Midui Glacier is located in the upper reaches of the Midui River, which is a secondary tributary of the lower Yarlung Zangbo River. It joins the Parlung Zangbo River on its southern bank at the 84km road maintenance station along the Sichuan-Tibet Highway.
The glacier is close to the Sichuan-Tibet Highway, large in scale, and easily accessible, making it a typical representative of maritime glaciers in southeastern Tibet. It is known for its well-developed and beautiful arch structures, which are a rare natural wonder. The area features a harmonious blend of glaciers, lakes, farmlands, villages, and forests, exemplifying the coexistence of humans and nature and making it an excellent tourist destination.
Situated in Yupu Township of Bomi County, Midui Glacier is 103 kilometers from the county seat and 8 kilometers from National Highway 318. The nearest village is only 2 kilometers away. It is Tibet’s most important maritime glacier. The main peak of the glacier has an elevation of 6,800 meters, with a snow line at just 4,600 meters.
The glacier shimmers with snow year-round, presenting a magical and enchanting scenery. The ice is pure as jade, with diverse and captivating formations. The lower end of the glacier is covered with mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forests, creating a stunning contrast of year-round snow and evergreen forests.
Due to the relatively warm temperatures on the ice surface, the glacier is home to various microorganisms, including ice worms and snow fleas. Influenced by the climate of the eastern Himalayas, Midui Glacier, despite being located at 29° north latitude, has a lower temperature at its terminus than glaciers on Bogda Mountain at around 44° north latitude. This is a rather unusual phenomenon among China’s modern glaciers.
Visitors to Midui Glacier should be aware of and take precautions against altitude sickness. It is recommended to bring altitude sickness prevention products.
The glacier is located in Mimei and Midui villages of Yupu Township, Bomi County, about 90 kilometers from the county seat in Zhamu Town. The main peak of Midui Glacier is at 6,800 meters above sea level, with a snow line at 4,600 meters and its terminus at just 2,400 meters. The lower section of the glacier passes through a mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forest zone, making it one of Tibet’s most important maritime glaciers.
Midui Glacier is formed by world-class ice waterfalls, each over 800 meters high and 1,000 meters wide, with a patch of pristine forest between the two waterfalls. The surrounding area is filled with wildflowers and lush forests. As one of Tibet’s primary monsoon maritime glaciers and one of China’s three major maritime glaciers, it offers a unique spectacle.
The glacier’s location at 29° north latitude, with its terminus lower than that of the Bogda Mountain glacier at nearly 44° north latitude, is a special phenomenon among China’s modern glaciers and is closely related to the climate of the southeastern Himalayas.
On October 23, 2005, the ranking of “China’s Most Beautiful Places” was released in Beijing. This event, organized by “China National Geography” magazine and co-sponsored by 34 media partners across the country, was an eight-month-long selection process. The awards were divided into three categories: “Expert and Academic Group,” “Media Group,” and “Online and Mobile Popularity Group.” Both the Media and Popularity groups each selected 12 winning locations through media voting and public voting via the internet and mobile phones, respectively.
The “Expert and Academic Group” award, prominently featured by China National Geography magazine, was uniquely categorized into 15 types: mountains, lakes, forests, grasslands, deserts, yardang landforms, islands, coasts, waterfalls, glaciers, canyons, urban areas, rural ancient towns, tourist caves, and swamps and wetlands. Among these, Midui Glacier was named one of “China’s Six Most Beautiful Glaciers.”
Midui Glacier is located at the junction of the Nyainqêntanglha Mountains and the Boshula Range in southeastern Tibet, which is the distribution area of China’s largest monsoon maritime glaciers. These mountain ranges form a series of southeast-trending high mountains. The southwest monsoon from the Indian Ocean can travel northward along the Yarlung Tsangpo and Chayu River valleys, penetrating deep into this series of high mountains and bringing abundant precipitation. As a result, a magnificent glacier – the Midui Glacier – was born around a 6,385-meter snow peak behind a Tibetan village called Midui.
Midui is a place named after a glacier, located about 100 kilometers east of Bomi County in Tibet’s Nyingchi region. The lower section of the glacier passes through a mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forest zone, making it one of Tibet’s most important maritime glaciers.
After leaving the Sichuan-Tibet Highway and crossing the newly built bridge over the Parlung Zangbo River, visitors encounter a canyon with sheer cliffs on both sides. The village road along the small river can only accommodate one vehicle at a time. After a few more kilometers, a vast expanse of valley suddenly appears. In the distance, two spectacular ice waterfalls hang between snow-capped peaks and forests, resembling two enormous silver screens descending from the sky.
To get up close to Midui Glacier, one must hike through colorful forests and cross three terminal moraines left by glacial movement. Upon reaching the third terminal moraine, an ice lake comes into view. At the other end of the lake, there is a broken glacier tongue about two meters wide and dozens of meters high, emitting a soft blue light. The ice waterfall cascading from the sky gleams silver in the sunlight, with its nearly 800-meter drop causing a sense of vertigo. The cold wind blowing from the glacier hits one’s face, sending chills even under the intense sunlight.
The spectacular ice waterfall phenomenon only occurs on glaciers with abundant replenishment and rapid melting. If melting is too fast and replenishment insufficient, the ice waterfall would be interrupted, forming a “hanging glacier.” Conversely, if replenishment is too rapid and melting too slow, snow and ice would bury the cliff. Midui Glacier is a “balanced” and dynamic glacier with harmonious replenishment and melting rates.
At the foot of Midui Glacier lies a Tibetan village called Midui, which belongs to Yupu Township in Bomi County, Nyingchi Prefecture, Tibet. Due to its low altitude and warm, rainy climate, the village is surrounded by fertile farmland and dense forests. Most Tibetan houses are two-story wooden structures, with half of the second floor serving as a drying terrace. These terraces are filled with wooden poles laden with harvested wheat and highland barley. Each household has a courtyard about the size of a basketball court, featuring tall trees and prayer flags fluttering in the wind, giving visitors the impression of walking through a forest park. The villagers are very hospitable, often inviting travelers in for a cup of butter tea or even preparing a Tibetan meal for them.
The glacier shimmers with snow year-round, presenting a magical and captivating scenery. It is a typical modern monsoon temperate glacier, featuring a complete range of glacial formations. Its distinctive characteristics include massive ice cirques, numerous avalanches, steep and enormous ice waterfalls 700-800 meters high, arch structures on the ice surface upstream of the ablation zone, and the coexistence of glacial terminal lakes with farmland and villages.
Midui Glacier is located in the upper reaches of the Midui River, a second-order tributary of the lower Yarlung Tsangpo River. It joins the Parlung Zangbo River from its south bank at the 84-kilometer road maintenance station of the Sichuan-Tibet Highway. The glacier’s proximity to the highway, large scale, and easy access make it a typical representative of maritime glaciers in southeastern Tibet. Known for its well-developed beautiful arch structures, it is a rare natural wonder. Here, glaciers, lakes, farmland, villages, and forests blend harmoniously, exemplifying the coexistence of humans and nature and making it an excellent destination for both research and tourism.
The glacier originates from snow-capped mountains at an altitude of about 6,000 meters, featuring two massive armchair-shaped ice cirques. These cirques are covered with snow and ice on three sides, with snow prone to falling at any time. The vertical avalanche chutes appear as if carved by knives and axes, and visitors can observe up to three avalanches within a few hours. Frequent avalanches are the main source of glacier replenishment. As ice and snow accumulate in the cirques, the ice flows out in the form of enormous waterfalls, plunging into the glacial basin at the source of the Midui River. These ice waterfalls, standing 700-800 meters tall, present a spectacular and majestic sight rarely seen elsewhere in the world.
If we consider the glacier as a “cold dragon” gliding down from the high mountains, then the arch structures resemble the dragon’s ribs. These structures are formed due to different temperatures and humidity levels affecting the ice in the waterfall area during winter and summer. The well-developed and large-scale arch structures on Midui Glacier are unparalleled among other glaciers, making it a truly remarkable glacial phenomenon.
The frequent avalanche spectacles, enormous ice waterfalls, and beautifully developed arch structures all contribute to Midui Glacier’s uniqueness. Its convenient location along the Sichuan-Tibet Highway has made it an important tourist attraction on the Parlung Zangbo “Tibet’s Jiangnan” tourism route.
Midui Glacier is renowned for its pristine, jade-like ice, beautiful scenery, diverse formations, and captivating postures. The surrounding area features herds of cattle and sheep, traditional Tibetan houses, and majestic snow-capped mountains. Wildlife such as Tibetan antelopes and monkeys can be observed year-round. The region boasts abundant tourism resources, a humid climate, rich produce, and convenient transportation, offering great development potential and operational feasibility.
Midui Village is located between Ranwu Town in Basu County and Bomi County Town in Tibet. Although Midui belongs to Bomi County, it is much closer to Ranwu Town. The turnoff from the Sichuan-Tibet Highway to Midui is unmarked, but it can be easily found between the “Midui No. 1” and “Midui No. 2” tunnels on the highway.
Buses from Chengdu, Chamdo, and Nyingchi pass through Ranwu Town, where youth hostels are available for around 20 yuan per bed, with hot water for showers. Four-wheel-drive vehicles can reach Midui Village, from where it takes about 2 hours to walk to the glacier. Visitors can return to Ranwu Town for accommodation on the same day. Local guides can be hired in the village, and if they help carry belongings, it’s advisable to pay them around 20 yuan.
During peak seasons, the village charges 15 yuan per person, providing a self-printed receipt. Midui Village consists of three natural villages and is known for its rich cordyceps resources, with income from cordyceps reaching over 10,000 yuan in 2006.
The entrance fee for Midui Glacier Scenic Area is 50 yuan. Visitor vehicles are not allowed inside the scenic area.
Various homestays and inns are available, as well as the three-star standard Geladan Dong Hotel, where guests can fully appreciate the scenery of Midui Glacier.
From the turnoff on National Highway 318 to the scenic area entrance is about 6 kilometers, which takes about 1.5 hours on foot. However, due to poor road conditions, taking a vehicle is recommended.
From Bomi County, a ride to the scenic area costs approximately 50-60 yuan. From the entrance through Midui Village to the glacier is about 2 kilometers, a 30-minute walk. Of course, taking a vehicle is the ideal choice.
Signposts and guide markers are available at the entrance, eliminating concerns about unfamiliarity with the area. Visitors can easily explore the entire scenic area without getting lost.
