Hiking photos - Zhangye, May 2011

We spotted a rainbow as we started hiking on the first day.

Taking a break amongst the colourful hills and valleys.

The colours are almost unbelievable!

We took a break to do a group shot.

More of the colourful hills.

Hikers with Yanjing.

These are the flowers of Suoyang, a root with medicinal properties.

A huge rock formation in the Zhangye's Binggou.

We had a fit group of hikers, and were able to do more trekking than originally planned – always a good thing!

The coloration gives way to regular hills.

Over time, the rock has been weathered by rain and wind, making strange shapes.

We hiked up to a lookout.

One of our group took a break from hiking to ride a camel.

We went hunting for interesting rocks, hoping to find some jade.

More hiking.

A spectacular view of the stunning colours.

A weirdly-weathered rock outcrop.

A group shot at a look out

Rock formations.

Another type of flower.

The Great Wall at Jiayuguan.

The group at the Jiayuguan Great Wall.

We visited a museum that had exhibits about the history of the Jiayuguan area.

Not sure what this is, but it looks like fun if you’re mouse-sized.