Dayong city

(today Zhangjiajie)

with Tiamen mountains

nearby

Tianmen Mountains are in the northern Hunan Province of China, near the

city of Dayong. (Many people are confused by the name Tianmen that is similar to

the infamous Tiananmen Square, in Bejing, thousands of miles away)

To reach the summit you can take the Tongtian (avenue toward heaven) highway

which has 99 sharp turns. At its end you have to climb the Tianti (ladder to heaven)

stairs which has 999 steps. It is perhaps the Chinese way to reach heaven, scared to

death by the road and out of breath from climbing!

But all the effort is worthwhile by the magnificent things at the top. You will find there

a collapsed cave that is now a

natural stone arch, a beautiful

temple and breathtaking views.

The mountain is located only 7 miles (11Km) from the city.

You go around a big hill

…and start

climbing and

turning.

The road rises

3600 feet (1100m)

from an elevation

of 200 m to 1300 m

above sea level.

The road

construction

started in 1998

and ended in

2005, with a total

cost of only

US$13.2 million.

The road rises

steeply according

to the form of the

mountain. The 99

bends link closely

with each other

and pile up in

layers, making a

pattern of a

circling flying

dragon reaching

the skyline.

Are you already dizzy only by looking at the curves?

Do not distract the driver, he may lose control!

Fortunately there is also another way to reach the summit. There is a

cable car that starts from the city and travels 4.7 miles (7.5 Km) raising

in elevation 4200 feet (1280 m) and reaching near the summit.

It costs $38 for a

round trip, but it is

worth the money for

the great views en

route.

There are 98 cars, each

for 8 persons.

The cars are

weatherproof, but still

you will not want to be

inside during a storm.

The cable car was designed to be safe even during an earthquake.

Tianmen Cave is the natural water-eroded cave with the highest elevation in

the world. Tianmen Cave runs south-north having a height of 434 feet (131.5

meters), a width of 188 feet (57 meters) and a depth of 200 feet (60 meters). It

is much like a gate pointing towards heaven.

Tianmen Shan may be unique among the world's great arches in that its formation

is recorded in history. Documents from China's "Three Kingdoms" period report

that the entire opening formed in one cataclysmic event when the back of a huge

cave collapsed in 263 AD. Thus, Tianmen Shan is also one of the very few natural

arches with a precisely known age.

Cable car or bus, you still

have to climb the upper

stairs if you want to reach

the bottom of the arch.

The back side of the natural arch.

In modern times, Tianmen

Shan has become a target for

stunt fliers. This is due to its

location close to the

Zhangjiajie airport, as well as

its large opening.

In 1999, international stunt

flying aces piloted planes to fly

through Tianmen Cave for the

very first time. 800 million

people watched the live

coverage. In 2006, the Russian

Air Force Aerobatic Flight

Show was held in Zhangjiajie

and many planes flew through

the arch.

Going down should be much easier.

At the western side of the

mountain summit you can

find the newly built

Tianmen Temple with an

area of 109,000 square

feet (10,000 square

meters).

Before the new temple

was built, there was a

smaller temple in the

same location in which

Buddhist Pilgrims had

worshiped since the Ming

Dynasty 400 years ago.

Hiking near the

mountain rewards

the visitor with great

views.

I hope one day I will come to visit