Dr. Mark Nan Tu

The village at the foot of the hill with the golden top at the back

The village which has been here for hundreds of years

The Miaofeng Mountain Scenic Area is located in the Mentougou District some 55 kilometers from downtown Beijing. It is one of the scenic areas in Beijing for the ancient temples, pines, rocks, and flowers.

The top of the mountain Jingding or (golden top) is 1,291 meters above sea level. Apart from beautiful natural scenery, the mountain is also famous for its largest traditional temple fair in north China. This tradition started in the Ming Dynasty and is still preserved nowadays.

Because of its dense vegetation, the area has high concentration of fresh air. There is a paved road leads to the golden top which allows access by care. There is also a well developed ancient trail that connects the village at the bottom of the hill to the golden top.

We parked out car at the village at the bottom of the hill. We then followed the ancient road sign and started hike up the mountain. The road is build with stones and some of them were destroyed over the years. It took us about one hour to reach the golden top. The hike is free but the entrance to the golden top scenic area is 30RMB. After paying the entrance fee, we were in are rather large area of temples and pagodas. This temple was build in Ming dynasty and each year, during April, there is a two week temple fair that drew artists, craftsmen and merchants from the surrounding areas.

The one hour hike to the top is rather easy with well marked signs and visible destinations. The view from the top is magnificent. I climbed the MiaoFeng mountain many times during my stay in Beijing and each time it has provided me with new found inspirations.

The ancient road is not maintained by well marked

The golden top

The temple and the pagoda at the top

View from the top

MiaoFeng Mountain in Winter

The golden top in Winter

Mentougou district of Beijing is in the distance