Shítouzhai 石头寨

Over 600 years old, this little Bouyei hamlet is packed with small stone houses, cobbled lanes in a lovely setting is not far from Huangguoshu Falls. Everyone here who is not involved in farming seems to somehow be involved in batik production, and you may be invited into a villager’s home to watch the process. This is becoming a popular stop for Chinese tourists and you can see efforts are being made to spruce the place up for travellers; some of the village equipment has bilingual signs explaining its use and the ponds across the street from the village have been landscaped and are dotted with a couple of small waterwheels. Definitely the Dali and Lijiang influence is strong here.;
An hour or two would be more than enough to see it all, and a stop here is a pleasant diversion either on your way to or back from Huangguoshu Falls. However, the karststudded landscape surrounding Shitouzhai is lovely and some travellers may consider hanging around to explore some of the villages spotting the nearby hills or to do some of the lovely walks that would be possible in the area.;
Sleeping & eating;
There is only one guesthouse open year-round ;
Shítouzhai Jingqu Zhaodaisuo (石头寨景区招 待所; Tel: 1376-536 4841) Just a few metres inside the village gates and run by a lovely family, this place has simple beds in dark wood rooms. The wooden floors are disturbingly creaky but the shared bathrooms and showers are clean and modern. A single room with a Ming-style ‘antique’ bed costs ¥150. Others are under construction and should be accepting guests by the time you read this.;
There are a couple of small restaurants here too, but they are only open in high season months (roughly April to September).;
Getting there & away;
To get here, take a Huangguoshu-bound bus from Anshun and tell the driver you are going to Shitouzhai (¥5-8, 30 to 40 minutes). You will be let off at a road forking away from the main highway. Follow the road for about 2 km until you reach Shitouzhai. You’ll know when you have arrived by the landscaping: there will be a pond with a waterwheel on the right, and, just afterwards, a clutch of stone houses on your left where you will find the village entrance. To leave, walk back to the fork in the road. If you are continuing on to Huangguoshu, most buses heading west will pass the falls; if you are going to Anshun, flag down any bus heading eastward.