Emei Shan, as it is called in Chinese, is 3077m or 10100ft high. I decided to take the bus most of the way (2400m) and then walk the rest. The two hour bus ride was nice, winding along a river up the mountain. I knew it was going to be cold at the top, so I put on nearly every piece of clothing I had. When I got off the bus, there was a spot where you could rent a coat, but since I was walking up I figured I’d be warm enough in the near freezing temperatures.
The walk up was dangerous at times. A few days earlier there was freezing rain on the mountain so the trees were covered with ice. Today was a little warmer, so the ice was melting and falling off the trees onto the people below. I thought this is like walking up a skyscraper in a hail storm! I must have passed 50 people since I was walking up the stairs fast with little rest.
When I took the bus up, I noticed we went through a layer of clouds, so you could see clouds below. Then when I started walking, I started entering an even thicker layer of clouds. So there was snow on the ground, and so foggy you couldn’t see much of anything for a while. I was close to going through the entire winter without touching or seeing snow, but now I can tell everyone back home in Michigan that I did experience snow, for one day this year.
After a while, the sun started shining again as I passed through the layer of clouds. It is kind of amazing doing this on land. I’ve only gone through cloud layers on a plane before. It was nice to see a clear sky and the sun, but this also meant the ice was melting even faster on the trees and now it was like I was in heavy rain. I had no hat or umbrella since I wasn’t expecting anything like this!
Finally, I’m a little wet and tired, but I reach the summit. I get above all that Chinese haze and clouds and I can feel strong sunshine for once! It is so clear I can see Mount Gongga, over 100km away, and what looks like some mountains of the Himalayas to the west. I look down and I view the “Sea of Clouds” below stretching out as far as I can see. The other side of the mountain has a cliff face that falls vertically into the clouds. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. It was like I was on an island on the ocean.
There were a few temples up here and a huge 11 headed golden statue of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva riding 4 elephants with each having 6 pairs of tusks. I saw a man pointing up. I looked up and saw a 360 degree rainbow circling the sun. Not everyone gets to see this, but it is a phenomenon called “Buddha’s Halo” that occurs up here when conditions are right.
Not too many foreigners know about this place but I think it is one of the best sights in China.