Nyingchi 林芝

About Nyingchi

A coherent westward outing follows the G318 corridor to Kading Gorge and then Xiuba's stone towers near Bahe. The gorge concentrates on a high waterfall and sculpted rock faces; the towers add a very different view of the valley's built heritage. Lulang and the Sejila crossing form a separate eastern excursion rather than another stop on this same route.

Human remains and burial groups discovered beside the Niyang River (尼洋河) in the 1970s show that people lived in the region during the Neolithic period. Archaeological evidence indicates relatively settled communities practising slash-and-burn agriculture 4,000-5,000 years ago. Excavated net weights and arrowheads also point to fishing alongside cultivation, both beside the rivers and along ancient lakes later captured by the river systems.

The region has an average elevation of around 3,000 metres, with its lowest ground at only 150 metres, and a humid climate. Its forests include Tibetan cypresses, Himalayan firs, tree ferns and more than a hundred kinds of rhododendron. In March 2015, the former prefecture became a prefecture-level city and the former county was reorganised as Bayi District (巴宜区).

What to look for

• Kading Gorge's tall waterfall and forested rock formations beside the Niyang valley.
• Xiuba's surviving stone towers, with twelve-sided exteriors and hollow interiors, near Bahe.

The surrounding area

Eastern valleys, lakes and canyon scenery around Basum Tso and the Yarlung Zangbo.

Location & getting there

Getting to Nyingchi

Use Bayi town as the urban base, then arrange the G318 road journey west towards Kading Gorge and Xiuba village in Bahe Town. The official guides place both along the Nyingchi-to-Lhasa corridor.

• Specify the actual village or gorge when booking transport: Nyingchi is also the name of a much larger region, including places that are not close to Bayi.