【国内文旅卷】世界自然遗产之黄龙（中英双语）
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“黄龙风景名胜区，位于四川省西北部，是由众多雪峰和中国最东部的冰川组成的山谷。在这里人们可以找到高山景观和各种不同的森林生态系统，以及壮观的石灰岩构造、瀑布和温泉。这一地区还生长着许多濒临灭绝的动物。” 以上是1992年黄龙被列入世界自然遗产名录时，世界遗产委员会对其作出的评价。而由此开始，黄龙这个长期“藏于深山人未识”的绝色美景，正以火箭般的速度红遍世界。
黄龙位于四川省北部阿坝藏族羌族自治州松潘县境内的岷山山脉南段，以巨大的地表钙华，覆盖在林海与冰峰之间，好似金龙蜿蜒、遨游天地间。主要景区为黄龙沟、牟尼沟与雪宝顶等。这里的钙华景观类型齐全，石坝、彩池、钙华滩、钙华瀑布、钙华盆景等一应俱全，正是一座天然钙华的博物馆。
一、牟尼沟
牟尼沟以其巨大的钙华瀑布闻名。这座名为扎嘎的瀑布位于海拨三千多米的山林间。它将一整座山作为了背景，从上到下在黄色钙华的彩底上铺了一层白纱。那些发出暗黑色的森林似乎是专门为它让道的，与它近在咫尺却又彬彬有礼地让在一旁。其实扎嘎瀑布的步伐时缓时急，白沙也有薄有厚。沿着栈道向瀑布上游爬去的整个过程中，瀑布的声响遮掩了林间本有的宁静。
到达瀑布顶部时才发觉，即使是它形成初期，也已然是道汹涌的激流了。那刻，它正湍急地越过树林，滑过石壁，激荡起飞沫无数，最后，这道初生的水流将穿过我脚下，以三级跳的形式向下俯冲的，以无畏的姿态坠入百米落差的谷底，称霸整个山林。
二、黄龙沟彩池
除了五彩池外，黄龙还有几处以彩池闻名之景，由上至下分别为争艳彩池、娑萝映彩池、明镜倒映池、盆景池、潋滟池和迎宾池。由于它们都是自上流下的雪山水覆盖着万年钙华折射出蓝绿之色，所以这些彩池间的景色大体相近，只因周围植被稀疏而略有不同罢了。
争艳彩池是整个黄龙更是全国面积最大的露天钙华，面积达2万平米，有六百多个彩池相连而成。钙华池因深浅不一，折射出的光谱也不尽相同。有时远观成蓝，近赏成碧；俯瞰艳美，平视通透。从明黄到浅绿，从碧蓝到暗蓝，都在层叠间幻华出细微的区别，恰如群芳争艳，各尽其美。
继续下行，路过万木竞秀的娑萝映彩池，便来到一片空旷的钙华前。这里就是位于整个黄龙沟中间点位置的明镜倒映池，也有了相对多的供游人小憩的坐椅。站在平台上凭栏眺望，水面如镜，倒映着远山与浓云，无边的开阔辽远令心绪一并飞扬其间，随着矗立四周的针叶林一直蔓延至看不见的山谷那端。
三、黄龙沟钙华
黄龙景区包括大大小小十来个景点，但总体上来说可分为碧蓝色的彩池、深浅绿色的针叶林、白雪皑皑的雪宝鼎和金光灿灿的黄色钙华景观。在浏览的过程里，除了沟两侧的针叶林随处可见外，最引人眼球的当属那大片大片的黄色钙华。即使是阳光被浓云遮住时，那钙华也黄得耀目，并颇具一份恢宏之气势，它们大片大片地彼此相连，顺着黄龙沟从五彩池而下，连绵不绝，一直蔓延至沟底。它们时而如黄河波涛般起伏层叠，时而如黄土高坡般腾挪跌宕，时而又如大漠黄沙般平缓广袤，更有如流泉瀑布般飞流直下……
四、黄龙古寺
黄龙古寺建于明朝，也称雪山寺，《松潘县志》中有载，大禹治水至茂州时，有黄龙负舟相助，后来黄龙修道成仙，留下了这五彩的山水，后人建寺朝拜纪念。所以，这么看来，如今的黄龙沟得名于黄龙寺，而眼见如黄龙般的钙华滩，也并非是想象而已。其实黄龙有三寺，分为前中后，此保存最为完好的就是道教的后寺，而前寺已消失在时光与岁月中。距此不远的半山途中是藏传佛教的黄龙中寺。
仔细端详古寺门匾，发现原来别有玄机，从正面看是“黄龙古寺”，但从左侧能看到“飞阁流丹”右侧则是“山空水碧”，巧妙地将黄龙的古寺山水描绘于一匾。寺顶各角均有黄龙盘旋，寺的两扇门也共绘着一条彩色的巨龙。走入寺内，风格也是依旧是道家的雕梁画栋、飞格斗拱，正殿内正端坐着黄龙真人。
五、黄龙沟五彩池
在接近海拔4000米的黄龙沟顶端，汇聚着近700个钙化池，这些大大小小形态各异的水潭正是黄龙景区最精粹的所在——五彩池。
五彩池内的色彩，在细看之下是各不相同的，无论宝石蓝、海蓝、浅蓝再到蓝绿、碧绿、浅绿，都因角度与光线的不同而动态变幻着色彩。700个钙化池环环相扣又层层相叠，交织着相互关系，幻化着相关之色。它们如莲叶亦如花瓣，也是世间最复杂的调色板，只要轻盈的一个荡漾，便将浓妆淡抹发挥到恰到好处。再加上远山如黛，针林交织，黄、绿、蓝、青、紫等光谱中冷冷那端的色彩，组成了这片神奇土地上难以言表的美丽风景，并让人一见倾心，整个世界就这么空旷而安静地展现眼前。
六、雪宝鼎
在黄龙沟景区内一路上行，雪宝鼎尽显眼前，它是岷山主峰，海拔5588米，其玉翠峰正立于黄龙沟谷之顶，雪山融水流淌进沟谷，形成眼前花木竞秀的钙华滩流，最终它们汇聚成天府最著名的母亲河——岷江。终年积雪的雪宝鼎自古便是道教与藏传佛教的圣地，因其壁峭峰峻，当地的藏、羌、汉民称其为神山，并加以朝拜。
站在山下远眺黄龙寺，无论中寺后寺更莫论佛家道家，在雪宝鼎巨大的怀抱间无一都显得渺小而遥远，仿佛岁月倾刻间的眨眼便能将它轻轻改变。唯有宝雪鼎依旧白雪巍峨，在安静中赏尽世间风云。
【全文翻译】
“Situated in the north-west of Sichuan Province, the Huanglong valley is made up of snow-capped peaks and the easternmost of all the Chinese glaciers. In addition to its mountain landscape, diverse forest ecosystems can be found, as well as spectacular limestone formations, waterfalls and hot springs. The area also has a large amount of endangered animals.” UNESCO World Heritage Committee made the above comments when including Huanglong in its World Natural Heritage in 1992. Since then, Huanglong — the unrivalled beautiful scenes of “Hidden in remote mountains, with no one knowing it” for a long time had rapidly emerged to become popular around the world.
Located within the south of Minshan Mountains in Songpan County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture in the north of Sichuan Province, Huanglong is covered with huge surface areas of travertine among immense forests and ice peaks, and meanders and flies in the earth and heavenlike a golden dragon. The major scenic spots are Huanglong Valley, Mouni Gully, and Xuebaoding (Snow Mountain Peak), etc. This area is precisely a natural travertine museum because of its various types of travertine landscapes, with a full range of stone dams, colored ponds, travertine shoals, waterfalls, and potted landscapes.
I. Mouni Gully
Mouni Gully is well known for its giant travertine waterfalls. The Zhaga Waterfall is located in the mountain forests with an altitude of over 3,000 meters, and it takes the whole mountain as background, placing a layer of white voile on the yellow travertine from top to bottom. Those dark-hued forests seem to specially give way to the Zhaga Waterfall. The forest trees stand beside the falls with good manner. In fact, the Zhaga Waterfall is fast as well as slow; consequently the white voile is thin and thick. During the entire process of climbing along the plank road to the upstream of the Zhaga Waterfall, the sound of the waterfall drowns out the unique tranquility of the forests.
You will discover that the Zhaga Waterfall has been a turbulent torrent even at its initial formation phase only when you reach its pinnacle. At that moment, the early-formed current is running through the forests rapidly, slipping through the cliff, and surging with countless sprays. Finally it passes by under your feet and dives downward in a jump-promoted form, and crashes in a dauntless gesture into the valley bottom with a drop of 100 meters; it dominates the whole mountain forests.
II. Colored Ponds in Huanglong Valley
Besides the Multi-colored Pond, Huanglong also has several scenes being well known for their respective colored ponds: Flamboyant Pond, Azalea Pond, Mirror Pond, Bonsai Pond, Glittering Pond, and Welcome Pond from the top of the mountain to the bottom. The ponds are broadly similar, for all the ponds are fed by snow mountain water flowing from top to bottom covered with the color of the ten-thousand-year travertine, but slightly different because of the surrounding sparse vegetation.
The Flamboyant Pond is the largest open-air travertine in Huanglong and even in China. It covers an area of 20,000 square meters and consists of over six hundred cross-connected colored ponds. Travertine ponds reflect different color spectrums due to their irregular depths. Sometimes they appear blue when you look from a distance and green when you get close to them; they are delicate and charming when you look down to them and transparent when you look squarely at them. From bright yellow to light green and dark blue to deep blue, they turn out tenuous distinctions, looking like flowers vie with each other to show their beauty.
Continuing to walk down, you will come in front of a piece of spacious travertine after passing by the Azalea Pond with numerous trees contending for beauty. Here is the Mirror Pond located at the middle point of the whole Huanglong Valley, where there are relatively more chairs for tourists to take a short rest. Stand on the platform and overlook by leaning on the railing, the water is like a mirror and reflects the distant hills and thick clouds, and your mind flies with the boundless openness and distance, and spreads to the other invisible end of the mountain valley along with the towering coniferous forests all around.
III. Travertine in Huanglong Valley
The Huanglong scenic area consists of a dozen large or small scenic spots, but can be generally divided into vivid blue color ponds, dark and pale green coniferous forests, snow-capped Xuebaoding, and golden shining yellow travertine landscapes. During your tour, besides the coniferous forests which can be seen everywhere at both sides of the valley, the most attractive landscape would be the large pieces of yellow travertine. Even when the sun is hidden by thick clouds, the travertine still appears bright yellow, and displays magnificent momentum. They are connected with each other by large pieces, and go endlessly down along the Huanglong Valley from the Multi-colored Pond and spread to the valley bottom. Sometimes they fluctuate and stack up like the mighty waves of the Yellow River, or jump up and down like the Loess Plateau, and sometimes they are smooth and vast like the desert yellow sand, and fly straight down just like the natural flow of waterfalls.
IV. Huanglong Ancient Temple
Established in Ming Dynasty, the Huanglong Ancient Temple is also known as the Snow Mountain Temple. The Songpan County Annals recorded that when Da Yu (Yu the Great) came to Maozhou to regulate rivers and watercourses, a yellow dragon took a boat to help him. Afterwards the yellow dragon became an immortal, and left the multi-colored landscape, and the descendants built a temple to worship and commemorate it. So it seems that the Huanglong Valley is named after the Huanglong Temple, and the travertine shoals just like a yellow dragon is not just imagined at all. In fact, Huanglong has three temples, the front temple, middle temple, and back temple. The best-preserved temple is the back temple of Taoism, and the front temple has disappeared over the years. Not far away from here lies the Huanglong Middle Temple of Tibetan Buddhism at about halfway up the mountainside.
When you look carefully at the plaque of the ancient temple, you can find there is another mystery: you can find the characters “Huang Long Gu Si” (Huanglong Ancient Temple) when you see the plaque directly, but you will find the characters “FeiGe Liu Dan” (Flying Pavilion and Flowing Red) when you see it from the left side, and “Shan Kong Shui Bi” (Empty Sky and Clear Water) from the right side. The ancient temple and landscape in Huanglong are subtly described in one plaque. Each corner at the top of the temple has a circling yellow dragon, and a colorful giant dragon is drawn on both doors of the temple. When you enter the temple, you find that the style is also dominated by carved beams & painted rafters and flying lattices & brackets of the Taoist School and the Yellow Dragon Immortal sits uprightly in the main hall.
V. Multi-Colored Pond in Huanglong Valley
Nearly 700 calcified ponds converge at the Huanglong Valley peak with an elevation close to 4,000 meters, such large or small ponds in different shapes are the soul of Huanglong scenic area — the Multi-colored Pond.
When you carefully view the Multi-colored Pond, colors in it are different; all the colors from azure, sea blue, light blue to bluish green, dark green, and light green are dynamically changing due to different angles and lighting. The 700 calcified ponds are connected together and stacked by layers, and magically change colors corresponding to different interleaving relationships. They are like lotus leaves and flower petals, and also the most complete palette. As long as a light and graceful ripple, they can show you a perfect view with the heavy or light makeup. Combined with distant blue black mountains and intertwined coniferous forests, the cold colors in the spectrums of yellow, green, blue, cyan and purple constitute the indescribably beautiful landscape in this magical land. People love it at the first sight and the whole world just spaciously and quietly unfolds before your eyes.
VI. Xuebaoding
When you ascend the Huanglong Valley scenic area all the way up, you will enjoy a full view of Xuebaoding which is the dominant peak of Minshan Mountains with an elevation of 5,588 meters. The Jade Peak erects at the top of Huanglong Valley. The snow water flows into the valley and forms the travertine lagoon with numerous flowers and trees contending for beauty before your eyes, and then finally converges into the most famous Mother River in Sichuan Province, the Minjiang River. The perennially snow-capped Xuebaoding has been the Holy Land of Taoism and Tibetan Buddhism since ancient times, and the local Tibetan nationality, Qiang nationality and Han nationality call it Sacred Mountain and worship it.
Standing at the mountain foot to overlook Huanglong Temple, no matter if it’s the middle temple or back temple, it is needless to say the Buddhism and the Taoism, they all seem tiny and remote in the huge bosom of Xuebaoding, and time seems to be able to change them in a wink of an eye. Only the Xuebaoding is white and lofty as before, and quietly enjoys the vicissitudes of life.