Shi Bingyuntai Mountain: 50 dollars packed up a sea of karst clouds, there are so few people that you can hear the breathing of the peak forest
From Kerry to Shibing, the mountains on both sides of the highway gradually change their appearance. No longer round slopes, but suddenly pointed peaks of stone, like the green sword that God had casually inserted into the ground. "There's a black wash ahead," Uncle Cheung, who runs a farmhouse, turned the steering wheel hard, and the car was dizzy on the Panshan road. "Don't underestimate this place. It's a World Natural Heritage Site. It's 10 times cleaner than Lai Po. The ticket is only $50. It's worth the fuel."
The parking lot at the entrance of the scenic spot adds up to less than 10 cars. The ticket inspector in a blue cloth shirt was dozing on the table when he heard the sound and raised his head, "Come in, walk along the wooden canyon, 3 hours can make a circle," he pointed to the east, "If you want to see the sea of clouds, take advantage of it, now go just in time to catch the sun penetrating the peak forest.
🌄 Black Rush Peak Forest: Sea of clouds surges underfoot
By the railing of the “Observation Deck,” you can touch the shadow of the clouds. After climbing the wooden canyon for 40 minutes, I suddenly hit a sea of white clouds, the top of the peak forest drilled out of the clouds, like biscuits floating in milk. The uncle in a rush suit is holding his camera, the camera is pointed at the "penholder peak" in the distance, "Look at those three peaks, do they look like a brush?" The white air he breathed mixed into the clouds.
The call of the Echo Wall can scare a flock of birds. Standing on the edge of the cliff and calling, the sound crashing through the peak forest, the echo of “Hey—” “Hey—hey—” just fell, and dozens of chickadees “Plunge” flew out of the trees and weaved back and forth in the sea of clouds. “This stone transmits sound,” Uncle Zhang worked as a ranger there when he was young, “the villagers used to look for children and stand there and scream, and the whole village could hear it.” The lone pine on the cliff grows diagonally, its beards dig in the cracks, and the pine needles hang drops of water left by the clouds, dripping on the canyon.
The light and shadow of the "downhill road" can dye people gold. The 3pm sunlight, just in time, leaked through the crevices of the peak forest, casting long patches of light across the wooden canyons. The girl in the white T-shirt walked in the spot of light, her shadow stretched so long that she seemed to step on a web woven with gold thread. “No filter for taking pictures at this time,” he took a selfie, holding up his phone, “sunlight is the best lighting board, and the face shines through.” The ferns on the roadside were stained with dew, and the sunlight illuminated them as if they were sprinkled with broken diamonds, and in the dewdrops of a certain leaf, a scaled-down version of the peak forest was reflected.
🚶 Leisure on the hike: footsteps and mountain breeze talk
The stone benches of "Mid-Levels Pavilion" are warmed by the sun. Tired of climbing sitting in the pavilion, the wind drilled up from the valley with the scent of pine needles. The grandmother who sells roasted potatoes carries a bamboo basket up, the potatoes in the charcoal pot are "sizzling", "5 dollars a piece, ready-to-roast," she poked open the potato with chopsticks, butter popped out, "order a little chili powder, it's better Chips in the city.” The pavilion pillar is engraved with a visitor’s message, “Winter 2018, snow covered the peak forest” “Spring 2023, come with it”, the latest line is “Just dropped the ring, please pick it up!”
The decaying leaves of the "primitive forest" look like carpet when stepped on. The second half of the road drilled into the woods, and sunlight could only force its way in through the cracks of the trees, spelling out patterns like broken glass on the ground. The roots of the tree were plated on the stone, like an old man's hand holding a fist, an old hiking bag hung from a certain tree, "It was left by a donkey friend last year," said Uncle Zhang, pointing to the mud on the bag.
Next to the stone monument of "End", hides Katano Orchard. As we circled back to the starting point, we found a wild kiwi tree behind the stone monument, with green fruits hanging from the branches, as if there was no little lantern lit. "You can eat in September," Uncle Zhang picked a leaf and rubbed it, "it smells fragrant, right? It's a sign from the mountain that it's about to reach the top." Several students who had just come down the mountain were sitting by the stone monument sharing snacks.
🍲 Taste at the foot of the mountain: with the hardness of stone
The spiciness of fish in sour soup can force out the fatigue of climbing. Uncle Cheung’s farmhouse has a sour soup hot pot on a wooden table. Tomatoes and ginger are floating in the bright red soup. The fish is picked from the mountain stream ," Aunt Cheung threw vegetables into the pot, "with fish licorice, to relieve thirst." Fold a chopstick of fish meat, tender like tofu, the spiciness of sour soup mixed with the fragrance of wood ginger, eat to sweat, then drink a sip of rice wine, the whole body of the bones are loose.
The smoothness of gray alkaline dumplings can be swirled in the mouth. Gray alkaline dumplings made with glutinous rice, cut into strips and thrown into sour broth, cooked until translucent, like a piece of soft jade. “This is a specialty of Shibing,” Uncle Chang served me a bowl, “made with glutinous rice soaked in straw ash, you can’t eat it anywhere else.” It’s a bit tough to chew, absorbing the flavor of sour soup, chewier than noodles, served with fish in sour soup, one bowl is not enough for another bowl.
The aroma of stir-fried pork belly with folded ear root can spread half a street. The bacon is home-smoked, black and dark, fried in oil to be as bright as amber, and the folded ear root is dug from the mountains in the morning with mud. "Some people can't get used to this taste," said Auntie with a smile, "but those who know the goods like this smell, like the taste of the mountain fried into the dish." Folding a chopstick, the salty flavor of the pork mixed with the fishy smell of the root, the more you chew, the more addictive. Served with corn rice, you can eat two more bowls.
📍 "Effort-saving tricks" for climbing Yuntai Mountain
· What to wear: Non-slip shoes! The wooden canyon will grow moss in the rain, which is very slippery; wear a thin jacket in spring and autumn, the wind is strong on the top of the mountain, you can tie it around your waist when it's hot; don't wear white pants, it's easy to stick to mud in the primeval forest and can't wash it off.
· What to bring: A small backpack will do! Fill bottled water and a little snacks, not too heavy, climbing tiring; power bank essential, photographing the sea of clouds is very energy-consuming; garbage bag must be brought, see someone throwing plastic bottles, Uncle Cheung will chase and scold.
· How to get there: Recommended clockwise loop - entrance to the scenic area → observation deck (see the sea of clouds) → echo wall (call) → half-mountain pavilion (eat roasted potatoes) → primeval forest (shadow) → end, the whole 3.5 hours, novices can walk.
· Pit avoidance reminder: Don't believe the roadside "leading the way and taking shortcuts"! It's a wild road, dangerous; don't buy expensive water in the scenic spot, the grandmother of the half-mountain pavilion sells it cheap, 5 dollars/bottle; don't climb in the rain, although the sea of clouds is beautiful, but the road is slippery, safety first.
As I left, Uncle Zhang stuffed a bag of kiwi fruit into the trunk of my car. "It's green, it'll be ripe after a few days," he slapped the car hood. "It's best to come next March. The mountains are full of azaleas, more beautiful than the sea of clouds."
The car drove far away, and Pinnacle was still there in the rearview mirror. Suddenly I felt that the $50 ticket was too cheap - there are no crowds of people here, no commercial hawking, only peak forest, sea of clouds, mountain breeze, and people willing to walk slowly. Sometimes, the best landscapes are hidden in places that are underestimated, waiting to be measured little by little with their footsteps by those who know the goods.
Practical information
· Transportation: 2.5 hours by car in Guiyang (navigate "Shibing Yuntai Mountain Scenic Area", the last 10 kilometers are mountain roads, many bends);
· Tickets: 50 dollars/person, 60 years old and above free, students half price, super high value for money.
· Best time: March-April to see the mountain red, September-October autumn high air to see the sea of clouds, December-February occasionally snow, peak forest wearing snow hat, like ink painting.
· Egg: The "mountain store" at the entrance of the scenic spot has wild dried kiwi fruit, 20 dollars / bag, sweet and sour chewy, better than the supermarket bought pure natural.