Huangshan (Part 1): The Peaks of Yellow Mountain

While we knew we wanted to see experience the history of Beijing and the glamour that is Shanghai, we had decided we wanted to visit someplace a little off the beaten path that is a little less travelled by the typical foreign tourist. After a lot of research and recommendations we had decided that Huangshan (or Yellow Mountain) would be that place. Yellow Mountain is about 5 hours outside of Shanghai so we booked a tour guide through a travel agency that would drive us and take us around. We’d be taking a 3 day tour that would include a hike up Yellow Mountain spending a night at the top and then another night in a local town around the area. None of us really knew a lot about the area other then it was a major inspiration for a large amount of Chinese artists.

We were picked up very early in the morning in a private mini-van that would be taking us on our trek to Yellow Mountain. It was eight of us plus driver (and luggage) so we ended up crammed into this van and the suspension was pretty poor which made for a fairly bumpy and uncomfortable trip. When we arrived we were met by our guide who gave us our instructions for the day. We were told to pack just for overnight and leave the rest in the car since it would be a long hike. We had the option to either take a 3 hour trek up the mountain followed by another 3 hrs once we got to the top or we could take a tram up to the top and just do the extra 3 hrs from there. Faye was pretty keen on taking the hike all the way up but after learning we’d likely miss a great sunset photo opportunity we decided back on the tram option. As we ascended up I think we made the right choice, the trek looked treacherous with a lot of ups and downs all the way up. I didn’t see anybody on any trails so I suspect this is a rarely chosen option. The view going up was absolutely breath-taking.

Our guide had taught us about the four wonders of Yellow Mountain as we headed up the 30 minute tram ride to the top. The first is the pine trees that grow out of the rocks. They seem like they have no reason existing on these mountains, but seeds fell into the crevices and they would grow, often with a crooked and downward angle growing branches only on one side. The second are the grotesque rock formations. These rocks have sparked the imaginations of visitors over the years, many of them being given names to represent shapes they form such as animals, people, birds, and even a cell phone. The third wonder is the Sea of Clouds which are very common and forever changing. The last wonder is the Huangshan Hot Springs which are free from sulphur and contains many trace elements beneficial to health.

The hike around the top of the mountain was fairly laid back. There are plenty of trails etched around throughout the mountain top and even a few hotels and homes. The scenery was absolutely breathtaking and unlike any sight I had ever seen in my life. The jagged rocks spotted with trees made it very clear why so many artists were drawn here. Throughout our hike around the top of the mountain our guide pointed out some of the more famous scenes, describing all the different images each shape is thought to represent.

Throughout the top of the mountain we saw locks locked up along fence rails as we saw throughout Russia. A few of us decided to partake this time and bought and signed a lock with our significant others, locked it to a rail, and tossed the key off the mountain. It was starting to get darker so we needed to keep the pace up for the next bit in order to check into our lodging and make it to our sunset lookout.

We’d be staying in a 2nd class room, which meant 4 bunk beds rather than 30 people all crammed in a room. Good enough for us. After a quick check-in we headed off another 20 minutes up the mountain where we’d catch our sunset. Everything was looking good, but as sunset drew near clouds started to form in so we got a fairly blocked sunset. Oh well, tomorrow morning we’re up at 4am to try to catch a sunrise.

Tomorrow ... local villages and hot springs!