by mattvegh » Tue Jan 10, 2006 12:49 am
I'm more of a recreational hiker than a trekker, but I've been to the top of Emei 5 times, since I live only an hour and half away. You can buy a topo map in the Wuhou Book Centre in Chengdu, which is the biggest book centre in the city, on the corner of the Wuhou Road and the 1st Ring Road. This is near the Wuhou Temple, which will be listed for sure in any tourist book about Chengdu, or in the Lonely Planet for sure. The book centre is a stone's throw from the Temple.
When it comes to hiking, I'm as fit as the rest of you, but I like my luxuries too, so I drive more than half way up the mountain, then jump on an established trail to get to the Gondola which will take you to the Golden Summit, where you can hob-knob with the monks in their hotel on the cheap and watch (at the time; WWE wrestling) with them on their dish. Or you can stay at the hotel for over a 100RMB, something like that, depending on the season of course, and the mood of the staff that day. That's about a 3 hour leisurely hike stopping for pics and to feed the monkeys. Now, if you are purists, you can do the whole thing from bottom to top in 6-10 hours.
Spectacular photo ops. I've got one that I couldn't put on here (I will try soon) because I haven't uploaded to my site yet, but it is of the Himalayan white-peaks you can see across the horizon from the top of Emei. And of course the sea of clouds pic is a must.
If you want to get off the beaten trail, then you may experience some trouble from the game wardens who are looking out for the bands of roving monkeys, which at times can be aggressive. I went off the path a couple times deciding to hike the riverbed (well; mountain stream) and banks. That is a definite option for you if you like to feel the nature so much.
I'll try to put some pics up in the next few days. My advice. Just come blind and discover it any way you can. You'll figure it out when you get here.
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