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Mount Emei (Emeishan) is situated in southwest Sichuan, 7km from Emeishan
City and 37km from Leshan City. Emeishan is one of China"s four sacred Buddhist Mountains
and has been a popular place of pilgrimage for the past 1800 years. Legend has it that
Bodhisattca Samantabhadra preached here and pictures of the elephant that supposedly
carried him up the mountain are found in many of the shrines dotted about the hillside.
There were once 150 temples and monasteries on the mountain. Today, only 30 remain and
only 20 of these are active although none are impressive sights in themselves. Although Emeishan is still hugely popular with pilgrims, (the smoke from incense and
burning paper in the temples en route stings your eyes!) the mountain is equally famous
for its spectacular scenery. The word "Emei" in Chinese means "Eyebrows of
beauty" and locals believe that the peaks of Emei resemble the eyebrows of a woman!
Towering 3099 meters high, Emei is the highest of China¡¯s mountains and as such, the
temperature here is ideal for lush vegetation and some stunning and rare plants and
wildlife. The forested slopes, hot springs and wonderful views here could keep you for
days. It is best to allow at least a couple of days to explore the low slopes of the
mountain and perhaps an additional day to make it to the peak at Wanfoding. Although the mountain is a big pilgrimage site, and becoming increasingly popular
with tourists, it is possible to escape the crowds and head off on some of the
smaller trails, exploring at your own pace. This is a wonderfully atmospheric
area, and the impressive views, scenery mixed with the sight of monks and the
sound of bells, make for one of China"s more interesting areas to explore and
discover. Chinese Net Friends" Suggestions: If you don"t care the travel spending, I think the following
itinerary is better: Baoguo Temple- Wuxiangang Bus Station- Qingyin Pavilion-
Wannian Temple Parking Lot (by cable car with RMB30 upward and RMB20 downward)-
Wannian Temple-Wannian Temple Station-Leidongping; Or skiing there in winter
at RMB50 an hour (excluding the premium and glove rent charge), then walking
to Jieyin Hall and going up the Golden Peak (Jinding) by cable car (RMB40 upward
and RMB30 downward), where you can visit Huazang Temple (I"m not very clear
about the entrance fee here, but I"m sure it is not above RMB10 each
one); After that, if you have enough time and money, you could take the train
to the Ten-Thousand Buddha Peak (Wanfoding) which is the highest peak in E"mei
Mountain and even 20 metres higher than Golden Peak. In winter, you can
go skiing in Leidongping and down the mountain directly. The car fare from Leidongping
to Baoguo Temple is RMB30 each person.
If you plan to go up the Golden Peak in winter, you"d better pay attention to the following
points:
1. Buy a pair of straw sandals because it often snows there, otherwise, you
will slip; take extra care because there are
frozen steps all over.
2. Put on more clothes such as thick stockings, down clothes and gloves, all of
which can be rented at Leidongping.
3. You should have breakfast before going up the mountain or you will feel
very cold, and I"m afraid you may have lunch a bit later there.
4. It takes a lot of physical exercise to climb the mountain, therefore, you"d better
not hurry, or you will be very exhausted. Also consider the strength of the
other people that you are traveling with.
5. If you plan to go up the mountain on foot, you need to assemble more than 5
people for this collective action and you also must prepare a map, mobile
phone, and phone number of the Police Office and Travel Consultant Office to
prevent any accidents. And you had better not climb the mountain on especially
snowy days.
Watch out for the monkeys here! Most of them are very
fat and ferocious; They will snatch the food from your hands!
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