◎Jiufeng Mountain

The Jiufeng Mountain Natural Scenic Area has a majestic and steep terrain with many strange rocks, and it also has abundant natural resources, pleasant climate and unique natural scenery. Hundreds of species of precious medicinal herbs grow in the mountains, and more than 200 species of wild animals live there. It, together with the Great Wall Hunting Ground (10 kilometers to its east), Tangquan Royal Tourist Resort (30 kilometers to its west), the Imperial Tombs - Eastern Tombs of the Qing Dynasty (45 kilometers to its west), and Taohuagou (35 kilometers to its south), forms “Miles of the Great Wall Golden Tour Route,” which is a good place for the whole family to travel on weekends. In the scenic area, the vegetation is luxuriant and the natural ecology is well protected, with the forest coverage rate of over 95 percent. The Jiufeng Mountain, also known as the Santai Mountain, comprises front, middle and back platforms. The front platform is flat, where many monks used to learn martial arts. The middle platform is steep, which is widely known as the Sacrificing Platform. The back platform is so dangerous that it has been visited by very few people. The Sacrificing Platform is a boulder that is several meters high, whose top is a 10-square-meter platform engraved with lotus and checkerboard patterns. According to legend, a Buddha once practiced in this mountain. In order to promote Buddhism, he sacrificed himself and jumped off the cliff and turned into a lotus flower, so later this platform was called Sacrificing Platform. On the middle platform perches the Qiyun Temple which has a construction area of 2,100 square meters. There is an ancient temple on the upper right side of the Qiyun Temple. At the top of the mountain are the Great Wall and several watchtowers, which are pretty well preserved. Qi Jiguang, the commander-in-chief of Ji Town in the Ming Dynasty, came to the mountain when he was inspecting defense work on the Great Wall. He once wrote a poem titled “On the Sacrificing Platform” and carved it on the stone, which has been handed down to today. Now, the hospitable local people hold the Autumn Leaf Festival every October. When you visit the mountain at that time, you can see “frost-bitten leaves more crimson than spring blooms” and find the views of the Jiufeng Mountain, Sacrificing Platform, Old Cypress' Chanting, and Army Horse's Saddle more fascinating.(https://www.daowen.com)