Going up the river valley from Shawan about 4 kilometers, you will see a bridge that crosses the Pitiao River. Opposite to the bridge, a path will lead you to the northwest of the hill. Crop fields disappear; what takes their place are shrubberies and sapling forest, in which sheep and goats moving here and there. Still going upper, shrubberies become thicker and thicker, and Huju bamboos come into your sight. Climbing up a spur, you will find the path become even; then you are in the territory of Chushuigou. Winding along the hills in the forest, the path leads to the "51 Station," which was built in May, 1978 at an altitude of 2520 meters.

Chushuigou includes almost all the drainage basin inside a hillcrest, whose highest place is Qitouyan with an altitude of 3624 meters. The total area is 35 square kilometers, including mixed forests of coniferous and broadleaved deciduous trees below an altitude of 2600 meters, and coniferous forests still below the mixed forests. In the area grows large areas of bamboos that are edible to giant pandas that often appear there. This is perhaps why Chushuigou frequently appears in literature and materials about the giant panda.

Field Work is undoubtedly very hard; but in an optimistic manner, our researchers went through all the difficulties in the wild. Let us have a look at excerpts taken from the book Giant Panda in Wolong:
November is a month of transition: broadleaved trees almost all became bald, and the ground was covered with brown and yellow leaves. After a whole night's frosting, the leaves made crisp, clear sounds when my feet touched upon them - I felt quite refreshed. The lasting mist and fog of summer disappeared totally; the whether was fine and then it snowed. The snow soon melted; but as time went on, the east slope and northeast slope had thick snow. In December, winter came.

...April is full of life and energy. Azaleas - even some not so shining flowers - began to blossom.
...In late April, bamboo shoots of the Huju bamboo came out of the ground.
...In May, ground leeches also began to show their faces.
...In October, the leaves of trees became golden, then red. The first snow announced the coming of winter.

Local Wolong People are Simple and Kind-hearted
Teach the Public How to Conserve Local Environment