Mount Sanqing

Sanqingshan was inscribed by UNESCO in 2008 for its granite geology: some forty-eight named peaks and dozens of pillars weathered into forms that erosion along vertical joints has left standing free, including the Oriental Goddess and the Giant Python, a column of over one hundred metres. It is a Taoist mountain, named for the three pure ones, with temples and a stone-built Taoist complex on the slopes. Around ten kilometres of plank walkways are bracketed onto the cliffs at high level, running around the faces with drops beneath, and cable cars carry visitors to the ridge. Cloud fills the valleys frequently, leaving the pillars standing above it.

What you actually see

• The granite pillars - free-standing columns including the hundred-metre Python.
• The cliff walkways - plank paths bracketed around the rock faces.
• The cloud sea - mist filling the valleys below the ridges.
• The Taoist complex - stone temple buildings on the mountain.

When to go

April to June and September to November; azaleas flower in May. Cloud and rain are frequent, and walkways close in ice, which is common in winter. Summer holidays and weekends bring long cable car queues.

Honest expectations

Cable car queues at peak times can exceed an hour. The walkways are exposed and unnerving for anyone afraid of heights, and close in bad weather. Cloud can hide everything for days. Entry plus cable car is expensive.

Nearby

Wuyuan lies northwest; Mount Longhu is southwest.