San Qing Shan, Jiangxi, China

5KodoDrummer 5:00 PM Dec 19, 2018

The Taoist sacred Trinity summits & awesome mountain scenery
It is amazing as to the very close similarity between many religions. At this Taoist sacred site the three most renowned summits, Yujing, Yushui, and Yuhua represent the Taoist Trinity. The latter represent the Three Pure Ones (aka, the Three Divine Teachers, The Three Purities). This is very alike to the Christian Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The 229 square kilometres San Qing Shan national geopark mountain has many spectacular, unique shaped rocks. There is a continuos stream of beautiful panoramic views from the trail through the mountains and in many locations, built onto and attached to the cliff walls. In some locations the handrails are comprised of chains, often loaded with “love locks.” This is a great place to reflect on our beautiful world. San Qing Shan is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

5LG_Kay 5:00 PM Sep 30, 2018

1 day hiking for independent traveler
This is my second time I visited Sanqingshan. Allow me to share my experiences with you. Transportation: I prefer the high-speed train, which is relatively cheap and comfortable. The nearest station is Yushan South Station 玉山南. After arriving at train station, there are 3 options to Jinsha 金沙, where the East Cable Car Station is located, depending on costs and time: 1. For the budget conscious, if you arrive before 18:00hr, you can take a bus. The ticket office is inside station building, on the left side with a green signage, just after your gantry exit. Fare is 20rmb, but journey is a long 2 hours. Bus will first go to the city, then need to walk about 100m to bus station, change to another mini bus to Jinsha. Mini bus is in pathetic condition as the seats are old and worn. Kindly see one of my photos for bus schedule, both directions. 2. Alternatively, you can take a shared cab at 30 rmb per pax, but requires 6 to go. As the 3 of us went in end Sep (off peak season), there isn't anyone to share the cab. Hence, we took the bus option. 3. Last option is to hire the tout cab gathering at the train station exit. The last time I paid 150rmb direct to Jinsha, journey only 1 hour. Accommodation: I highly recommend staying at ELBA Garden & Resort hotel, which is probably the best hotel at Jinsha. It is located just next to the cable car station. Kindly see my separate review of hotel. Exploring Sanqingshan: At the mountain base ticket office, first purchase entrance ticket 150rmb plus cable car 2-way 125 rmb, total 275 rmb. As we were there during off peak season, there wasn’t any queue for the cable car. Cable car took 10 to 15 mins to the top of mountain. Weather was fine in the early morning. We decided to take advantage of good weather to first cover the 2 landmark formations - Oriental Goddess 东方女神 and Python Out of Mountain 巨蟒出山. After that, we continued in clockwise direction to explore entire region as follows: Jade Platform 玉台, West Coast Scenic Area 西海岸景区, Sunshine Coast Scenic Area 阳光海岸景区, and back to Jinsha. We had intermittent light shower in later morning and early afternoon. It took us about 7 hours for the entire hike. Certain parts of the hike are easy, basically flat on cliff side walkways along the mountain. Other parts are more challenging, with many steps to climb up & down. Hence, wear comfortable shoes. Overall, Sanqingshan is much quieter compared to Huangshan. It is worthwhile to visit this place if you have 2 days to spare, allowing 1 day for transport. If you find this post helpful in planning your trip, kindly click "Helpful". Thanks so much.