In the autumn mountains of Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, the Re'a Line is a road worth taking slowly.

The Re'a Line runs about 80 kilometers in total. At an easy pace, the drive takes roughly two and a half hours, linking glacial stone forests, high-mountain colored woods, and other landscapes along the way. The road winds with the mountain, the scenery outside the window unfolding layer by layer, each stretch holding its own woodland charm.

Asihatu Stone Forest

In Mongolian, the name Asihatu means “steep rocks.” This stone array, sculpted by glaciers over ages, is the geological wonder of the Re'a Line. A gray-white glacial stone forest stands amid golden grasslands and brilliant autumn woods—cold, hard rock colliding with soft autumn color, as if an “alien secret realm” had landed on earth. And if you enter in the early morning, you can see mist lightly veiling the stone peaks, washing the scene in a hazy, ink-painting mood.

Huanggangliang National Forest Park

Huanggangliang, one of the highest points in the Greater Khingan Range, offers the most layered autumn scenery. Within its U-shaped valley, bands of gold, orange-red, and deep green interweave across the slopes, the whole mountain washed in dense autumn feeling.

Stop at the 2029 Station: taste grassland milk tea at the “Autumn Milk Tea House,” or buy a warm coffee at the “Lonely Café” and feel the warmth spread up your fingertips along the cup. Then stroll the glass walkway and look down over the vast forest sea, taking in Huanggangliang's autumn view.

Henhei Village

Henhei Village is another worthwhile stop on the Re'a Line. The name in Mandarin sounds like “very dark,” but in Mongolian it means “a low, flat patch of land on a high mountain.” This small village, with a permanent population of just over 600, is now remembered by more people thanks to a “Henhei Night”—bonfire parties, Ulan Muqir performances, fireworks, and hand-held mutton and sand onion dumplings. Nights on the Re'a Line are no longer just about pressing on.

Reshuitang Town

The journey ends at the warm hot springs of Reshuitang Town, the perfect place to ease the fatigue of the road. Stay overnight at a local hot spring hotel; after nightfall, soak in the hot spring and look up at a sky full of stars. In the rising steam, the day's fatigue melts away with the warmth, and you're left with a night of deep sleep.