Mt Xiqiao is located in Foshan, Guangdong China. With an average altitude of just 300m, it seems far and high from the ground though. There are many attractions to explore in the national park. The icon of the mountain is the 61.9m height of Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy) statue, which coincides with one of the birthdates of Goddess of Mercy on 19th day of 6th month in the lunar calendar.
There are 3 entrances to the mountain, with main entrance from the north. I started my hike from the north entrance. The main trail is well paved along the main tarred road, but in between there are smaller inner jungle routes with fresh air and lots of greeneries. The inner jungle trails are well connected from one place to the other. As the higher I walked, the fresher the air is felt.
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| North gate entrance |
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| A hike in a green lung |
After about 45 mins of hiking, I reached the key destination, Baiyun Temple where the Guanyin statue is. As I walked toward the first temple, I was impressed by the structure of the building. I adore the wooden doors. Behind the main temple are the stairs to heaven, towards Guanyin statue. I anticipated to see the statue after climbing the flights of stairs. However, I was greeted by another view of ancient temple. It was the same for the next 1-2 ancient temples after few flights of stairs behind each temple. Finally, the Goddess of Mercy statue emerged majestically far atop the mountain with many more flights of stairs to climb! It was a real hike.
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| View of Foshan City from Baiyun Temple |
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| Ancient temple |
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| Can you see the flight of stairs behind the temple? |
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| So near yet so far |
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| Up and up.. |
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| View from the top |
After paying a respect to the Guanyin, I explored Tianhu Lake by walking through a jungle trail. It is a peaceful lake where one can walk a big round around the lake.
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| Tianhu Lake |
I hiked up again to explore few gardens with a local village in the national park, mainly Azalea Garden, Osmanthus Garden and Bamboo Garden. Walking along the jungle trails provided a sense of peace and happiness that could only be found in the nature. The exploration ended with a passing through a local village where there were small stalls selling local produce and soybean curds. My trip ended with a ride back to main entrance.
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| Azalea Garden |
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| Passing through a local village |
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| A house in a national park |
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| Serenity |
