After Visiting Huangshan, No Other Mountain Is Worth Seeing: Beautiful Winter Scenery of Huangshan

I visited Huangshan once in the summer of 2021. At that time, I already thought about visiting Huangshan in winter as well. At the end of 2022, I finally fulfilled this little wish. Actually, this trip to Huangshan was not just about climbing the mountain; I also explored the areas around Huangshan City.

Because the country had just reopened, I specifically rented a car from Yihai Car Rental. Their branch is located right inside the Huangshan North Station parking lot, making pick-up and return extremely convenient. One important thing to mention is that Yihai Car Rental has a very rich selection of car models, and the price range is wide, so you can easily choose a car you like. This time we rented a Feidu, which was great value for money.

On this visit to Huangshan, I saw the snow accumulation. Actually, I had been keeping an eye on the weather forecast for this trip. When I saw the forecast predicting snow in Huangshan, I headed there decisively. So this time, I saw incredibly beautiful rime ice, and I felt completely satisfied.

Climbing Huangshan in the depths of winter truly is a challenging journey. When we reached the foot of the mountain, we felt extremely cold. But later, as we climbed, our bodies gradually felt warmer. This shows that mountain climbing is quite a strenuous activity.

The weather was excellent on the day we came. The sky was especially blue, presenting a very pure color. There were countless peaks around Huangshan, layers of mountains rising one after another. Instead of climbing from the start, we chose to take the cable car up the mountain, which took us directly to Yuping Peak. Getting off the cable car and looking down at the distant flatlands, I felt like I was overlooking my beautiful country. Standing there, one also feels a sense of tranquility.

After that, we went to Yixian Tian (One Line Sky). You must be careful at Yixian Tian because this section is indeed very steep. Yixian Tian is particularly narrow, and combined with the steepness, it made our hearts pound as we climbed. Then we continued on and reached Aoyu Peak. Finally, we arrived at Guangming Summit (Bright Summit). After reaching Guangming Summit, we could rest for a while. The view from Guangming Summit was exceptionally vast.

There is a youth hostel at Guangming Summit. We rested here for a bit. After waking up from a nap, we could go in search of the sunset. "Lift your head, the red sun is near; turn back, white clouds are low" — although this line describes Huashan, it can also describe Huangshan very well. Standing on the mountain and looking at the distant setting sun, it seemed to be right beneath your feet. This shows how steep and majestic Huangshan is. And look, the white clouds are indeed underfoot.

We got up very early the next day, mainly wanting to see the sunrise. But the spot we chose that day was not ideal, and the sun was just blocked. So instead, we saw a red moon, haha.

After watching the sunrise, we went for breakfast. After eating, we continued on. This time we saw the scene of "Monkey Gazing at the Sea." The so-called monkey is a solitary monkey perched on the mountain peak. Although lonely, it has been guarding the vast mountains and all things for thousands of years, which can be considered a kind of carefree spirit.

Leaving Monkey Gazing at the Sea, we went to Miaobi Shenghua (Exquisite Brush Writes Flowers). I had to admire people's imagination — look at this rock, doesn't it look just like a brush tip? And the pine tree on top of it really looks like a beautiful flower.

Continuing on, this time we visited Shixin Peak (Beginning to Believe Peak). I was really nervous while visiting here. I had never seen such a deep cliff before. And the rocks here were truly as if cut by a knife, extremely sharp. Seeing these rocks made my heart tighten.

After that, we walked a bit further and then returned to the inn. Two strangers came into the inn. When we asked, it turned out they were just like us, specifically here to enjoy the snow scenery. Importantly, they came with a purpose — to take photos of the snowy landscape. Upon further inquiry, they turned out to be masters in the photography world, having won both Chinese and Korean photography awards. I was truly impressed.

Look at the snow accumulation here — a thick layer. We were in such a good mood to encounter snowfall on our arrival day. Actually, this was already the third day of our trip. We got up very early in the morning, mainly to chase the sunset. In the dim light, the Feilai Stone (Flying Over Rock) looked completely different from usual. At night, even this rock was full of mystery.

Next, we saw many beautiful and moving scenes — countless rime ice formations. Only by seeing rime ice in person can you truly feel its charm. They simultaneously outline the original shape of the branches and add other highlights to them.

Although I couldn't take particularly artistic photos like the photographers, I was already very satisfied with these pictures.

In my opinion, what these rime ice formations present to us is a kind of natural, mysterious, wild beauty. Actually, in some places, the trees hadn't formed rime ice yet, but even those trees were quite beautiful.

And so, after the snow, we still made it to Feilai Stone on our walking sticks. Feilai Stone is a must-visit spot. Here, there is an endless sea of clouds. Standing on the mountaintop, looking at so many clouds below, ethereal and romantic, I suddenly understood the meaning of life that people struggle to pursue. Perhaps, all our lives, we are seeking those unmissable beauties for ourselves.

The sea of clouds here indeed gives one a feeling of riding on clouds and mists. Then, looking up, I saw such a huge Feilai Stone. Just seeing it from a distance was awe-inspiring.

After that, we continued on and visited the West Sea Grand Canyon. This grand canyon is a well-known small attraction in the area. Actually, due to the snowfall, the end of our itinerary was basically the West Sea Grand Canyon; some areas had been temporarily closed. This also shows how perilous Huangshan is.

Then, we also saw a lot of ice shards here. Look at these ice shards — they had formed into small sticks. When I was a child, I used to look for such ice sticks, break them off, and eat them like popsicles. Now that I'm grown up, I no longer have such an obsession with them, haha.

Continuing forward, we once again saw this almost vertical cliff. See, nature always gives us many surprises.

After that, we returned to the hotel. There were some food options at the hotel. Since climbing the mountain was so tiring, we rested at the hotel for a while. After leaving the hotel, we went back to Monkey Gazing at the Sea. There, we saw very beautiful snowy scenery. Perhaps because this scenery was so beautiful, I felt that the "monkey" seemed to appreciate the view more attentively, haha.

It wasn't until the morning of the fourth day that we truly saw the sunrise in the proper sense.