7 Days in Tianmu Mountain

Plan on 90 km and about two hours from Hangzhou — metro line 16 (2020) to Lin'an, then roughly 25 km by bus or taxi. Evening light on the temple, founded in 1665 and rebuilt after the 1941 bombing.

1. tianmu shan chanyuan temple

The signed stone path gains about 700 m over 4 km from the temple forecourt (around 330 m) to Kaishan Old Hall near 1,100 m, under ancient Chinese firs; the reserve dates to 1956 and entered the UNESCO Man-and-Biosphere network in 1996.

1. tianmu shan big tree kingdom
2. tianmu shan kaishan old hall

Above the old hall the trail pushes to the 1,506-metre west summit; the east peak measures 1,478 m. On the descent, look for the multi-trunk ancient ginkgo billed as over 12,000 years old, and the signboard story of the Tianmu oak, whose wild stand once fell to five trees.

1. tianmu shan west peak
2. tianmu shan ancient ginkgo

The east scenic area pairs a cableway option with stone paths past the Zhaoming halls, which recall the 6th-century crown prince said to have studied here, and the East Falls below the 1,478-metre east peak. Dress modestly inside the halls.

1. tianmu shan east tianmu

Morning in the boulder gorge, then an easy afternoon threading village lanes, tea plots and persimmon trees around the mountain's townships.

1. tianmu shan grand canyon
2. tianmu shan village lanes

An honest long-drive day — Daming Shan lies some 60 km southwest in the same Lin'an district, near 1,490 m at the top, with old tungsten-mine tunnels cut into the ridge and, in most winters, a small ski field from December to February.

1. tianmu shan damingshan

Start early — canyon boardwalks, then Zhinan's terraces near 600 m with colour from late October into November. If time allows, the pond-cypress lake at Qingshan sits on the road out toward the Hangzhou metro.

1. tianmu shan taihu source
2. tianmu shan zhinan village