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the Degree Confluence Project
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China : Sìchuān Shěng

1.9 km (1.2 miles) S of Jianshe, Sìchuān, China
Approx. altitude: 1583 m (5193 ft)
([?] maps: Google MapQuest OpenStreetMap ConfluenceNavigator)
Antipode: 32°S 76°W

Accuracy: 10 m (32 ft)
Quality: good

Click on any of the images for the full-sized picture.

#2: Taken standing at the confluence point, direction is due South. #3: GPS view #4: View of the valley in which the confluence lies.  Picture taken very close to confluence point. #5: The famous caterpillar fungus, found in the high mountains has many uses in Chinese Traditional Medicine.  Each one may sell for 50rmb $6.70 (a tidy sum in China).  View from the pass between Maoxian and Beichuan. Nine Peak is in the background. #6: Trusty 125cc motorcycle.  I drew many stares from the locals.  Helmets are for sissies around here. Safety first, though. #7: Nine Peak Mountain (4969m) as seen from the road nearby Maoxian town.

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  32°N 104°E (visit #2)  

#1: House on the cliffside on the other side of the valley from where this confluence lies.  This picture was taken about 50 meters from the confluence point just outside of the trees.

(visited by Chris Conley)

06-May-2007 -- I did this confluence over a two day trip. On the first day I rode my motorcycle from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province to the town of Maoxian in the foothills of (historical) eastern Tibet. The town has a much different feel from other towns in eastern Sichuan and one can see many Qiang and Zang minorities. The feeling isn't so strong because this isn't as deep into the mountains.

Nearby Maoxian towers the 4969m Jiuding Shan (Nine Peak Mountain). It's the snowy covered mountain in the picture below. You can easily see the 'saw-toothed' ridge at the top from where it gets the name Nine Peak. I hope to come back and climb it sometime soon.

I hung out and ate dinner in Maoxian while I rested from the motorcycle ride. The next morning I set out around 6:45 or so from Maoxian, rode up to a short mountain pass on the Maoxian-Beichuan road. The engine on the Chinese-made Jialing 125 is outstanding. Always starts one kick and even if you neglect putting oil in it it still won't die. I know cause I rode it for a year before I even checked the oil level once. The suspension might have been made out of wood or solid iron. The saddle is a torture device after a hundred or two kilometers.

Anyway, I rode up the dirt road valley (40km dirt roads one way!) to where the confluence is found. The muffler fell off cause the bracket holding it on cracked and the bolts must have flew off into the river nearby cause I never found them. I rode back to see if I could find a moto repair shop and miraculously there was one only about a half hour ride back down the dirt road.

He fixed me up and I rode back towards the confluence, still early enough that I wasn't worried about getting to it. I parked the moto on the side of the trail about 800meters away from the point. It's amazing that there was a very clear and peaceful trail in the woods along the mountainside that lead to 25meters of the confluence point!

Nice and green, just like beautiful Pennsylvania. It's a nice area around there, and the river next to the 40km dirt road to the confluence would be excellent for kayaking or rafting. It's one of the few stretches of river I've seen in western sichuan that hasn't had dams built on it.

I turned the bike around and rode it back over the pass, to Maoxian and back to Chengdu. The second day I rode just over 500km on that bike... an absolute epic ride considering how rough the roads as well as my suspension. It took a few days to have my sore muscles recover. I found the confluence though. :)


 All pictures
#1: House on the cliffside on the other side of the valley from where this confluence lies. This picture was taken about 50 meters from the confluence point just outside of the trees.
#2: Taken standing at the confluence point, direction is due South.
#3: GPS view
#4: View of the valley in which the confluence lies. Picture taken very close to confluence point.
#5: The famous caterpillar fungus, found in the high mountains has many uses in Chinese Traditional Medicine. Each one may sell for 50rmb $6.70 (a tidy sum in China). View from the pass between Maoxian and Beichuan. Nine Peak is in the background.
#6: Trusty 125cc motorcycle. I drew many stares from the locals. Helmets are for sissies around here. Safety first, though.
#7: Nine Peak Mountain (4969m) as seen from the road nearby Maoxian town.
ALL: All pictures on one page