In our trip extension, we will be herping in the Longquan Mountains—one of the most famous herping spots in Zhejiang province. Also, one of the three herping spots in my Zhejiang Herping Expedition.

This mountain seems to have the highest chance of finding showstopper-level snakes from my past experiences. The Five Pace Viper (Deinagkistrodon acutus) are relatively common here, as well as the two cool-loving ratsnake species— the Mandarin Ratsnake (Euprepiophis mandarinus) and Chinese Bamboo Ratsnake (Oreocryptophis p. vaillanti), which we all found in here in my previous expeditions. We even witnessed a Black Eagle (Ictinaetus malaiensis) predating a 2.4-meter-long Big-eyed Ratsnake (Ptyas dhumnates) in the daytime, and the turbo-rare Stejneger’s False Cobra (Psuedoxenodon stejnegeri) has been found here multiple times by us and some other local herpers. When it is cold but sunny, we will actively road cruise here during the day if the conditions are right. There is a large number of amphibian species that can be found here, the large and unique Chong’an Moustache Toad (Leptobrachium liui) are very common in this mountain range. We will hike and road cruise both in mid and high elevations in this mountain to ensure the species diversity we found.

In Longquan, we will be staying in a five-star hotel with large rooms and beautiful river views. Longquan is a city known for its fine ceramics and swords; this hotel has a small exhibition of both. It is also very close to our herping spot.

Itinary

Spetember 11th, 2026: Bullet train from Guiyang to Lishui (and then 50 minutes drive from Lishui to Longquan).

Spetember 11-14th, 2026: Herping in Longquan from 11-14.

September 15th, 2026: We will drive back to Hangzhou, we can offer drop off if guests want to leave at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International airport.