As a diligent user of Little Red Book for 11 years, with an annual reading volume of 23.154 million words, I found the OTC town through the 'Adult Study Tour Project' notes and experienced the platform concept of 'exploring local connections' during this event. A day before the activity, the staff set up a WeChat group chat including the platform, host, and consumers. The host prepared event insurance, agreed on the meeting time, location, and main content of the activity in advance.
Our leader, Yang Mi, was already waiting at the location in a storytelling van and actively engaged us in conversation along the way. The activities took place in the wetland park, at a Rushan cheese-making shop, and on the banks of the Miyu River. Looking back, except for a sick puppy that didn’t attend, everything matched the pictures displayed on the mini-program. During the processes of collecting plants, making eco-printing, and vegetable tempura, our experience and the completeness of the products were fully considered, and patient teaching and friendly chatting accompanied us throughout. The leader took photos throughout the event and shared them in the WeChat group on the same day after the activity, showing great sense and efficiency.
With kindness and a feeling of closeness, I would guess our leader’s MBTI type is INTJ. If you see this review, feel free to take the test ^. Our leader is a woman with low material desires, full of love for fields and mountains, experienced yet still childlike, exuding a natural wildness. She patiently and sincerely answered all questions. On the return trip to Dali that day, it started raining, and after we requested to be dropped off near our homestay, considering the specific circumstances, she readily agreed and dropped us right at the doorstep. With gratitude, I write this review, hoping things will continue to improve.
Absolutely stunning trail! Although the journey takes about an hour and a half, it’s totally worth it.
The difficulty is also okay; there’s only an elevation gain of about 300 meters at the beginning, and then it becomes very flat. The scenery is breathtaking, with each section having its own unique charm. The trail conditions are diverse—stone paths, forests, meadows, and pine needle paths—making it far from monotonous.
Huanhuan brought a lot of snacks, and even hot tea! Eating in the mountains felt so satisfying!! Along the way, Huanhuan introduced us to various plants in great detail. Look at the last picture—Huanhuan was so dedicated, lying on the ground to take pictures of us, hahaha! I will definitely recommend this route and the guide to my friends!
The day before, I heard fellow participants in Xipo mention how beautiful this route is, highly recommending it.
Today, I followed Wangwang and Tailor along the Cloud Ridge. I bought some delicious food from Posh Stone and set off happily. The car ride passed by with eating, drinking, and laughter shared with my companions.
The short climb at the beginning was a bit challenging for someone like me who doesn’t exercise much. I had to stop frequently to rest, but thankfully the pace was slow and not strenuous. A small part of the scenery is shown in the photos (I think aesthetics are subjective).
). My friend and I both felt that the forest was beautiful, the interplay of light and shadow was stunning, and being in the forest felt relaxing and comfortable. When we got tired, we just sat wherever we wanted. Midway, the sunlight was perfect, and the environment was so cozy that I took a little nap—it was delightful~ This trail was quiet, healing, and stress-relieving... The scenery was beautiful, and the conversations with fellow hikers were fun and interesting! The guides and fellow hikers were all considerate in taking photos for each other, capturing many satisfying shots. Wishing all fellow travelers a pleasant journey!
The Cloud Ridge hike was very special. Along the way, we experienced an incredibly rich variety of terrains, and each section of the path allowed us to touch completely different natural textures. Even though I’m an avid hiker, I still found it fascinating!
Our guide, Tailor, didn’t talk much, but he was very sincere. He genuinely spent the whole day chatting with my child about Naruto—it was an entire day! Several times, I secretly worried that my child might be too bothersome, but Tailor never showed any impatience or敷衍, responding thoughtfully to every word.
I’ve always believed that anyone willing to listen carefully to children must be very kind-hearted.
Before we left, I showed my child the profiles of each guide, hoping he would notice the unique qualities of each person. When we got home, he was so enchanted that he asked me to look them up again. Combining the bits and pieces Tailor occasionally shared about his own experiences during the day, my child filled in the gaps with his own imagination, mixing fact and fiction to create a mythical image of Tailor. In the end, he concluded: 'Mom, I think Tailor is the coolest. I’ve never met anyone who loves Naruto so much that they opened a ramen shop related to it—I really admire him!'
Thank you to Tailor’s dog, Guobao, for providing half of the emotional support, and thank you to Tailor for creating this wonderful memory for my child. I think this memory will stay with him for a long time: In that special February, he had a very unique day with Tailor and Guobao.
A trip that allows you to avoid crowds even during the Lunar New Year period, this primeval forest is near Yongping County. Starting from Dali in the cute little van driven by Swallow, you will pass through Yi ethnic villages along the way, and Swallow will explain the flowers and plants by the roadside. The first half of the mountain climb can be quite physically demanding, but sitting on the ground to rest and enjoy lunch and afternoon tea in the middle feels wonderful. Along the way, you can pick up some small plants. I am prone to altitude sickness, so I brought four oxygen tanks, but I barely needed to use them in the end because the forest is rich in oxygen, which seems to offset the high altitude (the highest point is around 2,750 meters). The dog, Two O'clock, is very well-behaved. I recommend bringing a dog along as it adds more fun.
If you bring children to Dali, you must arrange a hiking trip on Cang Mountain—it's so much fun! The entire route is off the beaten path, and you can see two self-made shelters. We also collected a lot of pine needles and found some wood to further improve the shelters. Along the way, we encountered many plants we had never seen before. It was the first time I learned about the plant called 'Lǐ Bái' (Japanese Wood Fern). We even made handicraft pendants using fresh pine needles, getting close to nature and breathing freely.
The guide, Swallow, was excellent and patient, answering all the kids’ questions. She also brought delicious snacks and fruits, which was great! She even taught us how to make pendants using pine needles.
Having participated in three hiking events, this beekeeping journey undoubtedly became the top favorite for our two kids and gave me a surprise far beyond expectations.
Beekeeper Chunyu’s explanations were vivid and lively, turning the world of bees into a real-life version of an insect swarm story from 'Love, Death & Robots'—mysterious, orderly, and full of vitality. From the social division of labor within the colony, the queen's mission, to the worker bees’ dedication to collecting nectar, he narrated eloquently while we listened intently. The kids, wide-eyed throughout, were completely immersed in this small yet grand insect kingdom.
What shocked the children the most was seeing the complete metamorphosis of a bee from egg, larva to adult through a microscope, and witnessing up close the moment a tiny life emerges from its cocoon. The awe of personally touching nature and witnessing the growth of life is something books and screens can never provide. Tasting raw honey freshly taken from the hive on-site, with its sweet and rich flavor carrying the fragrance of wildflowers, one bite captures the purest taste of nature from Cang Mountain.
This event was more than just a visit; it was a vivid lesson in nature. It allowed children to see the wonders of life with their own eyes and feel the order and beauty of nature. It also gave us a chance to slow down our busy lives and truly understand the gentleness of a bee, a forest. Thanks to beekeeper Chunyu for this special surprise. Such a warm, educational, and memorable activity deserves to be cherished by every family. Highly recommended!
The winter Cang Mountain is still predominantly a dry yellow tone. The scenery along the way cannot be described as beautiful, and the route isn’t particularly difficult either. However, after climbing high and looking at the distant mountains, Erhai Lake, and white residential buildings with upturned eaves, it felt quite novel. Hidden mini-tasks like watching horsetails turn green and searching for porcupine quills added a wild charm to the journey.
Upon first meeting Teacher Phoebe, she appeared small in stature, carrying a large basket on her back, speaking softly. Inside were small insects collected for observation and later release, snacks and tea for picnics, and various tools needed for making notes. The load was definitely not light, but compared to the vast amount of plant and animal knowledge stored in Teacher Phoebe’s mind, it wasn’t much.
At the beginning of the observation journey, I was deeply attracted by Teacher Phoebe's natural notes and decided to leave a special note during this trip as well. However, with limited time, poor drawing skills, and not-so-good memory, coupled with the extremely rich content introduced by Teacher Phoebe along the way, this natural note turned out to be messy but also quite unique!
After the journey ended, Teacher Phoebe was still finding in the group chat some plants and animals we regretfully missed during the trip. I don't know how many times she has walked this route repeatedly, but from her shared texts, she still appears to be highly interested and tireless. After starting work, I always felt like I was doing what I should do rather than what I am interested in. In the evening, reviewing the photos posted in the group, my friend and I were the only two adults taking notes, attentively listening and recording. We lamented that it had been a long time since we studied so hard. During the subsequent journey, whenever we saw plants like the large green tree, stone chili, and nasturtium on the road, we would review our knowledge points.
In our textbooks, we teach children to learn to observe, but we rarely engage in true observation ourselves. When I personally saw the meticulous camouflage of the stick insect and interacted with it closely, I truly became interested in it. As an adult, I belatedly began to cultivate the ability to patiently observe, following Teacher Phoebe for an authentic nature class. Where are the magical plants and animals? Back in daily life, the knowledge points in the notes may be forgotten, but this wonderful feeling will be renewed every time I interact with nature.
