The magic of Bijia Mountain

For newcomers to Bijia Mountain, actually an island on the Bohai Sea, the sight of a stone "bridge" literally disappearing beneath the water each night can be startling.

By day, the meandering causeway connecting the island to the mainland of Yiaoning province appears once again.

Ask local residents, and they will tell you it's not an ordinary path.

"It is a heavenly bridge built by two beautiful fairies," visitors are told.

Tour guides offer the less romantic explanation. It's not magic, they say.

The causeway, about 1,620 m long and 9 m wide, twice a day is submerged by rising tides and revealed again by low tides.

A timetable of tide patterns allows visitors to be in place for the reappearance of the cobblestone path that often is called a bridge.

Even at high tide, visitors can take a boat to the island, where Bijia Mountain is also called Penholder Mountain because of its shape.

Many visitors relish a barefoot walk along the stones for a natural foot massage, or delight in discovering seashells and small crabs along the path.

Bijia Mountain is one of the larger islands in the region and is located about 35 km from downtown Jinzhou.

Dense clouds often cloak the mountain.

Those who visit the island will find 20 stone temples, palaces and pavilions built during the Qing Dynasty period from 1644 to 1911. The island also holds 218 white marble sculptures.

Sanqing Pavilion at the top of the mountain houses a six-story structure of delicately carved stone windows, piers and columns.

Inside are 38 white marble statues of Buddhist and Confucius figures and Taoist gods and goddesses.

Also popular are sails around the island for a panoramic view of this popular destination.

(China Daily 08/03/2009 page8)