Day 49: Hiking Up Mt Huashan

Day 49 started pretty early, at about 7:30, and we went downstairs around 8 to grab breakfast. We all grabbed breakfast in the lobby of the hotel (flaky pocket sandwiches that we later found out had mutton inside). We also left our luggage with the man at the desk, and telling him that we were coming back on Wednesday (since we were staying at the top of the mountain overnight).

Everything settled, we headed out to the mountains, and had our breath taken away by how beautiful it truly was.

Pagoda as we entered

Entrance of the mountain

View as we approached

Sleeping giant of the mountain

Dragon goat chimera

Trees draped with good luck scarves

As we entered, we saw a multitude of temples, and some shops, which struck us as mildly odd. There was also a lady who tried to sell us red scarves, even putting one in Pablo's arms in an attempt to get him to buy it. As we walked around, we saw more and more red scarves tied to the trees, walkways, and various other places.

We paid for our tickets. Dom tried to get a student discount, but thought that it didn't work when the lady charged him full price. I tried to do it as well, and did indeed get the ticket. When he was put through the turnstiles, we found out that he had accidentally gotten two tickets, and he ran back to get a refund before we started the hike up the mountain. We also saw a sign that said it was the most precipitious mountain in China, and we knew we were in for a rough time.

We started hiking up the mountain, up a steep hill, and it had steps on the side. There were also a number of shops selling food and water, which we found surprising. One of the things that we saw over and over was water running over fresh cucumbers, which seemed really ingenious.

There were also lots of things on the rocks in our path, including doors in the rocks, and Chinese characters written in the rocks. There were even houses up within the rocks, in various states of disuse, so we believed that some of them were probably still being lived in.

wastebasket made of tree trunks

one of the native birds

As we went on, we took lots of breaks for various reasons. I was getting very out of breath quickly (lots of flashbacks to struggling in gym class on my part), and I often needed to stop and take my backpack off to catch a breath as we went up the hill.

As we reached the top of the first main hill, which was a couple thousand meters of a walk we saw a guardian cat, who kept meowing at us aggressively. It took us off guard, and we watched as a child came over to it and started messing with it....and it was made clear why that was one angry cat.

One of the more funny signs on our way up the mountain

There were also various checkpoints on our way up the mountain, and we got to stop and see how far we were on the trail. There were a few caves, precipices, and various other checkpoints that marked how far we were along. We were told about the 999 steps on one point on the mountain and we kept looking for it along the way, thinking it was just after the next major rock.

As we continued to go up, we came across a set of chains that had lots of locks and ribbons on it. Jessica and I had bought locks at the store the night before for this express purpose. Each put our locks on the chains to symbolize love for our significant others.

Right after this, there was a series of lots and lots of steps, and I had to keep taking breaks. The others had started to let me go in front, because I was the slowest. By being in the front, I was able to set the pace, and take breaks when needed. I wasn't always able to stay in front.....but it did help more than it would have been if I had always been in the back.

An unexpected sign of beauty

At the top of the next hill, we stopped and took a couple scenic pictures. We also looked at the map to see where we were. Although we had stopped to take several snack breaks, it turned out that we were over halfway there distance wise, although the hardest parts (including the steepest slopes) were still ahead of us.

We made our way forward, and we found that the parts ahead of us were indeed much harder. Several of the staircases were much steeper, including a set of almost 400 stairs at a 70 degree incline at one point. thankfully, they all had chains on the side that we were able to grab onto to help us get up the cliff.

We eventually got to the top of the first peak, North Peak, and we were able to see the gorgeous views that we had worked so hard for! I breathed a sigh of relief, as we were able to get some pictures at the top and just be entirely captivated by our surroundings.

Soon after, we stopped for a break at a juice bar. I opted out of getting any juice, because I still had some grape juice in my backpack, and it was relatively expensive, but it helped the others recuperate.

temple by the juice bar

After that, we tried to head to the East Peak, where the hotel we were going to stay in was. Soon after, Dom's leg started cramping, giving him issues. It was his first mountain he has climbed (if you were curious, this is my second one....I climbed one of the Chimney Top mountains in the Smoky Mountains over the summer). We kept taking breaks, and at one point, a pushy Chinese guy demanded that Dom get in a picture with all of us and him.....we were trying to tell him that Dom's leg was hurt, but he wasn't understanding. After the picture, Pablo got his WeChat (his name was Leon), and he sent us the picture.

So we had to wait up for Dom a few times (which, to be honest, helped me not breathe as heavily....I really was struggling myself too), and we stopped to take a quick break. Dom and I got the Chinese equivalent of PowerAde (which wasn't great tasting, but did help me get my energy back up) and Pablo got some Chinese tea.

Dom decided to go on ahead so we didn't have to wait for him. Pablo soon discovered that his tea was more leaves than liquid (about half and half). The lady who sold it to him had brought him another container of liquid, but he decided to not refill his cup with it.

Leon's selfie with us and the sign to the Phoenix Attracting Pavilion....they also had several spots where they built concrete structures around existing trees, which was very considerate of them

At this point, I was very tired, and we had been through a lot of staircases, and when Pablo said that there was a place called the Phoenix Attracting Pavilion. I was very excited for it (as excited as I could be without having any breath left), and we headed over towards it.

Phoenix Attracting Pavilion

different views from the pavilion, and its story

The views were breathtaking, of course, and we found out the story of the pavilion. Apparently a princess of China escaped her royal status by eloping with a commoner, and they played music every night together there. The music attracted all types of wildlife, including phoenixes. The enchanting area sparked my imagination, and I had visions of the princess and her lover all those centuries ago making beautiful music out of their love for one another.

We also met an American couple, who were from different states themselves. They came up to us exclaiming how glad they were to hear English.  We exchanged pleasantries. They told us that they were in China for two weeks, and they were rushing around trying to get lots of things done. They had visited the Terra Cotta warriors that same morning, and they had to run to catch the cable car down before it stopped running for the day.

the closed Devil's ladder, close to the North peak

We eventually got over to the East Peak area, and we ran into the American couple again. We chatted for a bit about the scenery, but they apologized, and walked away soon after in order to catch their ride down the mountain. We enjoyed the scenery for a few more minutes before heading out to check in at the hotel.

Our hotel was close to the East Peak, as was the sunrise viewing area that we planned to go to the next morning. We had trouble finding the people working there, and so did some Chinese tourists.  It turned out that they were all taking a dinner break at once. We started talking to a lady, and she directed us to a guy laying on a bed in one of the rooms who spoke English. It turned out he was a guest too (and that was his mom), but he said that they would be back soon. So we waited, and once we got back, we were the first people in line. We checked into the same room as the guy, which had 10 beds, and was the cheapest option for us.

sign outside of the hotel

After we checked in, we got some food from the restaurant next door. Jessica and I both treated ourselves to a Coke and some fried rice with meat after the long day. After eating, we all went back to our room for a bit. Since I had brought my laptop with me (since I wasn't sure how safe it was leaving it with the luggage at the hotel at the bottom of the mountain), I decided to type up my philosophy homework. There was no wifi, but there was data on my mobile network, surprisingly, for being at the top of a mountain, so I messaged some people as well. During that time, I went out to use the restroom in one of the portalettes (no running water at the top of the mountain, so every time I went, I washed my hands with snow), and ran into Pablo, who had wandered off to get some pictures. He said he was going to go back out after dark, and said that I could join him if I wanted to.

About an hour and a half later, Pablo and Dom went out to use the restroom and take pictures. I joined them, but Dom decided not to take pictures, and went back inside. The pagodas on top of the hill across a valley were all lit up, and the pictures were gorgeous (although Pablo's pictures were better than mine, since he has a better camera than mine).

While we walked, a cat came up to me and Pablo. It took an instant liking to Pablo, and followed us as we walked. Pablo said that in Ecuador, they call cats by saying "Michiko, Michiko", so we started calling her Michiko-san, as if she was Japanese, and not a Chinese mountain cat.

She was strangely comfortable with us (and we later realized she had met Pablo before, and he had other pictures of her), and I got some great pictures of her.

As we walked down, Michiko stopped following us suddenly and retreated to the forest, as if she had reached her stopping point. Pablo had seen some lasers, and was looking for the source of it. We walked back down to the Phoenix Attracting Pavilion, and saw the lasers emanating from an extremely tall tower. We got some pictures of the spectacle in awe.

After about 10 minutes, we headed back up. I noticed that without my backpack, I wasn't breathing nearly as heavily, and I realized a lot of the struggle I was having before was indeed because of the backpack. A cat came out of nowhere, guiding us back up to where we had come from. We joked it was Michiko's friend. But strangely, once we got up high enough, Michiko started guiding us again for a bit.

We got some more pictures of the pagodas. Then Pablo wanted to head up to see what the sunrise place looked like at night. Having nothing better to do, I tagged along. It was definitely worth the few extra steps, because we were rewarded with the sight of the stars. It was the only time I had seen any stars in China, and it was an absolutely breathtaking sight.

Pablo took several pictures with his exposure function, but my camera isn't high functioning enough for that. But I wasn't bothered, I just enjoyed the gorgeous sight, and made a memory that would last me the rest of my life. Pablo lost his camera lens cover at some point, and the Chinese tourists who were up there, also admiring the sight, tried to help him find it, despite the fact that he was still trying to take an exposure picture (which they inadvertently ruined with their flashlight) and he was saying that the cover was very cheap. They did find it underneath the deck on some precarious rocks, and he said he might get it in the morning.

We then headed back to the hostel, settling back in in the room with 10 people. I tried to charge my phone through a USB cable through charging the computer overnight, hoping that they would both be fully charge in the morning. Then I curled up in the blanket, trying to head to sleep after having climbed thousands of steps and made my own milestone that day.

-Zoe