Cangyan Mountain 苍岩山

About Cangyan Mountain

Fuqing Temple's Bridge-Tower Hall stands on a stone arch spanning the gap between cliffs, creating the view that made the mountain familiar to film audiences. Cypress and blue sandalwood trees soften the rock faces, while stone steps connect the lower gorge with temple buildings above. The appeal is the close relationship between the bridge, cliff and shrine, so allow time to look up from below as well as from the higher paths.

Fuqing Temple (福庆寺), built against the cliff face, was first constructed in the Sui dynasty and has stood for more than a thousand years. According to local tradition, it was where Princess Nanyang (南阳公主), a daughter of the Sui emperor, left her family to practice religious cultivation; her shrine holds a statue of her and murals depicting her devotion and her practice of medicine to help others. The scenic area is a national 4A tourist attraction (国家4A级旅游景区).

Other principal structures include an academy (书院), the Hall of Ten Thousand Immortals (万仙堂), a princess shrine (公主祠) and Jade Emperor Peak (玉皇顶). The Bridge-Tower Hall (桥楼殿), one of China's three suspended temples, is supported by a stone arch spanning the gorge with a 15-meter span and stands 52 meters above the ground; a staircase of more than 360 steps leads up beneath it.

Cangyan Mountain lies in Cangyanshan town, about 30 kilometers southeast of the Jingxing (井陉) county seat, forming the eastern end of the Taihang mountain range with its highest peak at an elevation of 1,000 meters. The scenic area covers 63 square kilometers, though other figures put it at 180 square kilometers.

What to look for

• Bridge-Tower Hall and the stone arch carrying it across the gorge.
• Fuqing Temple's hillside buildings among cliff-side trees and rock formations.

Location & getting there

Getting to Cangyan Mountain

Head to 苍岩山风景区 beside Pingshe Road in Jingxing County. This is the mountain scenic area southwest of Shijiazhuang, not a city-centre temple.

• The documented route contains substantial stone stairways; use the entrance map to choose a return route suited to your mobility.