Transport getting there: if you want to go all the way there from Kunming you will need to catch a bus from the new northern station to Fazhe 法者, which on some maps has now been renamed as Hongtudi Zhen Red Soil Township. But you will need to get off before at a cross road locallly known as 109 (it is where the road branches with the right turn going down to Dongchuan). It is only a cluster of a few houses on top of a hill.

Actually it is best to stay on the bus for another two hundred meters and get off right where the km marker says 110, it is where the best guesthouse is in the area. It is run by a local guy who made it by being a most amiable host to all photographers. I was there first when he had only three rooms in his farmhouse which went for Y5 each and local travel was by horse cart driven by his brother. His guesthouse went through a few iterations and last time he had standard rooms for up to Y120 in addition to a number of smaller rooms. His wife will cook, there are no restaurants. Last time I was there the owner also had a minibus which he used to drive people around. Bus drivers generally know the guest house and will stop there to drop you off.

The official time-table of the northern station says there are six busses per day to Fazhe, I do not believe that as only two years ago there was really only one, leaving early in the morning around 7:30 and arriving just after mid-day. The alternative is to take just a bus to Magai 寻甸马街 (there are lots of Magais around, the one in Xundian county is the one you want), which is the next larger town, but on official maps it always appears as something else. In Magai you can easily find a minibus to take you up to 109. Price maybe Y200.

Around 109 there are quite a number of scenic spots, some are within walking distance, others not. Some think that sunrise is best from Damakan (about 15km along the road to Fazhe, you will need transport for this), while others stay more locally. Afternoon is perhaps nicest from a viewpoint down and off the road to Dongchuan, I forgot the name of that place, again, transport is needed. A closer area is '114', reachable via the road (and a shortcut along the fields).

Particularly nice about the area is that you are really in the middle of pretty countryside, no town, just fields and a few farm houses combined with good views over the Wumeng mountains. I have never been there in April, autumn being the prime photo time there, so I would not think that the place will be overrun by tourist, but numbers have steadily increased.

To return to KM you can either go the same way back, waiting for the KM bound bus from Fazhe, or go to the 109 crossroad and wait for the bus from Magai to Dongchuan along a quite spectacular road through desert mountains. Check with the locals on what time the bus passes, I think it is only one per day. From Dongchuan to KM is easy.

The road described in the article is more commonly known as the Bonan Road 博南古道. I have never heard the term 'Ambassador road' before.

Obviously there was a trail from Dali down to Burma and while the modern motor roads have taken the route easier for cars the route of the old road was determined by the best crossing of the Mekong. The best crossing in this case was a very narrow part where a suspension bridge, later called Jihong Rainbow Bridge, could be built. Unfortunately, this bridge was washed away already quite a while ago, but interestingly this very location is where the railway to Burma will cross the Mekong.

To my knowledge the old caravan route went from Yongping via Qudong (a Muslim place), then south of the current expressway across the mountains to modern-day Shanyang and from there descended to the Mekong. As I said, the old bridge is washed away and there remains nothing to be seen of the bridge, but on the western (Baoshan) side of the river remains an old village (partly restored), and an interesting old trail up to Shuizhai 水寨, replete with stones polished by thousands of hoofs.

It depends a bit where your priorities are.

There are four trains a day from Kunming to Wuhan, at least according to www.huoche.biz/q.aspx (just type 'kunming wuhan' into the search box in the upper right corner, latin characters will do). The trains take about thirty hours and a soft sleeper will set you back some 600Y one way, hard-sleeper about 400. Book at the train station or several rail-ticket agencies in town.

For only a little more money you can fly, the cheapest tickets on ctrip sell for about 820Y one way. You can even book with an international credit card on ctrip and you will get an eticket. Otherwise all travel agents in town can organize the tickets for you at roughly the same price.

A bus to Wuhan would be my idea of hell, but if you want to try, busses to Hubei province go from the new northern bus terminal. You have been warned.

Apparently there are now two trains from Kunming per day that stop in Heijing, both leaving KM before 8am. The faster one is the K674 to Xichang, which takes just a bit over 3 hours: www.huoche.biz/dcK674.aspx . The other one is the 6162 which takes most of the day as it stops everywhere and will wait long times for passing trains. Both trains leave from Kunming's main railway station.
The Heijing station is a few km south of town, but there will be transport waiting to take you into town. You will probably have to pay the entrance fee when you arrive, I remember it being Y40, which technically gives you the right to a tour around town and access to the various attractions.

A couple of days is probably stretching it a bit for Heijing. There are a couple of impressive salt-merchant houses, a temple up the hill with nice views, a walk along the river north of town past a few brine wells to a brine-drying building where they demonstrate the salt-making process. Heijing is a small, quiet place, do not expect anything in terms of nightlife or other entertainment.

When I was there there were a few simple guesthouses, around the Y50 mark with bathroom, plus one fancy place at the northern end of town.

Due to its geography, Heijing is not well connected by bus, so excursions by road are a bit difficult. However, you could take the train a bit further north to Yuanmou where they have the Yuanmou Earth Forest 土林 and the museum for the Yuanmou Man 元谋人, one of the earliest hominids found in China (well, one of his teeth). From Yuanmou it is an easy bus ride back to KM.

or 44 from train station.

73 and 44 are the only busses that go all the way down there, otherwise take a bus that goes along Dianchi Lu and change there.