Xiangshi Mountain Scenic Area

Xiangshi Mountain, originally named Monkey Valley Mountain, rises on the hills near Houshangen Village in Hengxi Town of our county. A beautiful local legend tells the origin of the mountain:

Long ago, Lord Hu, who attained immortality, sought a path to ascend to heaven. After searching far and wide, he set his sights on Monkey Mountain. He then transformed a pile of stones into black pigs, which trekked across mountains and rivers to the Heavenly Gate atop Monkey Mountain, where he planned to build a ladder to the celestial realm. Halfway up the mountain, he chanced upon a woodcutter. To test his magic power, Lord Hu asked the man, “What do you see here?” The woodcutter replied, “These are just piles of rocks.”

Seeing his spell exposed, Lord Hu mounted a cloud and departed for Fangyan in Yongkang, where he achieved full immortality and ascended to heaven. The clusters of rocks he left behind scattered across every peak, evolving into a host of marvelous stone formations that make up today’s scenic wonders.

Xiangshi Mountain features Danxia landform. Towering sheer cliffs, suspended stone beams, crisscross gullies, gurgling brooks, lush vegetation, singing birds and blooming flowers fill the area, with tranquil seclusion as its most distinctive charm. Professor Yu Xuecai, Director of the Tourism Research Institute at Southeast University, visited here and composed a poem in praise: One cave links a hundred grottoes; A thousand peaks share one boundless sky. Every valley blushes with oil-tea green; All ridges glow with Danxia crimson dye. Mountains and rivers form the bones of the land; Immortal spirits fill its beating heart. Human craft blends with nature’s perfect art, Surpassing the grand landscapes of Jing and Guan.

Covering an area of around 10 square kilometers, Xiangshi Mountain Scenic Area encompasses six sub-zones: Golden Monkey Valley, Lovers’ Valley, Tiger Crouching Gorge, Natural Stone Bridge, Moon Pond and Stone Sky Crack, with over 80 scenic spots in total. Attractions including the Immortal Monkey Welcoming Guests, Dinosaur Fossils, Nine Dragons Cave, Divine Turtle Pining for Her Spouse, Fuqiu Hermitage, Immortal Meeting Pavilion, Abandoned Horse Stream, Horse Worship Stream, Immortal Ascension Altar and Prince Qiao’s Immortalization Site line the landscape like immortals standing in procession. The faint chirps of monkeys echo intermittently, making visitors linger, reluctant to leave.

Standing atop a peak and gazing far into the distance, you behold rows upon rows of mountains in countless unique shapes. Sheer precipices and jagged bizarre rocks stand everywhere, with steep summits rising abruptly from the ground. The crimson cliff faces resemble blazing rosy clouds, while pine and bamboo groves covering the hills look like dancing musical notes. Emerald bamboo, green woodlands, exotic peaks, secluded ravines and opposing sheer rock walls stretch endlessly. The stone summits, erected straight out of the earth, stand row on row, forming a magnificent and uniquely distinctive landscape.