14 Days in Quzhou

After 1128, when the 48th-generation descendant Kong Duanyou moved south, Quzhou became the family's second seat — the temple has kept the line for nearly 900 years. Evening on the Shuitingmen wall and riverside lanes.

1. quzhou shuitingmen street
2. quzhou southern confucius temple

Villagers draining fish ponds found the first cavern in 1992; 24 are mapped on Phoenix Hill, five are open, floors run as deep as 30 m and the walls keep their chisel marks. Nearby Lanke Hill keeps the woodcutter-and-go legend.

1. quzhou longyou grottoes
2. quzhou lanke mountain

Three slabs of red sandstone — Lang Peak 819 m — joined the serial China Danxia World Heritage listing in August 2010; the slot crack between the slabs shades the whole climb. Xu Xiake logged three visits here.

1. quzhou jianglang mountain

The Ming-Qing frontier town counts residents of more than 140 surnames speaking some 13 dialects; above it the pass road cut by Huang Chao's army in 878 climbs the ridge toward Fujian. Overnight in Nianbadu's lanes.

1. quzhou nianbadu ancient town
2. quzhou xianxia pass

Thousands of Buddha figures carved from single tree roots fill the 5A park (rated 2013) — allow a slow morning, then ride north into Kaihua's hills for the night.

1. quzhou root palace

Under Lotus Peak (1,136.8 m), boardwalks cross the forest reserve where the stream that becomes Hangzhou's tidal Qiantang river gathers; bring layers — the valley air runs cold even in summer.

1. quzhou qiantang source

Ladder walkways bolted to the gorge walls climb past waterfalls; half a day suffices, with a spicy duck-head supper back in town.

1. quzhou tianji longmen

The Huangnitang section was ratified in 1997 as China's first GSSP — a "golden spike" fixing the global reference point for a stage of the Ordovician, some 460 million years back. Small museum, quiet hillside.

1. quzhou huangnitang gssp

An honest neighbor day — an hour east to Lanxi in Jinhua prefecture, where descendants of Zhuge Liang laid out a bagua-patterned village some 700 years ago; the maze of lanes still works. Back to Quzhou by evening.

1. jinhua

An honest neighbor day toward Anhui — HSR to Huangshan North, then Shexian's Huizhou old city with the carved stone archway of 1584 over its main street and the stepped Yuliang river dam below. Long day, return by evening.

1. huangshan

Granite boulders stack like sacks along the Fujian border; Xu Xiake logged the climb in 1620, and the paths between the boulder heaps still follow his line of march. Half a day from Jiangshan town.

1. quzhou fugai mountain

A second pass through the water-gate lanes — teahouses, the xian-city-wall walk, and night-market grilled cakes; no tickets, no timetable.

1. quzhou shuitingmen street

One more easy morning under Lanke Hill's rock overhang, a long lunch, and train tickets sorted before the spicy farewell dinner.

1. quzhou lanke mountain

A quiet hour in the Confucius courtyard, then Quzhou station — about 80 minutes to Hangzhou on the HSR, with Shanghai beyond.

1. quzhou southern confucius temple