Ledu sits in the Huangshui River valley, a fertile corridor between the arid plateau to the west and the loess hills descending toward Gansu to the east. The river valley here is wide and agricultural, with terraced fields of wheat and barley, orchards on the lower slopes, and a series of small towns strung along the route of the old road to Lanzhou. The landscape is greener and more populated than most of Qinghai, and the drive or train journey through the valley from Xining to Ledu gives a sense of the transition zone between the Han heartland and the edge of the Tibetan world.
The valley's agricultural character means it has a rhythm of weekly markets and seasonal festivals not found in the more pastoral plateau counties to the west. If timing allows, the Ledu town market on its weekly market day draws farmers and traders from the surrounding villages and is genuinely lively. The train along this corridor is one of the more scenic short rail journeys in Qinghai, running close to the river through terraced hillside terrain.