A range of mountains in Anhui province, China, these are a Unesco world heritage site¹ of which it is said that once you climb them, you'll never want to climb another mountain. They're not particularly high, with only three of the 72 named peaks rising higher than 1870m, but hiking amongst the steep slopes is both strenuous and rewarding. In appearance they are a seemingly never-ending series of jagged granite peaks, cloaked with bamboo forest, separated by deep chasms, and dotted with wind-twisted and gnarled pines, which cling impossibly to the sheer slopes. The various shapes that can be seen in the face of the mountains and in the pine trees have provided rich fodder for many legends and tales, and give rise to interesting names for the various spots, such as cloud-dispersing pavilion, beginning to believe peak , and welcoming guest pine.

The area is much beloved by painters, and indeed walking through it feels like familiar territory, as if one were inside a scroll painting.
It was previously known as Black Mountain (or Yishan), until the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan was believed to have been immortalised here, and the name was changed in 747 AD. There's nothing yellow about the appearance of the mountains themselves.

It is understandably a popular site: many Chinese regard it as sacred, and aim to conquer it at least once in their lifetime. It gets very busy, especially during the summer months, although it's always easy to find a secluded spot off the beaten track (which is mostly concrete, and consists of a series of flights of stairs going up, and then down, and then back up again. And repeat.)

Getting there

Trains and buses from the nearest big cities of Shanghai, Hangzhou and Nanjing go regularly to the base town of Tunxi (also known as Huang Shan Shi), which also has a small airport. Regular shuttle buses go from here to the main access point at the foot of the mountain, 50km away. Whilst it is possible from there to take a zig-zag path right up the mountainside, this is a tough ascent which will take between 2 and 8 hours depending on route and fitness levels, and most visitors prefer instead to ascend using one of the 3 cable car routes, leaving themselves more time to enjoy walking up and down the stepped paths on the mountain peaks. The views from the cable cars are more stuning than from the hiking trails, and it is easy to get a few good photos from them.

Accommodation

There are a number of hotels and bunk houses on the mountains, which are busy and expensive during the summer months, but cheaper or closed during the cold winter months. They have no air conditioning, as it's not usually necessary on the windy mountain top, and the large numbers of youth groups tend to make the whole vicinity rather noisy. There's also little in the way of entertainment provided, so visitors are advised to take a book or game, as well as a set of ear-plugs. Most visitors will be getting up early to see the sunrise, so don't expect a quiet lie-in.

There are no roads on the mountains, so everything that needs to be brought onto and off the mountain is carried by porters, using bamboo poles to ferry their loads of laundry, food and rubbish. They suspend two packages, one on each side of a long bamboo pole held behind their heads across their shoulders, and use a second pole at almost right angles to this to help balance and weight distribution. They dislike having their photos taken; probably because once they get the momentum going for a run up or down a flight of steps any interruption to the flow is unwelcome. They tend to do this physically demanding job for no more than four years at a time. Porters await the arrival of cable cars, and will offer to carry your bags to your accommodation for about £4, or carry you yourself in a sedan chair for about £40.

Things to see

There are many trails to various viewing points, almost all of them well marked. Many visitors buy or bring a walking stick to help them negotiate the steepness of the paths. A wide variety of birdlife and plant life provides a source of pleasure for many viewers, whilst the beauty of the place attracts many painters.

Watching the sun rise between the peaks is considered a "must-do" for visitors, and a popular spot to do this is in front of the Beihai Binguan hotel. Amazingly enough, there's even a branch of the Bank of China here, complete with ATM.

Visitors are intrigued to find many of the fences covered in rusting padlocks: these are placed there by romantic couples, who believe that if they place a lock on the mountain, and then lose the key, then they are united forever, and will never be parted.

The weather on the mountains can be unpredictable, and can change very quickly, so it's best to be prepared for all sorts of conditions. Many of the hotels will supply padded jackets for cool mornings watching the sunrise, and rain is never far away. The sun when it shines can be very strong, and sunblock is advisable.

Further information

Further information on visiting this area can be found at Mt Huangshan website which also includes some pretty photographs.