Ice Climbing in/around Shuangqiao

Shuangqiao Valley of Mount Siguniang is one of the best and most popular places to do ice-climbing in China. Every winter it has many good icefalls formed up. Shuangqiao Valley is very easy to access. Your climb can be either fully-guided if you are a beginner or self-supported if you are a well-experienced climber. Read below of the detailed locations for ice-climbing in Shuangqiao of Mount Siguniang.

There are total over 100+ icefalls in Shuangiao with different levels and approaches.

Map of Icefalls in Shuangqiao gou Valley of Mount Siguniang.

Climbing Season

The ice season in Shuangqiao is usually from mid/late December to the next early/mid February each year. The temperature drops to -15C to -10C the coldest time by early morning. During the daytime the temperature rises up to above 5C or warmer in the sun. Please try to avoid the new year holiday in Shuangqiao if possible to avoid the possible crowds. This include the 01-04 January Holiday when it will be busy and the Chinese New Year Holiday (usually early Feb) when the locals tend to not working and rest on the new year holiday.

Approach

The road that the tourist buses go through the valley everyday makes the access to all the ices much easier. Usually the easier ices and ices with shorter approaches will have more people climbing. The harder ice (WI4 and above) will have fewer or even no people. Ices with long approaches (more than 1h walking) usually won’t see people climbing them either.

Permits and Admissions

A permit is required by the Siguniang park authority for either domestic or foreign climbers doing ice climbing in Shuangqiao. This is mandated by the park of Shuangqiao and need to submit your information and sign up by the park before going in to do ice climbing. You may either consider to sign up the guided and organized tours to do ice climbing or if you are well-experienced climber you may just get a permit and go do climbing by yourself. We can apply this permit for you and arrange for logistics such as local lodge and transfer if you are an independent climber and are interested in doing ice climbing in Shuangqiao by yourself. It is possible to apply the permit by yourself but you’ll have to do this on site by yourself and it is going to take you a much longer time (up to a full day’s time) til you get a permit. A permit alone costs total CNY1200 per person a day (2026 price).

Planning And Suggestions

High Altitude:

Mt. Siguniang is located 200km west to Chengdu and driving there takes 4 hours from Chengdu. There is a big altitude difference between Chengdu(500) and Siguniang(3200m). Some travelers suffer mountain sickness when they travel to Siguniang from Chengdu and go up the mountain quickly. It is advised to acclimate yourself properly before doing stressful activity.

Low Temperature

Please expect low temperature between -10C and -15C in the early morning and night. During the day the temperature is between 0C and 8C. You are recommended to prepare sufficient warm keeping gears and clothing for this tour.

Planning:

One must plan ahead of time if you intend to do ice climbing in Siguniang Shuangqiao. This include learning the weather and climate, altitude of this place, having ideas of how long you want to do this trip and how much you’ll have to pay, what the climbing and approaching is like, what is the overnight lodge and food like. It is not a tour you decide to do when you are already there. Please read our detailed and useful Sichuan Ice Climbing information to learn more.

Staying inside Shuangqiao Valley:

There are lodges available inside Shuangqiao Valley that are closer to the icefalls. You are recommended to stay inside Shuangqiao while doing ice climbing there. There is no need to stay outside of Shuangqiao because it will waste more time getting out and getting in each day and it’s a lot of trouble check in to the valley since it is also a tourist park. By the lodge meals are also available. Although there are no shops inside the valley where you stay so you’ll need to prepare other things such as snacks by yourself beforehand.

Around Siguniang

Note there are also other ices that are not located inside Siguniang Shuangqiao Valley and that are usually free to climb without needing a permit from anyone. Most of these ices are located by the valleys west to Shuangqiao in Jiesi along the Lixiao Road. There are as many as 3-4 dozens of ices including many unrecorded ones with different approaches. Some weekends will see the easier accessed ices with many climbers but the longer approached ices will see no people. Please contact us if you are interested in a ice hunt tour that we can help to arrange for you if you are keen to climb in the wild and in the unknown places near Siguniang or any other places in Sichuan.

In Changping and Haizi Valley of Siguniang there are also good ices but with long approaches by foot. And permits of ice climbing are not given to any climbers for climbing in these two parks of Siguniang.