Mingyong Glacier of Meili Snow Mountain, Deqin

Mingyong Glacier is located in the Yunnan Province, People’s Republic of China, The glacier retreated 200 meters (656 feet) in four years. The region has also seen a rising tree line and these events are believed to be associated with global warming. The glacier is sacred to the local peoples. The glacier is fed by snows which fall on 6,740 m (22,107 ft) Mount Meili, also known as the Meili Snow Mountain. Glaciers in China’s Tibetan region are melting at 7 percent annually. At 28.5 degrees north and an elevation of 2,700 meters (8,858 ft), the glacier is located at the lowest latitude and elevation of any glacier in China.

The magnificent Mingyong Glacier is located about 12km north of Feilai Si and it is considered as the lowest glacier within China. The Mingyong Glacier flows for several kilometres down the flanks for the highest peak of the Yunnan Province, the Meili Xueshan (Mt. Meili, Kabego or Kawa Karpo). An easy 2 hours walk leads up to the Taizi Temple, from where you will have a first stunning view of the Mingyong Glacier. For those with energy left can continue further up to the Lianhua temple. There are horses available for those who do not want to visit the Mingyong Glacier on foot. Renting a horse costs about 150 Yuan to Taizi Temple and back. The entrance fee to the Glacier valley is 63 RMB. (Starting point to the Mingyong Glacier, Deqin, Yunnan Province: 28°28’18″N/98°47’1′”E).

Mingyong Glacier in Meili Snow Mountain is China’s lowest and southernmost glacier at 2,700 meters above sea level and 28.5 degrees north of the equator. Liu told China’s Xinhua News Agency that Mingyong’s melting would create two kinds of crises for people living downstream from the glacier. As the rate of melting increased, farms and settlements would be damaged by flooding and mudslides/rockslides. After melting, the disappearance of the glacier would cause rivers to shrink dramatically and drought would ensue.