Qingcheng Shan
A mountain about 65 km North-West of Chengdu, the perfect opportunity to get away for a day from the heat and the pollution in this city of over 4 million people.
A direct bus took 2.5 hours to get there, spending most of the time in the horrible traffic in the city. The small old town at the foot of the mountain was swarmed by hundreds, if not thousands, Chinese tourists and tour groups. It must once have been a tranquil place, but there is not much left of it. After finding my way to the start of the trail up the 1600m high mountain, I started to climb the steps leading to the top. The trail is dotted with Taoist temples and shelters for resting. The views are wonderful, with many waterfalls and a stream rushing down beside you, while you get up step by step. Luckily, the temperature is a bit lower here than in the city, and the trees provide a lot of shade. Sometimes, in the mist of a waterfall, it's actually quite cool.
Halfway up is a small lake, that you have to cross with a small boat pushed across with a bamboo pole.
After the lake, the crowd thinned, but there are many local people along the trail selling food, drinks, and local crafts, like sandals and walking sticks. The whole area is actually very touristy, but still worth visiting. Near the top is another village, and the last steps to the White Clouds Temple are very tiring. Finally arriving, you can have your name engraved in a medal for 10 Yuan, and/or a padlock, which you can hang on a horizontal wire in the temple, which many have done in the past. Hundreds of rusty padlocks are hanging there in front of the Buddha statues. I don't know the significance of this, but it must be for good fortune, or maybe to secure a place in heaven or nirvana or something.
The climb up took me 4 hours, down was quicker, but hindered by slow moving crowds near the base. After returning to my hotel at 8pm, I found my feet hurting like hell, with blisters on my heels from my new shoes, which I had to buy 2 days ago because my old ones were falling apart.
A direct bus took 2.5 hours to get there, spending most of the time in the horrible traffic in the city. The small old town at the foot of the mountain was swarmed by hundreds, if not thousands, Chinese tourists and tour groups. It must once have been a tranquil place, but there is not much left of it. After finding my way to the start of the trail up the 1600m high mountain, I started to climb the steps leading to the top. The trail is dotted with Taoist temples and shelters for resting. The views are wonderful, with many waterfalls and a stream rushing down beside you, while you get up step by step. Luckily, the temperature is a bit lower here than in the city, and the trees provide a lot of shade. Sometimes, in the mist of a waterfall, it's actually quite cool.
Halfway up is a small lake, that you have to cross with a small boat pushed across with a bamboo pole.
After the lake, the crowd thinned, but there are many local people along the trail selling food, drinks, and local crafts, like sandals and walking sticks. The whole area is actually very touristy, but still worth visiting. Near the top is another village, and the last steps to the White Clouds Temple are very tiring. Finally arriving, you can have your name engraved in a medal for 10 Yuan, and/or a padlock, which you can hang on a horizontal wire in the temple, which many have done in the past. Hundreds of rusty padlocks are hanging there in front of the Buddha statues. I don't know the significance of this, but it must be for good fortune, or maybe to secure a place in heaven or nirvana or something.
The climb up took me 4 hours, down was quicker, but hindered by slow moving crowds near the base. After returning to my hotel at 8pm, I found my feet hurting like hell, with blisters on my heels from my new shoes, which I had to buy 2 days ago because my old ones were falling apart.
posted by marc at 09:02
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