mt huangshan anhui china

last time i went to mt huangshan was in 2003 during sars.

actually, i miss that journey very much because there were almost no tourists there. it was extremely tranquil and peaceful. everything was quite simple; you bought a ticket and went up the mountains from the foot of it, without being forced to take the bus at the entrance to the forest park as they are doing today.

although i encountered thunderstorms and hails that day, i still felt so satisfied when i reached the top. the beauty was so unique compared with sunny days.

i read some comments before i started today's journey. most people complained about the crowdedness, no matter how early they went up the mountain. so i decided to take natural trails this time to avoid being overwhelmed.

i left hotel near the bus terminal at 5:50 before sunrise and it was almost bright.

heading west, i followed the road to the wild monkey park. some runners had been back from the mountains, rushing down. i love their energy and the whole environment.

the park was not open any more. you may just go into the entrance which was somewhat blocked by twigs. you will soon see long old steps covered by mosses. small waterfalls were flowing on your right hand-side.

then you will reach pregnant monkey area, which is being protected. climb up the rocks and follow the trails, and then you will enter a totally wild forest with almost no trail at all.

so it became a challenging journey, using your hands, legs, feet and whole body to climb up. to ensure the direction, you may check the track constantly. judging from wherever possible footprints by other hikers, you should be so careful holding stones and twigs, lots of which are fragile.

it took me around two hours until hilltop, after beating the bushes and crossing a brook. the view suddenly became very open, esp. the sun was coming up shining at that moment. i got relaxed and excited.

the second and third mountains were much easier and more comfortable. you could see clear trails most of the time. walking on the top has made it possible to enjoy sightseeing around, where the major mountains of huangshan and the famous greeting pines were just next to you.

the trails on the second mountain are very soft, covered by fallen leaves and pine needles. and the third are bamboo trails, around half-a-person tall.

be sure to check the track on the third one since you may turn right and go down the mountains half way.

the next part was very difficult, getting down valleys, probing trails and climbing stones. the trails are hard to tell sometimes. if you enter a wrong route, you may encounter a cliff and you have to go back and try another one. so i strongly suggest you check the track constantly.

it will be pretty hard when you meet a brook or waterfall. so do not come on rainy days, which is dangerous.

the 400-meter elevation loss crossing the whole valley took me two and a half hours, much longer than i expected. i did enjoy the 3-mountain journey, but i didn't regards to the valley part.

while, the whole thing in the morning was just a warmup if you wanted to enter mt huangshan forest park. there used to a hikers' trail by mercy light temple, where the ticket office resides, while it has been blocked by the administration.

considering the rest of the journey will be totally hard stone steps, i decided to go back by taking the road where park buses run. fortunately, i passed by some interesting spots, including scenic and cultural, which other hikers could not make for being arranged to take the cables or buses.

one more reward was an old town, tangkou county, which has been taken as the entrance to mt huangshan. it is actually the administrator of the mt. the ancient bridges and river were so beautiful by the foot of the mountains, esp. with the sunset.

walking across the town, having a sense of locals' life and culture, you may rejoin the road back to the bus terminal. then the journey is complete.

in a word, the natural trails journey brings you peacefulness, beauty and wildness.