog does mean packing more than usual.

But as long as these small preparations help keep him comfortable, healthy, and safe, we never feel that it is too much trouble.

The scenery in Xuancheng is truly beautiful. It is a wonderful place for a self-driving trip.

Chujia Tan in Xuancheng is often described as a “real-life Emerald Wonderland.” There are wide stretches of clear green river water, towering old trees, swings by the water, and wooden platforms along the riverbank.

At Chujia Tan, you can ride a bamboo raft, experience the ink-wash beauty of southern Anhui, or even go creek trekking. When the weather gets hot, nothing feels better than spending time in the mountains and by the water.

One of the most famous sights at Chujia Tan is the thin layer of mist floating above the water. Across the river, there are bamboo forests lining the shore. That elegant, humid, almost dreamlike feeling in the air is something very hard to capture in photos.

The only way I can describe it is a kind of wild, gentle, and deeply soothing beauty.

If you can wake up early in the morning, the morning mist at Chujia Tan feels like it can heal every bit of mental exhaustion.

The cool air carries the scent of grass and dew as it comes toward you. Everything around is so quiet that you can almost hear your own heartbeat.

Before the sky fully brightens, the mountains are still dark like ink. Then, little by little, the mist gently covers the distant hills, the bamboo rafts, and the shadows of the trees.

In that moment, it almost feels as if you are becoming light and weightless too.

当地人也是在河边洗衣服的，如果大家看了上一篇乌镇，乌镇也是水乡，当地人也是这样洗衣服。水都是活水，衣服就在阿姨们的手里慢慢被敲打，敲打一会儿就干净了，再清洗一下就可以晾晒了。

If you come to Xuancheng and have the chance, you can try to find local farm families selling wild honey.

The bees here forage freely, and many farmhouses grow all kinds of fruit trees, so the honey tastes naturally fresh, fragrant, and sweet.

There was not a lot of honey available, but we bought some to try. The moment I tasted it, it felt like my soul almost drifted away. The flavor was rich with floral and fruity notes, deep, mellow, and unforgettable.

Around here, you may also see horses. They are not used for carrying people, but for carrying stones along the road, which is very hard work too.

We picked out a few stones to bring back with us, planning to paint on them later.

In Xuancheng, the owner of our guesthouse was especially lovely. Since it happened to be the Dragon Boat Festival, they told us we could join them to watch a dragon boat race.

So we drove behind the guesthouse owners’ car and followed them all the way to the race venue. It was our first time watching an official dragon boat race.

There were probably dozens of teams competing. Everyone took the race very seriously, and the energy was intense. We were cheering for the Chujia Tan team, and in the end, they came in third place!

This dragon boat race experience was truly something special.

In Xuancheng, you can even pick wild peaches while wandering around. We washed them with spring water from the nearby mountains, and they were crisp and sweet.

It was so relaxing that I honestly wanted to find a flat stone by the roadside and start grilling meat right there.

As we kept walking, we came across a small café. There are not many cafés around here, so we thought we would order a cup of coffee, have some dessert, and take a short break.

The café’s dog was incredibly clingy and adorable, and we could pet him too.

Unexpectedly, we also happened to arrive just as the owner was inviting everyone to taste some tea. Of course, we happily joined in.

The owner said there were three kinds of white tea for us to try this time. Since the tea leaves were hand-picked and roasted by the owner, the flavor was truly lovely, light, fragrant, and gently sweet in the aftertaste.

We bought some to bring back for our colleagues.

Since we had already mentioned barbecue, of course we had to have one.

Xiongben had a little bite of steamed bun. While we were having barbecue at Qinglong Bay, dragon boats were training on the water because there was another race the next day.

The café owner also came by, picked Xiongben up, and took photos with him.

Now, waking up at 6 a.m. does not feel difficult at all. Every morning, there is beautiful scenery waiting to be seen, and somehow the day still feels too short.

At night, we looked up at the stars together. The night sky was so beautiful.

Everything here is so beautiful that it makes you feel genuinely happy.

Since we happened to be there during the Dragon Boat Festival, of course we had to talk about zongzi.

To be honest, we had never actually picked the leaves used to wrap zongzi before. So we decided to go up the mountain and gather some ourselves.

We truly had no idea what zongzi leaves looked like before they were picked, or where they grew. On our first try, we picked the wrong ones. We gathered a whole pile and even joked that since the local zongzi leaves were sold for one mao each, we had picked quite a lot.

Then the guesthouse owner told us that what we had picked were actually the leaves used to tie the zongzi, while the real wrapping leaves were much wider.

So yes, we had been busy for nothing.

But we were still very happy, because we had to climb up the mountain to pick them, and that kind of experience was something we had never had before.

In the end, we obediently bought some proper zongzi leaves instead.

Xuancheng is incredibly beautiful. If you have the chance, you really should drive to the Erdaowan Viewing Platform.

This is part of the Taoling Six Bends section of the Wannan Sichuan-Tibet Route in Jing County, Xuancheng.

Every bend along the road is stunning, but the view from Erdaowan is truly breathtaking. It is the kind of beauty that feels almost perfect.

There is a temple here called Huiyun Chan Temple, a quiet and peaceful place high up in the mountains.

We saw two female Buddhist monastics there, and as fate would have it, we received a wish bracelet and a peace amulet.

The drive up is very steep, so you do need to be careful. But it is truly worth it.

At the entrance of the temple, there is a stone engraved with the Chinese character “Kong,” which means emptiness.

Do you still remember the stone with the character “Xin,” meaning heart, that we talked about in Quanzhou? The dot of the character was placed at the bottom, symbolizing letting go.

And this character, “Kong,” carries another meaning. Everyone has worries and troubles. Heaven does not simply save people. People save themselves.

We are born with wisdom within us.

As we continue through this life and its practice, may we all come to understand the meaning of emptiness.

When driving in Xuancheng, be sure to slow down and stay alert.

You may see wild monkeys crossing the road, deer walking in front of your car, and after the rain, many frogs on the pavement.

So drive carefully, take your time, and share the road gently with the wildlife here.

The guesthouse owner also invited us to make zongzi together.

We sat with the local aunties, chatting while wrapping the zongzi. Although we could not fully understand the local dialect, it somehow felt like zongzi itself had become a universal language.

We even had a little competition to see who could wrap them better, faster, and in more different styles.

Xiongben sat beside us the whole time, watching us make zongzi. He came over to sniff them a few times too, as if he was quietly saying that he really wanted a taste.

During this trip, we painted on stones, and it made us so happy.

We also left a few painted stones for the guesthouse owner, and promised that next time we come back to Xuancheng, we will stay here again.

Autumn is when Xuancheng becomes even more beautiful. There will be bald cypress trees, and you can take a boat through the forests of them.

If we have the chance, we will definitely return to Xuancheng.

Every journey is worth cherishing, because every journey brings its own surprises, happiness, and joy.