Mount Sanqingshan

Sanqingshan is another under-reviewed WHS in this part of Central-East China: the last report dates from a visit 7 years ago. I got there in May 2024 from the hub of Shangrao, where I took a private Didi taxi to take me in 70 minutes via a toll highway to the site’s Southern Cable Car station (a.k.a. Waishuangxi station). I visited on a Monday and there were no queues. After buying your ticket (entrance + cable car rides = 252 yuan in total) near the Hilton hotel, you have to walk up via a shopping/restaurant street to reach the lower cable car station.

The site is part of our Visual effects of Cloud, Fog and Mist connection and its OUV (one criterion only) relies on the granite peaks that are shaped by vegetation and continuously changed visually by meteorological effects. Although it was dry downhill, it had started raining when I arrived at the upper cable car station. It was bad enough that I needed to buy a bright yellow raincoat on site for 25 yuan, with which I blended in nicely with the Chinese visitors. Half an hour later it got dry uphill as well and I did not need the raincoat anymore for the rest of the morning.

There are signs with maps that show trails that you can hike, but all seem to involve a fair bit of step-climbing (I can testify that even in 2024 it is possible to hire 2 porters to carry …

[Visited, 16 Sep 2017]

Fresh from 2 day hike of Huangshan, a friend and I took the train from Huangshan North to Shangrao. We arrived past 5 PM so no more buses were available. A taxi to our guesthouse near Jinsha cableway, costed 150 RMB for over an hour drive.

Sanqingshan was one of my most memorable WHS visit. The adventure began upon arrival to our guesthouse. We inadvertently started a rift between two neighboring guesthouse owners. We mistakenly went to a wrong one but the owner did not care - it was shoulder season and he needed revenue. At 10 PM the correct guesthouse called asking where we were. We shared our Wechat location, baffled as we thought we already checked in. The correct guesthouse owner then proceeded to get us. An argument ensued between both owners, forced the wrong one to reimburse our payment and ended with us moving guesthouses in the middle of the night.

Dinner was also equally amusing. Restaurants were already closed when we arrived, and we mimed our way to asked a lady on the street where we can grab food. She abruptly left, so we assumed she did not understand. A few minutes later, she reappeared with a live chicken in tow. We tried telling her again that we needed food to eat and not a chicken to cook. The lady again suddenly walked away while we continued our search. Unsuccessful and famished, we begrudgingly walked back to our guesthouse. To …

I went to this WHS in the summer of 2102. I have been to most of WHS in China, and Mt Sanqingshan is one of the most beautiful one. It was easy to go form a famous ancient village Wuyuan in Jiangxi province. The mountain's high light is a huge stone which look like a cobra, and the plank road on the cliff is really worth to go.