A high calling

Over the past few months a caravan including mules and horses has been used to transport building materials to install water and electricity equipment in villages at an altitude of up to 3,000 meters in Jinchuan county, Sichuan province. The team, called mabang, has eight members and more than 30 horses or mules. They scale and descend the mountain several times a day, each journey lasting three hours. In ancient times mabang consisted of smugglers who trafficked rare goods in Southwest China. These days, only a few mabang can be found in mountainous areas in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. The mabang deliver the materials and equipment for many projects in the highlands.

(China Daily European Weekly 07/18/2014 page4)