china guy
A taff living in Sichuan
Sorry John - I missed your post asking for JZ info - and although you've already traveled through, here's a few words on that park.
The first thing is that unless you're really interested in Rufous-headed Robin then it can be challenging and testing destination for any birder.
The first problem is the recent price hike that means tickets are now only sold on a one day entry basis (before you bought the ticket for 2 days) - this almost doubles the entry price to the park ( they're selling a day ticket for 220RMB + 90RMB for the park bus - a whacking 310RMB/day).
The second is the time restriction on being able to bird the park - you can get on a park bus earliest at 7.30 - meaning birding will start after 8.00 - the latest you can be in the park is around 5.00 - and security are already bussing people out of the the end of road destinations like primeval forest by 16.00!!!!
The increase in security - these guys are dressed in ties and black nylon suites, making them look like a parody of the mafia - makes overnighting in the park extremely difficult.
Rh Robin is to be found on at least a couple of "banned to the public" off the official boardwalk tracks - but too many birders getting caught stumbling along these routes will probably result in fences or some other preventative measures!!!!! Our one day visit during rain gave us A female Rh Robin - loads of Indian Blue Robin, Spectacled Parrotbill, Chinese Nuthatch, Three-banded Rosefinch and remeber the Spectacled Fulvetta that can be found in the scrub on hillsides outside the park area.
For those who enjoy a quiet unspoiled type of nature - the crowds at JZ can be frightening - 30,000/day in the peak season (at the new prices that's 9 million RMB/day). However most of the visitors stick to the famous sites and there are still areas where you can avoid them.
JZ is of a quality that makes a visit a interesting if expensive experience - but if you'd ever want to make a return trip is a whole other matter!!!!!!
I'm afraid we didn't take any good pics on our wet JZ day - but a pic of rainy Chestnut Thrush from another damp destination just about sums up our birding that day!!!!!!!
The first thing is that unless you're really interested in Rufous-headed Robin then it can be challenging and testing destination for any birder.
The first problem is the recent price hike that means tickets are now only sold on a one day entry basis (before you bought the ticket for 2 days) - this almost doubles the entry price to the park ( they're selling a day ticket for 220RMB + 90RMB for the park bus - a whacking 310RMB/day).
The second is the time restriction on being able to bird the park - you can get on a park bus earliest at 7.30 - meaning birding will start after 8.00 - the latest you can be in the park is around 5.00 - and security are already bussing people out of the the end of road destinations like primeval forest by 16.00!!!!
The increase in security - these guys are dressed in ties and black nylon suites, making them look like a parody of the mafia - makes overnighting in the park extremely difficult.
Rh Robin is to be found on at least a couple of "banned to the public" off the official boardwalk tracks - but too many birders getting caught stumbling along these routes will probably result in fences or some other preventative measures!!!!! Our one day visit during rain gave us A female Rh Robin - loads of Indian Blue Robin, Spectacled Parrotbill, Chinese Nuthatch, Three-banded Rosefinch and remeber the Spectacled Fulvetta that can be found in the scrub on hillsides outside the park area.
For those who enjoy a quiet unspoiled type of nature - the crowds at JZ can be frightening - 30,000/day in the peak season (at the new prices that's 9 million RMB/day). However most of the visitors stick to the famous sites and there are still areas where you can avoid them.
JZ is of a quality that makes a visit a interesting if expensive experience - but if you'd ever want to make a return trip is a whole other matter!!!!!!
I'm afraid we didn't take any good pics on our wet JZ day - but a pic of rainy Chestnut Thrush from another damp destination just about sums up our birding that day!!!!!!!
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