Huangshan Tiandu Peak, Anhui

Huangshan Tiandu Peak, Anhui Last night at the Bai'e Villa, I consulted the security guard about the route. He asked me three critical questions: "You're not going to Tiandu Peak?" "It just opened, and the weather will be good tomorrow, so it's worth going. It might close again if you're not careful. You're not going?" "It usually takes non-athletic people 3 hours to climb, but it'll probably only take you a little over 2 hours. You can go up from Laodaokou, and when you finish climbing, you'll be halfway up the mountain. Then, you can exit from Xindaokou and hike down the mountain to take the bus, which will only take an hour or so. If you're going to hike down the mountain anyway, you might as well climb Tiandu Peak." This enthusiastic security guard even planned my descent route for me. I'll think about it. Before coming, I thought there would be long lines and that it would be too steep, so I almost didn't include it in my plans. After watching the sunrise, I went to the villa for breakfast. While I was eating, someone next to me said, "Is that 'Monkey Gazing at the Sea' over there?" I looked in the direction of the voice, and sure enough, it looked just like it. I didn't see it yesterday, but I ran into it today. I set off to Yuping to see the famous Guest-Greeting Pine. There wasn't a single cloud in the blue sky, and I could see the sea of clouds from far away. The wind was blowing loudly, and today I was finally able to see Huangshan clearly. It is both beautiful and majestic. It is said that the Guest-Greeting Pine is more than 1,300 years old, waving its branches to welcome visitors from afar. I felt like I still had energy to spare, so I decided to venture into the unknown—Tiandu Peak. OMG, there was already a long line. I figured that if I could get in by 10am, I would climb it, otherwise I would change my route. The scenic area staff shouted through a loudspeaker: "The wind is very strong on Tiandu Peak today, so please assess your abilities before proceeding. The wait is estimated to be at least 3 hours, so you can go to other attractions." After waiting for about an hour, I successfully entered at 9:30am. I started up the long and steep "Meeting Ladder." There were many people and the path was narrow, so I couldn't climb quickly. I could only climb slowly, which was actually better because it wasn't tiring. Standing at a high point, I saw the people waiting on the opposite mountain like a long dragon, and I felt a sense of relief. I was glad I came early. After the straight ladder, there were winding and even narrower and steeper stone steps. I pulled on the ropes and braced myself against the rocks, climbing up step by step. As I approached Carp's Back Ridge, the wind was so strong that I felt like I could easily be blown off if I didn't hold on to the nearby rocks. I checked the time and it had been an hour. As the saying goes, it's easy to go up the mountain, but hard to go down. When I went down the mountain from Xindaokou, I realized that the path was even steeper on this side. The climbers had already begun to exhibit signs of reversion, engaging four-wheel drive. Fortunately, my reversion wasn't too obvious. It took me an hour and a half to get down to Banshan Temple, and then another hour to Ciguang Pavilion. After two consecutive days of physical activity, my legs told me they needed to rest. Don't worry, I got the message. I experienced the rain and saw the sea of clouds and sunrise in Huangshan, and I conquered Tiandu Peak. I came with excitement and left with satisfaction.