Huashan is one of those places, like the Great Wall, that can't be described in words but has to be experienced in person. As I was planning my trip to China I came across this photo:


It's one of those photo's that makes you think, "Wow, where is that?" I discovered it was an ancient mountain in central China called Huashan, and it was this photo more than anything else that made me decide to go to Xi'an.

Huashan, or Mt. Hua, is heaven on earth. It's one of China's five Sacred Daoist Mountains with precipitous cliffs and lofty peaks that tower over the surrounding plains like daggers sticking out of the Earth. There are five peaks on Huashan, four in each cardinal direction and a Central peak, the tallest being the South peak at 2160m. On the peaks are different hostels and lookout pavilions that give panoramic views of the mountain range and countryside. There's a cable-car that goes to the North peak at 1613m, but to get to the other four peaks you have to hike further up the mountain along Black Dragon Ridge, up the Heavenly Ladder and finally reaching Golden Lock Pass. The Chinese have really grand names for all of these place. The other way of getting to the North peak is to simply hike up from the bottom, which was the route I took.

The path begins at a temple at the foot of the mountain and gradually becomes steeper further along. Half way through, The Stairs begin. I was literally climbing a mountain! Most of the steps are cut into the mountainside and continue for over 2000 steps until they reach the North peak. It was quite the workout! The path normally takes four hours but I was able to conquer it in two and a half hours, reaching the first peak an hour after noon. I spent the rest of day making my way to the four remaining peaks and exploring the trails on top of the mountain. It was like walking on a floating island with sheer cliffs connecting each of the peaks and beautiful, flat, tree-lined walking paths between them. I'd only planned on a day-trip to Huashan but the atmosphere, scenery and feeling of well-being I had was too overwhelming for me to leave just yet. I got a bed in one of the hostels so that I'd have more time to explore the next day. When evening crept up I returned to the West peak and found a comfortable spot on top of the bluff to watch the sunset. As I was sitting above the clouds, looking down at the sun as it slowly slipped into the horizon, I discovered why Huashan is considered Holy...

I spent the next day exploring the rest of the peaks I hadn't visited yet. I went over to the East peak to see the morning sun reflecting brightly off the mountain walls. I walked over to see the lonely Chess Pavilion but decided not to pay it a visit due to the strong winds that day. When it was well into the afternoon I had visited all the peaks, walked up and down countless stairs, and walked almost every path that was on top of Huashan. I was tired, dirty, and exhausted so I decided to head back down. I opted for a quick 5 minute cable-car ride to the bottom because I wasn't quite up to tackle those stairs again. I fell asleep on the bus ride back to Xi'an that was stalled by engine troubles, heavy traffic and randomly stopping to pick up and drop people off on the side of the road.

Later that night at the hostel, I looked through the pictures on my camera and wondered why I never saw that one photo that brought me to Huashan in the first place, those precarious planks of wood jutting out from the side of the mountain. After consulting the internet, I knew exactly where that photo was taken: it was in the one and only path I didn't bother trekking on, the one I came across just before the sun set and resolved to go back the next day to explore but didn't because I was too tired and decided to head down the mountain instead.. "F****CKK!" was all I could think once it hit me. "So that's what regret feels like!" I had the huge urge to head back to Huashan the next day just to hike that one last path, but my schedule and flight prevented me from doing so. I still have the urge to go back to Huashan one day to do that one path I missed but, apart from not seeing the photo that brought me there in the first place, I enjoyed my time on that beautiful mountain. Just having been there is good enough for me.

Check out my album for more pictures of Huashan.