Recounting part 2

Day 3

As usual woke up real early – 4 AM.  Chung, Sean and I ventured out into the streets for our photography.  There was no one around except the odd municipal worker sweeping the street.  The ancient street took on another dimension.  Look like a set for some kung-fu movie.  The air was cold, fresh and invigorating.

A section of the old street.  It looks like a stage set for a kung fu flick. 

We got back to the hostel to meet up with the rest.  After a good piping hot bowl of noodles we were off to Huangshan.  We booked transport at the reception the night before.  A woman came to fetch us.  After a short ride to the town we were put into a minivan.  The minivan climbed steadily all the way to Tangkou, the last inhabited town before ascending the mountain.

Huangshan is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Center and it is also a protected national park.  This park is situated in the southern part of Anhui Province.  Effectively we have now traveled from Zhejiang Province to Anhui Province.

In Tangkou we were taken to a state owned bus station.  I was given to understand that only they can provide bus service to the three entrances (gates).  Maybe this is for security and crowd control reason.  I read that during peak seasons, thousands of people visit the mountain daily.  So remember if you want a leisurely time do not visit then (early May and Oct).  At the station you have to tell the counter staffs which gate you wish to enter the park.  There are 3 gates available to visitors; South, East and West.  Our plan was to ascend using the East Gate and then come down using the West Gate.  This way we get to see different views.   Huangshan is famous for its natural vista, a photographer haven.

Pine tree growing on barren rocks.

Strange mountain peaks with 'OMG' factors to the nth degrees.

The bus dropped us off at a point near the East Gate (Yungu Gate – Cloud Valley).  Before you even start to enter the park you have to decide whether to ride up in a cable car or walk!  The cable car station is situated further down from the hiking path entrance.  You have to pay a park entrance fee to enter.  If you are using the cable car you also need to buy a ticket for the ride.  The entrance fee to the park cost RM120 per person and the cable car ride another RM40.

If you wish to take the cable car then walk further down to the station.

The Entrance to the Park.  Once you passed through these gates, you will have to climb thousand of steps to get to the peak at the back.  If you walk further down you will find the cable car station.  The ride to the top takes only 8 minutes.

The cable car is a short 8 minutes ride.  You get to see clouds, strange rock formation and tree tops in a jiffy.  The ride ends at the White Goose Mountain station (Bai Er Ling). 

However if you walk up (thousands of steps) you will have an adventure of a life time.  You get to see strange mountain formation, pine trees growth shaped by winds, some monkeys.  Along the way you will also get to see porters carrying up and down everything needed by the hotels (big bundle of towels, vats of oil, electrical appliances, mattresses and even concrete beam)!



The East Gate path is supposedly the easiest one up.  It took me almost 5 hours to reach the top!  For me it was a great achievement considering I was 53 years old then, hitting 98kg and live a rather sedentary life.  Before you embarked on your climb remember to do some preparations.  Bring only what is necessary; minimum change of clothes, water and some food (chocolate, energy bars, sandwiches, nuts, candies).  No heavy camera equipment unless you are an avid photographer and make sure you have good footwear; comfortable and good traction.  And do not forget to bring a walking stick.  You can buy one from the vendor.

Along the way there will be many vendors of drinks and snack.  And they get progressively dearer as you get higher. 

It was a long hard climb.  The steps keep going up and up.  My trusty tripod became my walking stick.

Super fit porters bringing down all sorts of things from the mountain.

By the time I struggled up to the top it was already late afternoon.  My joy was short lived because it takes another 40 minutes walk to the Bei Hai (North Sea) hotel!  At least the path now is more level and I was in an euphoric state having completed the climb so another long walk was really nothing.  The rest of the gang had already reached the hotel and checked in.  We were given a room away from the main building (a big monolith).  The room we had was constructed like a log cabin.  Although small it was perfectly adequate.  There was lots of hot water and even a flat screen TV!  The room cost about RM400 per night.  Not really worth the money but on hindsight, a lot of manual labor was needed to run it.  Remember everything was carried up by porters!

Another super fit porter bringing up clean towels.  This photograph was taken at 9am in the morning.  It probably means that he started his climb at 6 or 7 am.  It would be impossible for him to come up the mountain before that because the path would be pitch black.  This mean it only took him 2 or 3 hours tops to get up!  It took me almost 8 hours!

Our pseudo log cabin room.  But it was comfortable and clean.

After a quick wash up and a quick rest we met up for dinner.  We decided to eat at the Chinese restaurant in the Shilin Hotel which is just a stone throw from the Bei Hai. 

Arrh we knew we came to the right place to eat.

Of course we found the 'Anything Else' section of the menu most interesting.

After dinner we took a walk in the vicinity.  The wind was very strong and cold.  Besides there was very little to see because it was very dark.  We stocked up on supply for our hiking the next day from the little mini market.  As expected the things were not cheap.  After our purchases we called it a night.