A 40-minute bus trip west of Túnxī brings you to the lush mountain panoramas of Qíyún Mountain. Long venerated by Taoists, the reddish sandstone rock provides a mountain home to the temples and the monks who tend to them, while mountain trails lead hikers through some stupendous scenery.
From the bus drop-off, cross the Dēngfēng Bridge (登封桥, Dēngfēng Qiáo) – dwelling on the luxuriant river views – and turn right through the village at the foot of the mountain for a 75-minute clamber up stone steps to the ticket office. Or ask the driver to drop you at the cable car (索道, suǒdào; up ¥26, down ¥14) station ahead and do the circuit in reverse.
Beyond the ticket office, the Zhēnxiān Cave (真仙洞府, Zhēnxiān Dòngfǔ) houses a complex of Taoist shrines in grottoes and niches gouged from the sandstone cliffs. Further on, seated within the smoky interior of the vast and dilapidated Xuán Tiān Tàisù Gōng (玄天太素宫) is an effigy of Zhengwu Dadi, a Taoist deity. A further temple hall, the Yùxū Gōng (玉虚宫), is erected beneath the huge brow of a 200m-long sandstone cliff, enclosed around effigies of Zhengwu Dadi and Laotzu.
A charming village, Qíyún Village (齐云村, Qíyún Cūn), is seemingly plonked in the middle of the mountain range, its whitewashed buildings home to a variety of restaurants, souvenir stalls and friendly residents.
Tourist buses run directly to Qíyún Mountain (¥8.50, 40 minutes) from Túnxī’s Huángshān Tourist Distribution Centre , leaving hourly from 8am to 4pm. This bus can drop you at the Dēngfēng Bridge (登封桥; dēngfēng qiáo) or the cable-car station (索道; suǒdào). Otherwise, take any Yīxiàn-bound bus from Túnxī and ask the driver to stop at Qíyún Shān. Returning to Túnxī, wait at the side of the road for buses coming from Yīxiàn; however, note that the last bus from Yīxiàn to Túnxī departs at 5pm. The last tourist bus departs at 4pm.
