Tonglu - The Last Quiet Place in Jiangnan | 2-Day Deep Slow Travel Guide

I'm Deepseek, a traveler who loves the silent small villages, bamboo forests, creek sounds, and curling tea smoke hidden in the folds of Jiangnan's mountains and waters. This time, I bring you — "Tonglu Slow Book" | A Hidden Retreat by the Fuchun River | Stay in the Ink Painting of Huang Gongwang | 2-Day Deep Slow Travel Guide | Avoid the Crowds | Photo Spots | Secret Places Known Only to Locals. This is not just a travel guide, but an invitation letter to you who want to "temporarily withdraw from the world." --- Tonglu · Why is it the last quiet place in Jiangnan? > "The peaks rise clear and extraordinary, the streams are deep and beautiful." > — Yuan Dynasty painter Huang Gongwang, "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains" real scene location - ✅ Prototype location of "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains": 600 years ago Huang Gongwang lived here in seclusion and painted a scroll that captures the soul of Jiangnan - ✅ Fuchun River runs through the entire area: clear blue water, green mountains on both sides like ink wash, boats drifting like poetry - ✅ Ancient villages scattered like stars: Shen'ao, Dipu, Maoping... hiding Ming and Qing architecture and clan memories - ✅ A paradise for light hiking: Luzhi Bay Greenway, Baiyun Source Trail, Heling Ancient Path, all picturesque - ✅ Convenient transportation but extremely slow pace: 1 hour by high-speed train to Hangzhou, yet it feels like stepping back to the 1980s > Here, time is not for "rushing," > but for "soaking" — > like a cup of Longjing tea, slowly unfolding, quietly sweet aftertaste. --- Recommended itinerary: 2 days 1 night | Immersive mountain living experience > ⚠️ Don’t be a one-day tourist, rushing to check in at Yan Ziling Fishing Terrace and leaving. > My suggestion: stay in a riverside or mountain homestay, listen to birds in the morning, watch stars at night, truly slow down. --- Day 1: Arrive in Tonglu → Fuchun River cycling → Ancient village stroll → Mountain stay overnight Morning: Arrive at Tonglu Station by high-speed train - about 40 minutes from Hangzhou, about 2 hours from Shanghai - Take a taxi/rent a car to Fuchun River Town or Luzhi Village (about 30 minutes) - 📍 Navigation: "Luzhi Village" or "Daijiashan Village · Yunxi Mountain Residence" Noon: Check in at a mountain or riverside homestay 💡 Selection criteria: - Not a chain hotel, but a small courtyard with the spirit of the owner - Open the window to see mountains, hear streams, smell tea fragrance ✅ Private recommendations: - "Guoyun Mountain Residence · Tonglu Branch" | Glass house on a cliff, often surrounded by clouds and mist, private hot spring in the room - "Moling · Half Mountain" | Converted from an old house, courtyard full of plants, the owner brews handmade tea - "Luzhi Earthen House" | Original ecological rammed earth dwelling, experience making soy milk and cooking with firewood stove Afternoon: Cycle along the Fuchun River Greenway → Stroll in Shen'ao Ancient Village ♀️ Route: Luzhi Village → Greenway near Yan Ziling Fishing Terrace → Shen'ao Ancient Village - Rent a bike (available from homestays), cycle along the Fuchun River - River breeze on your face, green mountains reflected in the water, occasional fishing boats passing by - Photo tips: low angle to shoot wheels + water reflection, wear white dress or linen shirt Arrive at Shen'ao Ancient Village (free!) - Built in the Southern Song Dynasty, 800 years old, layout like a maze - Highlights: - Underground water system "Aokou": village channels bring water, warm in winter and cool in summer - Ming and Qing old houses: carved gate towers, mossy courtyards, horse-head wall silhouettes - Quiet and empty: very few tourists, perfect for capturing cultural still shots 💡 Tips: Find a tea house in the village (like "Old Street Tea Shop"), drink a cup of local green tea, sunbathe and daydream for two hours. --- Day 2: Morning mist boat ride → Baiyun Source light hike → Return trip 6:00 AM: Wake up, enjoy the deserted riverbank alone - Open the door to mountain views, thin mist floating on the river like ink stains on rice paper - Walk to the riverside dock, watch fishermen haul nets, egrets skim the water flying Morning: Take a Wupeng boat ride on the Fuchun River (a must-try!) - Location: Maoping Village dock or upper Luzhi Bay - Time: 7:00–9:00 (best morning light and shadows) - Boatwoman poles the boat slowly through bamboo-lined banks, you will believe — Huang Gongwang’s painting was not imagination, but the real world he woke up to every day. > 📸 Photo tips: > - Wear Hanfu or plain long dress, sit at the stern, silhouette + distant mountains = cinematic feel > - Use telephoto lens to compress space, highlight layers of mountains and water Optional itinerary: light hike at Baiyun Source or Heling Ancient Path Recommended: Baiyun Source (better for photographers) - Low altitude, well-maintained trail, about 3 hours total - Highlights: - Thousand-foot waterfall (large water flow in summer) - Bamboo forest path - High viewing platform overlooking the S-shaped bend of Fuchun River Or choose Heling Ancient Path (more cultural atmosphere) - Trade route since Tang and Song dynasties, well-preserved stone slab road - Pass by century-old pavilions, wild tea trees, abandoned village houses - Suitable for shooting "lonely traveler" artistic photos Noon: Have an authentic farmhouse meal in Dipu Village - Recommended restaurant: "Niulan Coffee + Flower Sea Canteen" - Niulan is a renovated coffee shop, next to a thousand-acre flower field - Must-order farmhouse dishes: - Asparagus stir-fried with cured meat (spring seasonal) - Stone pot tofu casserole (made with mountain spring water) - Fermented rice steamed buns (sweet but not greasy) --- 📸 Photo guide | Travel blogger’s secret spots | Scene | Spot suggestions | Outfit recommendations ||------|----------|----------|| Fuchun River morning mist | On the Wupeng boat early morning, low angle shooting reflections | Hanfu, white dress, bamboo hat || Shen'ao Ancient Village | Courtyard looking up at horse-head walls + sky | Plain cotton-linen, Republic of China style || Greenway cycling | Close to water surface shooting wheels | Sportswear + straw hat || Baiyun Source waterfall | Wide-angle panoramic shot, person in foreground | Outdoor style || Niulan Coffee | Sitting at the bar, background flower field and old cattle shed | Artistic casual style |> 📷 Equipment suggestions: - Phone + waterproof bag (for near water shooting) - Camera + 24-70mm zoom lens (general landscape) + 50mm prime lens (portrait) - Tripod (for time-lapse/night shots) --- Travel blogger’s whisper: The most moving thing about Tonglu is not how beautiful the scenery is, but that it lets you **learn to breathe again**. Here, no one rushes you to update, like, or reply to messages. You just need to: sit by the river waiting for the mist to clear, watch children catch fish in the creek, listen to an elder say, "We were like this when we were kids too." At that moment, you will understand — the so-called "poetic dwelling" is just finding back a life rhythm that should have been yours. --- 📌 Practical information - 📍 Navigation: - Homestay locations: "Luzhi Village," "Daijiashan Village," "Shen'ao Ancient Village" - 🚄 High-speed train: Hangzhou East Station → Tonglu Station (about 40 minutes) - 🎫 Tickets: - Most ancient villages are free - Baiyun Source Scenic Area: 60 RMB - Yan Ziling Fishing Terrace: 60 RMB (optional) - ⏰ Best seasons: - March–May: spring tea new green, rapeseed flowers bloom - June–August: summer resort, cool creek water - September–November: crisp autumn, golden rice fields - 🧳 Suggested items to bring: - Comfortable hiking shoes - Mosquito repellent (many insects in the forest) - A leisure book (bring it to finish reading) --- I'm Deepseek, a traveler always searching for "places that can calm people down." Next stop, which mountain and water do you want to hide in? 🍃 Follow me, and I'll take you into the gentlest and most authentic distant places in China.