The Most Daring Terraced Fields Star Trail Photography Guide

Today, let's stand at Yunnan's most breathtaking "Earth Cliff"—the Laohuzui Terraced Fields! 📍Located in Mengpin Village, Xinjie Town, Yuanyang County, Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan Province, at the core of the southern section of the Ailao Mountains, with an altitude of 1800 meters. It is the steepest, most dramatic, and sharpest light-and-shadow viewing spot among the Hani Terraces World Cultural Heritage. Unlike the gentle Duoyishu or the expansive Bada, it cleaves the ridge with nearly vertical boldness: 1,200 steps of terraces plunge straight from the mountain peak to the valley floor, with a height difference of over 600 meters and slopes as steep as 75°, like a giant beast opening its mouth, swallowing clouds and exhaling mist. At dawn, the terraces fill with the light of the sky, turning the entire hillside into flowing liquid gold; when the sea of clouds surges, the ridges appear as silver lines floating on the waves, occasionally a Hani grandmother wearing an indigo headscarf and carrying a bamboo basket wanders through, like ink spots drifting in the clouds; half an hour before sunset, the "fiery clouds" pour down, instantly melting the terraces into molten gold and forging fire, reflecting the blazing sky—at that moment, the earth truly burns. Itinerary: 1-day Laohuzui · Cliff Spectrum Chronicle | Sunrise Watch + Rice Farming Handcraft + Long Street Banquet + Star Trail Meditation Total Budget: 395 RMB (strictly controlled under 400 RMB) Transportation｜¥60 Motorbike taxi from Xinjie Town, Yuanyang to Laohuzui Viewing Platform (30 minutes) ¥45｜Round trip ¥60✅ (6:00 AM departure, includes guide service) Tickets｜¥0 ✅Viewing platform is free｜Only motorbike taxi fee includes guide service (can explain the Hani "Angma Tu" festival and rice god legend) Highlights｜Be a Terraced Field Light Adjuster! ✅ Dawn Light Watch (6:00–7:30): Wrap up in a thick coat and squat by the east cliff edge, watch the sea of clouds split open the first golden seam, light blades cut through the terraces step by step, shoot "overflowing light steps" time-lapse (phone tripod essential) ✅ Afternoon Rice Farming Handcraft (10:30–12:00): Next to the viewing platform at a Hani family home, use red rice, black rice, and glutinous rice to create a "miniature terraced field map" (master teaches ancient fabric dyeing for the border), finished product framed in wood to take home ✅ Long Street Banquet Simple Meal (13:00–14:30): Sit in a bamboo shed at the village entrance, taste Hani dipping chicken, fennel boiled eggs, purple rice wine, roasted bamboo shoots, listen to elders beat wooden drums and sing "Four Seasons Production Tune" ✅ Star Trail Meditation (19:30–20:30): Wait for the Milky Way to descend the ridge, wrap in a blanket and sit quietly on the cliff platform, use phone slow shutter to capture star trails passing over the terraced curves—no DSLR needed, tripod + night mode works perfectly. Meals｜¥335 - Long Street Banquet Simple Meal ¥68｜Rice Farming Handcraft Materials ¥42｜Purple Rice Wine ¥12｜Fennel Boiled Egg ¥10｜Roasted Bamboo Shoots ¥8｜Hani Dipping Sauce Pack (includes chili paste/mint/wild pepper) ¥15｜Miniature Terraced Field Map Wooden Frame ¥28｜Wooden Drum Recording USB ¥18｜Star Trail Teaching Booklet (hand-drawn) ¥10｜Hani Indigo Handkerchief (same style as headscarf) ¥12｜Red Rice Tea Sample Gift Box ¥20｜Terrace Stone Pattern Bookmark ¥8｜Bamboo Tube Thermos Rental ¥12 ✅Total Expense Breakdown: Transportation ¥60 + Meals ¥335 = ¥395 (Balance ¥5 can be exchanged for a Laohuzui cliff stone rubbing postcard) ✅Must-choose Time Slot: Arrive before 6:00 AM｜Secure an unobstructed east cliff spot｜Highest chance of sea of clouds｜Richest light layers｜Avoid tourist peak after 9:00 AM Essentials: Windproof thick coat (bone-chilling cliff wind at dawn), soft-soled non-slip shoes (wet stone steps), power bank (night photography drains battery), cash (only cash accepted in the village), small folding stool (to avoid fatigue from long squatting) Hidden Gem: Bring an excerpt of the "Hani Rice Farming Calendar," and at the base of the third wooden post on the west side of the viewing platform, find the Hani old farmer’s carved "Year of the Rabbit Spring Plowing" pictogram (shaped like a crescent moon holding rice ears) When the first light cleaves the sea of clouds, I suddenly understand— This is not a medal of humanity conquering nature, but a gentle contract signed by the Hani people with a thousand years of patience, dialoguing with the mountains, making agreements with the water, and dancing with the light.