Spring Flowers and Wild Vegetables

T he spring of Shennongjia comes later than that of the city.Different from the artificially manicured green plants and the potted plants that are scraped together,the spring here is more wild and unbridled.Suddenly,flowers bloom in the mountains,and the birds are humming altogether;the vigorous and upright firs,the quaint and fragrant cypresses,and the flickering phoenix trees:they all see off the cold winter.

No matter what season it is,the Peak of Shennongjia is a must-see place.The scenes here have all kinds of magnificent beauties.The bamboos grow,the firs stand,the cuckoos bloom splendidly,and the evergreens stay for all the seasons.When one ascends to the top,viewing the fascinating clouds,they will at once understand and never forget Du Fu’s heroic sentiments of “overlooking all hills from the highest mountain top.”

Azaleas start a new cycle of life in spring.In Golden Monkey Ridge, Xiaolongtan,Dalongtan,and other places in the habitat,the blooming rhododendrons decorate the tall and dense forests more beautifully and bring visitors a visual feast.On the hillside,there are stripes of new green and clusters of red“clouds.” The spring water sizzles, the butterflies dance in the valley,and the bees send a burst of buzz,inviting the visitors to stop and hang around.

In addition to the rhododendron sea,the nationally first-class protected animals,Golden Snub-nosed Monkeys,are happy to embrace the arrival of spring.They are in tune with the spirit of the forest—eating and stalking the green leaves on the branches,unafraid of human beings,creating a picture of harmony.

The wild rhododendron forests in the slab rock, the spurred rhododendrons in the Tianyan scenic spots, and the white rhododendrons are all spring wonders.You should also go to the rainbow bridge to appreciate the rhododendron sea,which will make you feel the dreamy magic and the broadness of nature,growing more and more unconscious of the time.

At sunset,if you have not appreciated enough of the beautiful scenery,it is a great pleasure to enjoy dishes such as fried mountain flowers and spring sprouts,as well as the local“Shennongjia wine.”When you are all in high spirits and eventually go home,you will probably feel this is the life you’ve been pursuing.

杜鵑爭艷(冉 超攝)Alpine azalea blossoming on the mountains(Photo by Ran Chao)

春花浪漫，野菜飄香

神農架的春天比城市要來得晚一些，不同于人工修剪整齊的綠植和生拼硬湊出來的盆栽花景，這里大自然的春來得狂野、奔放。一時間，群山萬花初放，百鳥齊鳴；蒼勁挺拔的冷杉、古樸郁香的巖柏、雍容華貴的娑羅、風度翩翩的珙桐，都抖落了冬的怏然。

無論春夏秋冬，神農頂自然是要去的。這里風貌頗具靈韻，集秀美恢弘于一身，融萬種風情為一體，箭竹叢生，冷杉林立，杜鵑吐艷，松柏常青。登神農頂，觀云霧奇觀，頗有幾分“會當凌絕頂，一覽眾山小”的豪邁，讓人熱血沸騰，終生難忘。

每年春天，杜鵑花開始新的生命周期，位于棲息地內的金猴嶺、小龍潭、大龍潭等地，綻放的杜鵑花把高大濃密的原始森林點綴得更加絢爛美麗。山坡上，一片片新綠與一團團紅云交相輝映；山谷里，泉水叮咚，彩蝶翩飛，蜜蜂嚶嗡。如此美妙的視聽盛宴，游客紛紛駐足流連。

除了杜鵑花海，金絲猴也喜迎春的到來。它們是原始森林中的精靈，邊嬉戲打鬧邊采食樹枝上的嫩芽綠葉，人來不驚，越發活潑，好一幅和諧的自然畫卷。

板壁巖大片的野生杜鵑林、天燕景區盛開毛肋杜鵑、粉白杜鵑都是春天奇觀，還要去彩虹橋上放眼杜鵑花海，更會讓人虛實不分，不知身在何處，忘卻時間，只是感受大自然的神奇與博大。

待日薄西山之時，游興未盡，回到住處，邀三五個好友，炒幾盤山花，佐幾碟春芽菜，和著一壺“神農架酒”，三杯兩盞，微醉而歸。如此養生，夫復何求？

行云流水(潘建翔攝)Clouds flowing like a river(Photo by Pan Jianxiang)