What are the fun things to do in Naqin Peninsula

I received a call from a friend on the weekend, asking if I was interested in going on a cycling trip around the island, starting from Naqin Peninsula in Jiangmen City. I immediately perked up and readily agreed. I have always loved the seaside, where the boundless ocean can at least help me cast away all the troubles that weigh on my mind.

I am captivated by the sound of the waves, a sound that can truly relax one’s mind, like the background music in alpha wave memory music – a remedy for headaches. As I was hiking, I focused on the path beneath my feet and taking photos, so I did not really appreciate the beautiful scenery. Now, looking back at the photos on my phone, I truly feel that it was such a waste not to simply have a good time at this place that is as beautiful as a fairyland.

This hike was a little rushed, and the location was quite far away. The entire trip took more than 7 hours, including the return journey. The hiking route includes 5 beaches, 4 mountains, and took more than 5 hours to complete.

The journey was so long, but the car was incredibly old. When I woke up from my slumber, we had almost reached our destination in Jiangmen. The car passed a vast expanse of paddy fields, stretching as far as the eye could see, like the ocean. However, after I saw the real ocean, I realized that the two were quite different. The paddy fields were still and calm, and they looked like a giant mirror from the car window, with the ridges separating one mirror from another.

We arrived at our destination at 12 noon. According to our plan, we were supposed to hike over a mountain to reach the first beach within an hour, and then we could start eating lunch. The leader of the group was a little anxious, because the plan was to reach the destination at 11:30 am and have lunch at 12:30 pm, but now we were half an hour late. At the beginning of the trail, I walked ahead with the leader. He was rushing forward with the group in front, and I slowly followed behind, taking photos every now and then. Gradually, I fell behind.

Giant boulders protruded from the mountainside along the way.

I really like the scenery in the mountains. Looking up, you could see lush greenery covering the rolling hills, with giant boulders protruded from the mountainside along the way, which stood out despite the foliage, making them appear to have so much personality. There were some white, red, and yellow flowers in the bushes along the way, and some bushes were laden with heavy, ripe wild berries. As a flower lover, I couldn’t resist going up to them and taking a close-up shot of these uniquely shaped flowers. My teammates teased me, “Don’t pick the wildflowers along the way.” This was something the leader said on the bus, because hikers should be environmentally friendly, and we should leave these wildflowers for others to enjoy.

There were some white, red, and yellow flowers in the bushes along the way.

We hiked for almost an hour, breathing in the fresh mountain air and admiring the deep green hues of the mountains. I didn’t feel tired at all. At a bend in the mountain, we heard gasps of amazement. We saw the ocean. The sea and the sky were the same color. It was an overcast day, with clouds covering the sky. The sea and the clouds were the same shade of blue, and the white waves seemed to be part of the white clouds. The sea, sky, and white clouds were all one, creating an illusion – I felt like I was in the mountains, with the mountains like fairy islands floating in the air. Looking up, all I saw was sky and clouds, and looking down, I saw an endless expanse of blue sky.

We walked across a tin plank bridge and soon reached the first beach. Sitting on the soft, clean sand, we started enjoying the snacks we brought with us. We stayed at this beach for the longest time. After lunch, some of my teammates were busy taking photos, some changed into their swimsuits and went swimming, some went into the mountains to get some vines to weave into flower wreaths to wear on their heads, and some wrote their names on the soft, wet sand.

After resting, we packed up and set off. We climbed a slope, and looking back at this beautiful beach, we realized that there was another beach further out. The scene was simply beautiful, and we were reluctant to leave.

I only realized what climbing a mountain meant when we started to climb the second mountain. This path was still in its early stages of development, with yellow soil covered in fine sand. The path was slippery if the soles of your shoes didn’t have deep grooves, and I was one of those who found the path slippery. Luckily, although the path was made for people to walk on, water also liked to flow on it, leaving one or two traces of streams that were uneven and didn’t have any fine sand, which helped those of us with slippery shoes.

Climbing up is scary because of the slippery surface, but going down is even scarier. I wasn’t wearing hiking shoes, and I didn’t bring a hiking stick, so I was definitely dragging everyone behind. Many people passed me and walked ahead. I saw many slopes that I dared not go down, so I hesitated at the top, feeling very afraid. I was afraid that if I accidentally slipped, I would slide all the way down from the top, get hurt, and end up limping. I would really become a burden to the group. Wearing slippery shoes on steep mountain slopes, I slipped more than once, which made me jumpy, but I gathered my courage and went down each slope that I considered difficult. The feeling of my heart racing during moments of danger was exhilarating.

I was emboldened by the help of my teammates. At many difficult spots, I could always see them reaching out to help someone cross. A kind young man even lent me an umbrella to use as a walking stick. With the umbrella, the downhill path became easier, although I was still the “roadblock,” and the people behind me were all walking faster than me. I carefully watched the path ahead and walked cautiously, so nervous that my soles started to cramp. My phone was in my pocket, but I had no time to take photos of these treacherous paths. I had to concentrate on walking. A girl behind me suddenly slipped. She ran past me and rushed down the slope, ahead of me. Luckily, a guy grabbed her, and luckily, she didn’t fall onto me. If she had fallen onto me, I would have surely face-planted into the soil and eaten dirt! I was so moved by her actions. She took all the risk on herself and didn’t harm anyone else. If she had fallen onto me, she wouldn’t have been at risk. I know that in our society, most people would choose to shift the danger to others when something happens.

Near the second beach, there were people living there. Standing on the slope, we gazed out at this beautiful beach. In the distance, we saw cows, chickens, and a little house facing the sea. The last section of downhill was particularly steep. We met two local people walking towards us. One was wearing slippers, and the other was wearing rain boots. They were walking as if they were on flat ground. At that time, I was still cautiously stepping on the depressions left by the flowing streams, afraid of slipping. Seeing their “equipment,” I was stunned. How could someone walk on a giant, steep slope with slippers so steadily? I talked about this with the technical leader when we returned. She said, “Those local people are the real outdoor experts.”

This beach had a lighter color, perhaps because there was a layer of yellow sand underneath, so the seawater was light blue. There were many large rocks, with some seaweed growing on them. Some of the larger rocks had formed small pools because they were concave. I saw a snail moving around inside one of them. The yellow sand, the giant rocks, and the light blue beach made this a great place to take wedding photos.

The third beach was a little smaller, so we sat by the side to enjoy the sea breeze and take a short break. The fourth beach had a different shade of blue, and there was a small pit in front of the beach, filled with green water. The fifth beach was black, which made it look less beautiful. My teammates complained that each beach was getting worse, but this black beach was the most vibrant. The black sand was mixed with soil, and there were many small holes, which housed small crabs. The entire beach was full of these small crab holes. A couple came with their child to play, carrying a small bucket and chopsticks. They dug into the sand, and a crab would run out with each scoop.

After walking all day, I felt really tired on the way back. The elderly people who joined us were still full of energy, which made me admire them. After we got back, I followed the technical leader’s advice and applied a cold compress of diluted salt water to my face, and I also soaked my feet in diluted salt water mixed with ginger water. The next day, my after-effects weren’t so bad. My calves didn’t feel sore at all.