The Tang-Fan Ancient Road: A Journey Through Nature and History

Many relics along the Tang-Fan Ancient Road are associated with Princess Wencheng's journey to Tibet. However, this branch of the Silk Road had already demonstrated its extraordinary value as early as the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties periods. Traveling this ancient road is like journeying through time, from a primitive era to the modern age. Today, much of National Highway 214 overlaps with the Tang-Fan Ancient Road. After crossing the Bayan Har Mountains, it enters Yushu, passing through Jiegu Town and Nangqen before reaching Riwoqê County in Tibet, and finally connecting with National Highway 317 or 318 to Lhasa. Besides the breathtaking high-altitude scenery, visitors to the Tang-Fan Ancient Road usually focus on the cultural aspects, and the most distinctive cultural essence is almost entirely within Yushu Prefecture. Jiegu Town, the seat of Yushu Prefecture, serves as the base camp. Perched atop a hill north of the town, Jiegu Monastery, a Sakya sect temple, resembles a miniature Potala Palace. The enormous Jiana Mani Stone Pile in Xinzhai Village is a sight to behold, and a stone carving cultural festival is held here in the twelfth month of the Tibetan calendar. The Princess Wencheng Temple, with a history of over 1,300 years, enshrines Vairocana Buddha. The statue was carved by artisans accompanying Princess Wencheng on her journey to Tibet. If you visit here, don't miss the Tang Dynasty rock paintings in Leba Valley. Within a radius of one or two hundred kilometers around Jiegu Town, several counties, including Chindu, Nangqen, Zaduo, and Zhido, offer numerous temples to explore. From Zongguo Monastery clinging to a cliffside to Danda Monastery, the family temple of King Gesar, these sites showcase the diversity of Tibetan Buddhism in the Kham region. Transportation to these areas may not be easy, but the natural scenery along the way will make you forget the hardships of the journey.