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Mt. Qingcheng Houshan Hiking

Mt. Qingcheng Houshan is called Qingcheng Houshan ,meaning the mountain behind Mt. Qingcheng. It is located 70km northwest to the city of Chengdu and another 15km further from Mt. Qingcheng. It is a holy shrine of Buddhism. At present it is also a tourist park but with much less visitors than Mt. Qingcheng. Qingcheng Houshan is a higher mountain at 1700 meters than Mt. Qingcheng at 1200 meters. The hiking at Mt Qingcheng Houshan is a very nice walking from Chengdu within a day.
Location/Getting there

 

Mt. Qingcheng Houshan is located 70km northwest to Chengdu City. There are public transfers can get you to the base of Mt. Qingcheng from Xinnamen Bus Station. There are several scheduled buses leaving Chengdu Xinnanmen Bus Station for Mt. Qingcheng Houshan every morning that take 1.5 hours to get to the base of Mt. Houshan Qingcheng. There are fast trains available everyday that leaves Chengdu at Xipu Station for Mt. Qingcheng. It takes about 1 hour. And after the train ride, there are public bus that go to Qingcheng Houshan by the train station that takes about half an hour to get to. And the bus will take you to Tai’an Old Town, where you start your hiking to Mt. Qingcheng Houshan. Coming back will be the same way.

Map of Mt. Qingcheng Houshan Hiking

mount-qingcheng-houshan-hiking-map.jpg
About the Hiking Trail

Mt Qingcheng is a well-managed tourist park. The hiking trail is stairs and steps all the way without any part being wild trails. Most of the trails are well-shedded in the forest. The hiking to the summit of Mt. Qingcheng Houshan can be a hard one with 8km going up and 7km coming down doing a loop hike on the mountain. The altitude gain is from 1000m at the base to the summit at 1700m. Usually the walking up takes about 3 hours and the walking down takes about 2.5 hours. The hiking is on gradual stairs with some sections steep a. The trails are well-marked.
Mt. Qingcheng Houshan is also a tourist park but with usually much less visitors except on weekends. 

Hiking Season/Weather

This hiking is available all year round. Weather pattern is similar to the weather of Qingcheng as they are very close to each other. Spring is warm and sometimes wet. Summer is hot but cool and sometimes misty and rainy. Fall is dry and warm. Winter is misty, bit cold but dry. Temperature at daytime is around 10C to 15C in winter and drops below 5C or sometimes below 0C at night. At summer it reaches over 25C during daytime and at night around 20C. Misty weather is common in Mt. Qingcheng Houshan due to its many forest and rivers, only difference is thick mist and light mist.

Planning Ideas/Time Required

 

To do a Mt. Qingcheng Houshan Hiking one only requires only 1 day starting and ending in Chengdu. Although sometimes people often combine a visit to the nearby Mt. Qingcheng, Dujiangyan Irrigation System Park or to do a Panda Volunteer Project. To have a night either at Dujiangyan Old City or in one of the Taoist Temples at Qingcheng are good ideas. 
To do Mt. Qingcheng Houshan in 1 day one starts from Chengdu in the early morning and drive or ride a train and then bus to the base of Mt. Qingcheng Houshan, walking up the trail on the west side at Tai’an Old Town and follow Wulong Gorge (Five Dragon Gorge) to walk by Youyi Village and then all the way to the summit at White Cloud Temple before come down through Baiyun Village and follow Feiquan Gorge to come back to Tai’an Old Town where it joins the trail you started. The total walking plus visiting time at all the main temples is in total about 5-6 hours. After worth go back to Chengdu the same way.

You can do this hiking by yourself if you are an experienced hiker. Although because it is not a very popular tourist place, you are recommended to use a guide to save time.

Ticket Information

 

CNY20 to entry, there is extra for using the cable car.

About Accommodations/Food of Hiking Mt. Qingcheng

There are food shops selling snacks and bottled water along the hiking trails every 2-3km and at every temple. There are restaurants at Youci Village and at Baiyun Village. Accommodations are available at Qingcheng Houshan. 

Youyi Village
A place you can stop for lunch or to drink tea or just to have a break. It is a village of supplies that you can get water, snacks, etc. It is also the lower station of the upper cable way. There are simple guesthouses available at Youci Village.

White Cloud Temple
The only temple at Mt. Qingcheng Houshan and it is a Buddhist temple. There are no accommodations not food provided by this temple. It is a very small temple. Walking up the temple is very interesting as it will be on very steep and narrow stairs. It is the highest place on the hiking trail but not actually the highest point of Mt. Qingcheng Houshan.

Baiyun Village
Baiyuan Village means White Cloud Village. It is a village similar to Youci Village where you can find restaurants and snacks and water and even simple guesthouses. Baiyun Village is also the upper station of the upper cable way.

Names of locations/places of Mt. Qingcheng Houshan in Chinese and English

Chengdu Xipu Fast Train Station: 成都犀浦动车站
Mt. Qingcheng Fast Train Station: 青城山站
Dujiangyan Fast Train Station: 都江堰站
Mt. Qingcheng: 青城山
Tai’an Old Town: 泰安古镇
Dujiangyan: 都江堰
Wulong Gorge: 五龙沟
Youyi Village: 又一村
White Could Temple: 白云寺
Baiyun Village: 白云寨
Feiquan Gorge: 飞泉沟

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