A dreamlike blaze of autumn color has swept across Baishi Mountain in north China's Hebei Province, with visitors streaming up into the flaming woods and creating one of the year's most breathtaking sights.
Inside the Baishi Mountain World Geological Park, a national tourist attraction, red birch, maple, smoke tree and Mongolian oak are turning color at altitudes of 1,600 to 2,000 meters. Together, they weave crimson, warm yellow and emerald green through the rugged peaks and ridges.
To enrich the autumn experience, the scenic area has expanded its cloud-top offerings, the most popular being a 7-kilometer skywalk built along the cliff face. Winding through the forested slopes, it gives tourists a panoramic view of the mountainside, with deep valleys stretching below.
The display has left a strong impression on those who made the journey.
"I came specifically to see the red leaves, and it was truly worth the trip," said Li Hongyu, a visitor from Beijing.
Red leaves reach peak viewing season at north China's Baishi Mountain
A grassroots official from Gari Village in Ya'an City of southwest China's Sichuan Province has led locals to conquer immense difficulties to build a road at an altitude of 4,000 meters, turning the once-isolated community into a thriving tourist destination, paving the way towards a prosperous life.
This is a story from a China Global Television Network (CGTN) documentary titled "4,000m Altitude: They Built a Road Straight to the Sky".
Due to its extreme altitude, Gari Village lacked a proper road more than a decade ago, forcing residents to hike in and out on foot.
Refusing to let his village remain cut off from the world, Asheng, the local Party chief, made it his mission to change their fate. Mobilizing the villagers, he led them in overcoming immense geographical and logistical hurdles to finally carve a road through the high-altitude terrain.
The road opened the gates to Dawagengzha, a stunning natural attraction whose name translates to "magic mountain" in the Tibetan language. As word of this natural wonder spread, tourists began to arrive. However, a new challenge quickly emerged: the village lacked hotels and other tourism infrastructure, meaning visitors couldn't stay overnight.
Recognizing the bottleneck, Asheng took the initiative once again, converting his own house into the village's first homestay.
Seeing the success of Asheng's venture, hesitant villagers quickly followed suit.
Today, Gari Village is home to 158 distinctive homestays, forming a thriving hospitality cluster known as "Cloud Dawagengzha". Campsites, inns, and wooden cabins now dot the mountain landscape.
In 2024, the village welcomed over one million tourist arrivals, generating a revenue of 120 million yuan (about 17.94 million U.S. dollars). The momentum has only continued to grow. During the autumn foliage season in 2025, the village recorded an average weekly tourism revenue exceeding 1.5 million yuan.
Looking ahead, Asheng said he will continue to explore ways to improve the lives of his fellow villagers.
The documentary is part of CGTN's "Breaking Through" series, which traces China's journey from the historic Long March to its modern-day achievements, highlighting the resilience, ingenuity, and determination of its people.
Building road at 4,000m, grassroots official leads locals to prosperity: documentary
