China IV - Smelly dorm on a Mountain top

The Chinese love their mountains and love nothing more than climbing up and down them. My legs were a touch sore after walking 45kms in just over 24 hours. I spent one night on the top of the mountain in one of the most unpleasant dormitories that I have stayed in in two years of travelling.

Huang Shan Mountain (Yellow Mountain), is actually a mountain range that covers more than 460 square miles. The mountain is famed for the sharp peaks and trees clinging to the top. They are mentioned in poems and can be seen in paintings. Unesco has added Huang Shan as a world heritage site because "of its stunning landscape and its contribution to Chinese art and culture". The Olympic Relay visited shortly ater I had been, click here to read an article about it on the BBC website.

My 45km walk began at the base of the mountain. The normal way to go up is to catch a bus or taxi to take you 10kms up to the entrance at the chair lift on the Eastern side, then walk up the rest of the 6.5kms to the top. I went to the bus station and was put in a taxi only to find the taxi driver trying to charge me an exorbitant amount, so I decided I would walk the whole 16.5kms to the top taking me three and a half hours. For the privilege of walking to the top pf the mountain you have to pay, 200Y. It was pretty sweaty and tiring. I timed it well to miss the crowds. The good thing about the Eastern steps is that they are covered by trees and they are not as steep as their Western counterpart. I watched the sunset amongst the pine tree clad peaks.

I then went to Paiyunlou hotel and stayed in a dorm (140Y). While the mountain top did not seem too busy the hotel was packed. While the room seemed quite new and appeared clean. It stank of stale sweat, more akin to a dirty gym than a place to sleep. I went for a wander and returned to the dorm. It was full. The smell was even worse when full. I wasn't quite sure why it was so smelly when there was a shower ensuite. The Chinese are not the quietest at the best of times and sharing a dorm with them proved to be no exception. The Chinese act as one big family so they don't have the same hang ups that we might have around strangers. A young guy was happily shouting down his phone to someone. No one else in the room seemed to give him any attention, however, I did not want to hear him shouting all night so I indicated to him it would be best if he went outside. He quietened down only for the guy in the bunk above mine to start shouting into his phone. Once all of the shouting died down the rumble of snoring from every corner grew. I did my best to shake beds to stop them, but I could not manage three beds at a time. Then the cold seaped into the room and I was beginning to lose my good humour.

Luckily I was up early at 4.30am to get down to Refreshing Terrace for the sunrise. For Sunrise the hotel provides thick coats for free. Across the mountain various rocky out crops have been given various peculiar names. "The Peacock playing the Lotus", "Watching Fairy Peak", "Bookcase Peak", "Monkey Watching the Sea", "Heavenly Dog watching the Moon", Immortal walking on stilts", and "Eyebrow Peak" to name but a few. I headed off into the Grand Canyon (or Illusions Scenic Area) for a three hour walk back to the peak. I did not realise what I was letting myself in for. The engineers who decided to attach pathways to the edge of these huge statues of rock must have had a job on their hands. The paths are perched precariously on the edge of the rocky outcrops. The scenery along the walk up and down the Grand Canyon was spectacular, matching the steepness of steps up each side.

An amazing sight walking up either set of steps is the locals carrying things up or down. For some reason they don't use the chair lifts to take everythng up and down. Men have bamboo poles that they dangle goods on each end. I even saw a generator being carried by four men down the 6.5km Eastern steps. You can even be carried up or down in a sedan chair.

When I made it back to the summit the crowds had started arriving. One of the things you discover in China is that the Chinese live for the weekend. The weekend arrives they jump on trains and go and visit their tourist sites. When you travel you forget what day of the week it is, in China it is all important to time where you are for the weekends. I visited Huang Shan mountain from Tunxi. While it was not the weekend that did not stop the crowds emerging. The locals do not seem to believe in being prepared to climb the mountain. I often saw Chinese women wearing short skirts and high heels!I met a Western couple who visited the mountain over a weekend and said it was awful. They spent most of their time fighting their way through the crowds. I had a bit of a crowd to fight through on the Western steps on my way down. Although once I got passed the top cable car entrance the crowds thinned out. The Western steps seemed to go on forever. Whenever I thought I had reached the end there was another corner to turn and another row of steps.

I would certainly recommend a trip to Huang Shan and its great to be there for sunset and sunrise, just watch out for the dorms. I caught the bus from Tunxi to Tangkou the major town at the bottom of the mountain. There is not a great deal in the town although I did find Mr Hu helpful, and he'll probably find you when you arrive. I booked my hostel on top of the mountain through the hostel I stayed in in Tunxi. I stayed in the YHA in Tunxi which was excellent. The staff were very friendly and helpful and the hostel's facilities were excellent.