Picture: South Ridge of Qingliang Peak
Taken at 07:14 on July 7, 2019 in She County, Anhui Province
Qingliang Peak is located at the junction of Zhejiang and Anhui and is the main peak of the Tianmu Mountains. This altitude is not the highest among the mountains in Zhejiang and nearby areas. The reason why I went there was because I saw photos of the impressive rocks on the south ridge of Qingliang Peak. But in order to clearly appreciate the entire south ridge, I spent more than one effort.
Qingliangfeng profile
Altitude : 1787.4 meters
Location: The junction of Jixi County and She County in southeast Anhui and Lin'an City in northwest Zhejiang
Mountain range : Tianmu Mountains (main peak)
Features : The first peak in western Zhejiang, with landforms such as peak forest and peak "tableland"
First exploration of the South Ridge: Regretfully returned due to rain
The first time was on a cloudy day in May. My companions and I drove to Yinlongwu Village, Qingliangfeng Town, Lin'an, and started climbing with our tents. After climbing for 6 hours through dense forests and waterfalls, we finally reached the top of the mountain. Just before sunset, I caught a glimpse of the south ridge scenery.
▼ This picture looks towards the south ridge, but the visibility was not very good that day.
It was getting late, so we camped on the mesa next to the summit, preparing to explore the south ridge tomorrow morning. I have to say that the campsite on this peak is really an excellent camping place. It is flat, large, sheltered from the wind, and has a wide view. Unlike most mountain peaks, which are very small.
But it started to rain lightly at night, and when the alarm clock rang at 5 o'clock in the morning to watch the sunrise, I opened the tent. Wow, I want to cry! The entire field of vision was shrouded in thick fog, with visibility less than 10 meters.
▼ Experience the top of Qingliang Peak in the heavy fog
After waiting in the tent for two or three hours, the fog not only did not dissipate, but the rain became heavier and heavier. We had no choice but to pack up our tent and hurried down the mountain in the mud. We came away with no success this time, but it was a good workout.
Visiting Qingliang Peak again: The rain is heavier this time
The second time I set out was already in July. It had been rainy for days, and I finally found a cloudy weekend to set off again. This time I started from Shangtan Village on the south slope to reach the south ridge faster.
For taking public transportation, to go to Shangtan Village, you can first take the Hangzhou-Huangzhou High-speed Railway to Shexian Sanyang Station, and it is about eight kilometers from the station to the foot of the mountain. After many twists and turns, I found a car nearby that went to the foot of the mountain, and drove along the narrow and steep mountain road to the last village before the mountain. At about 1 p.m., I started hiking with heavy equipment.
On the south slope, it is a continuous climb from the starting point of 600 meters above sea level to 1500 meters above sea level, and it is very steep. The weather was uncertain during this period. When I finally walked out of the dense forest and almost reached the ridge, the mountain wind blew, and I found that the entire mountain was completely shrouded in heavy fog.
At about 1,600 meters above sea level, we have reached the south ridge. The journey I was looking forward to could have started, but the fog showed no sign of receding. The climate on the top of the mountain is really changeable.
Even so, the strange rocks on the south ridge could not stop me from showing them off.
▼Boulders are stacked like building blocks, in more than one place on the south ridge
All the stones only show part of their true appearance in the mist, adding a mysterious atmosphere.
▼ Old Man Stone, does it look like an old man sitting on a chair and looking at the scenery?
▼ The big cliff looks unfathomable in the fog
▼ The sky-facing stone pillar
The South Ridge is only two kilometers long, but this section of the road took me nearly three hours. Excluding the factor of taking photos, this section of the road requires crawling between rocks, walking through cold bamboo bushes, and going up and down among rocks. It takes time and energy . Fortunately, before dark, I finally found my way out of the south ridge and reached the summit camp. I plan to set up camp first and wait and see what the weather will be like tomorrow before deciding whether to go to the south ridge again or go straight down.
Compared to the last time we came in May, the grass in this campsite grew more lush. I set up the tent in the thick fog, and by this time I had already felt some rain. I got into the tent and finished eating. It was only around 7pm. The unique experience of camping is that there is a lot of time to spend without signal at night.
Looking through the photos I took during the day while crossing the South Ridge, I tried to take a lot of photos even though the visibility was very low, hoping that some of them would more or less reflect the strange rocks on the South Ridge. But unfortunately, most of the photos can only capture the outlines of nearby rocks, and the imposing peak forest on the south ridge was not even visible to my naked eyes. I don’t know what the weather will be like tomorrow, but there may be some hope that the clouds will clear.
It rained heavily at night, and the mountain wind outside the tent became louder and louder. I thought of a very artistic word called "Mountains and rivers fall into dreams". It is a very pleasant feeling to fall asleep peacefully listening to this kind of natural background music. Of course, the premise is that you can overcome your fear of nature.
However, I don’t know how long it took when I was in a daze, and I was woken up by the sound of beeping. It turned out that it was raining, and the raindrops were hitting the outside account. The sound was extremely loud, and it was almost impossible to sleep. To be honest, this was my first time camping in such heavy rain. I started to worry about the waterproofing of the tent because I even felt a few drops of rainwater dripping down.
Fortunately, the campground is a grassy area that absorbs water very well. No matter how heavy the rain is, it will penetrate into the soil and will not cause water accumulation, so the tent is okay inside. But if this continues, the weather will probably not get better tomorrow. If so, I have even thought about it. My article will be called "A Glimpse of the South Ridge of Qingliang Peak in Dense Fog."
Thinking that there was no hope, I turned off the alarm clock that I had woken up at 5 o'clock in the morning to watch the sunrise, and simply had a good sleep. But I didn’t expect what happened the next day that made me regret this behavior.
Early morning: An unexpected thing happened during the journey
I was probably woken up by the natural light coming through the tent. It was already very bright and the time was about 5:50. It seems that there is no sound of wind or rain outside. If it is still blocked by thick fog like last time, I will go down the mountain immediately and go back to rest early.
So I opened the tent flap.
But at that moment, I was stunned by the scene I saw through the door curtain.
It was completely different from the scene last night, and completely different from what I had seen these two times. The mountains in the distance are stacked on top of each other, and their outlines are clearly visible. After a night of heavy rain, it suddenly cleared up! I climbed out of the tent and finally saw the cool peak where I was, surrounded by mountains on all sides. The sun has been rising in the east for some time, but the clouds seem to be wrapping it around, so it is not dazzling from this direction. Looking towards the south ridge, the impressive rocks line up and stretch into the distance. This is the southern ridge that I climbed over in the heavy fog yesterday. I didn’t see its true appearance until now.
I didn't expect the rain to stop so quickly, and the happiness came so suddenly. It turns out that the most beautiful scenery often appears in the worst weather.
I put on my coat and climbed to a higher mountaintop a hundred meters away. Here, I even saw the sea of clouds, which is rare in summer. The white clouds formed a spectacular layer and solidified at a certain height on the mountainside, just like the sea surface, and at this time, the sea surface was not far from my feet.
What distinguishes the sea of clouds from clouds or mist is that it is clearly layered, rather than dispersed among the mountains. The interface of the clouds is like the sea surface, and the peaks exposed from the clouds are like isolated islands. When the temperature is high in summer, this stable interface is difficult to form and often evaporates, while winter is the season when seas of clouds are most common. The sea of clouds can be seen in summer, often only for a few hours when the sky clears immediately after heavy rain.
Then the scenery on the south ridge must be very different at this time, and my footsteps are already telling me what to do next. I returned to the tent, got some food, took my camera, and embarked on a four-hour round trip to the South Ridge to see the real face in the direction I came back from yesterday.
The picture of the south ridge began to unfold to me. I really regret not getting up early and missing the most beautiful glow in the sky before sunrise. According to my experience, this is the most amazing scene to watch the sunrise.
▼ The sun has risen and all the mountains are visible
▼ Looking at the lush green South Ridge from a distance
During this journey, I discovered many lifelike strange rocks. I even wanted to name them based on my feelings. Before this, I didn’t know who What records have been given to them?
▼ Golden cicada looking at the sky
▼ Monument
▼ Bare fangs
▼ Similar to many scenic spots, there are also "flying stones" here
▼ Little jumping frog
▼ Eagle beak stone
▼ The "Four Heavenly Kings" here have been named by those who came before them, and they are even written on the rocks.
▼ And I really can’t think of what to call this stone pillar.
In fact, as I walked, the sun rose and the temperature increased. The clouds that were originally "solidified" into a flat surface began to spread and rise. This is why seas of clouds are not common in summer.
In Qingliang Peak, daylilies are one of the wildflowers that grow most vigorously. In addition, I also saw other amazing flowers and plants. They bloomed freely among the rocks, in the grass, and on the mountain tops, showing the courage of life. I wanted to record them more or less.
Speaking of strange rocks and peaks, people will think of Huangshan Mountain, Sanqing Mountain, Zhangjiajie, etc. Their large scale and unique geology and landforms are breathtaking. This is why they have become world natural heritage. But the south ridge of Qingliang Peak gives people the feeling of being raised in a boudoir and unknown to others. Walking on this road, there is an excitement of discovery, as if it is a gift secretly left to you by nature . There are no crowds in the scenic area, and it is a kind of pleasure that I can only enjoy the beautiful scenery between heaven and earth.
Due to natural weathering such as water erosion and gravity collapse, these stone pillars all face the same direction, which is both spectacular and magical.
After reaching the other end of the south ridge, I returned the same way. I walked this stretch of the south ridge three times and experienced completely different feelings. I often exclaim like this - Oh, it turns out this is the rock I saw yesterday, it turns out it is so spectacular from this perspective.
▼ This is a deep valley with cliffs on both sides, just like a window through which you can see the mountains in the distance.
On the way back, the view was still very wide.
At about 10 a.m., I returned to the summit camp, packed up my tent, and prepared to descend with satisfaction. At this time, I found that I was already hungry.
▼ This is the top of Qingliang Peak located at the junction of Anhui and Zhejiang
▼ "Toad Rock" is located on the west side of the peak. On the grass in the distance is the tent where we camped last night.
In order to go down the mountain faster, I chose to go down the north slope from the peak to Yinlongwu, Lin'an, Zhejiang. This road was also the first time I went up the mountain, and it was relatively easier to walk.
▼ Rocky landforms are relatively rare on this road. This "Wanxiang Stone" is located several hundred meters down from the peak.
▼ This lifelike “stone frog” has even become the symbol of the northern slope of Qingliang Peak
I returned to Yinlongwu Village at three o'clock in the afternoon, and after a total of six bus trips, I finally returned to Hangzhou at around 7 o'clock in the evening, completing an unexpected and worthwhile route.
This hiking experience is quite unique. One is the natural scenery, seeing the quartz sand rock forest landform which is relatively rare in Zhejiang; the other is the unexpected surprise after the rain. One of the joys of traveling lies in the unexpected gains. After a hard climb, the scenery that appears in front of you makes you forget all the fatigue and excitement. It is an indescribable feeling.
This is another process of independently discovering the destination, planning the itinerary, and completing the route. When you master the ability to explore the scenery independently, you will feel very free, and you will probably not be satisfied with the check-in style of traveling to scenic spots with a group. I always feel that just like in a comfortable sightseeing car or cable car, the route planned by the scenic spot slowly displays the painting-like scenery in front of you. You may take out your mobile phone and take pictures non-stop, but there is always something missing. A kind of excitement in the brain, and even aesthetic fatigue - I have already anticipated what the scenery in front of me will be like.
And after so many years, what remains in my mind must be those moments that made me excited.