China - Silk Road 03 - Rainbow Rocks
Danxia Rainbow Rocks are what happen when you take hundreds of metres deep of tightly packed rock layers, paint each a different colour, then bend, shape and sculpt it all into a fantastical landscape.
It was a challenge to get here from Mati Si - I tried navigating rural bus-vans in the most direct way possible. In hindsight, it would have been easier to go all the way back to Zhangye and go from there, but then where's the adventure in that?
There is an "Eco Park" here, you can't wander around the rocks (probably a good thing, they'd get wrecked soon enough), instead there is an electric bus route that you can get off and visit viewing platforms. There's nothing stopping you from walking along the bus route in the more interesting sections, though uniformed officials kept blowing whistles at me for doing so. Just do it and enjoy the scenery at your own pace.
There were some electrical storms kicking off on the surrounding mountains, making for some wonderful lighting as the sun poked between blackening clouds.
To the east, at the foot of a block of mountains, another area could be seen outside of the park. Probably worth a visit if you really want some free exploration away from the controls of the park. For me, time to head back to the train east - plenty to pack in to my 30 day visa.