From the journal

A Mountain of Ridges and Made Paths

Fenghuangshan’s named rocks, constructed walkways and contemporary celebrations show how a mountain becomes a public place.

In the same city · Dandong ↗
Low sunlight illuminates steep orange rock faces above forested ridges and a sea of cloud.
Peaks and cloud at Fenghuangshan in Fengcheng, within Dandong.

An animal in the rock’s name

Fenghuangshan in Fengcheng rises to 836 metres at Zanyun Peak. Among the features named in its official description is Laoniubei, literally the old ox’s back. The name gives a ridge a bodily comparison: a shape that can be pictured before it is understood as part of a route.

Such names make a large mountain more particular. A peak, a narrow crest and a dark wind-gap walkway are different encounters with terrain. Fenghuangshan’s public identity has grown around those differences, rather than around height alone.

Building beside the rock

The scenic-area description places Heifengkou’s built walkway alongside glass walkways and a glass suspension bridge. These are modern additions to the ways people experience the mountain. The rock supplies the exposure; engineering supplies a designed position from which to encounter it.

A ridge and a glass structure can both emphasize height, but they do so through different materials. One follows the form of the mountain; the other makes its own surface and supports explicit. Their presence belongs to Fenghuangshan’s recent development as a visitor landscape.

A contemporary gathering

In April 2026, Fenghuangshan hosted a mountain-opening cultural event as part of Liaoning’s spring tourism season. The municipal report describes a ceremonial gong, suona wind instruments, dance and market displays. The event brought performance and local products into a landscape otherwise described through peaks and paths.

The dated programme shows a mountain being used socially, with an opening ceremony turning the start of a season into a shared occasion. It is a contemporary cultural form with named organizers and recorded activities. Alongside the ridge names and constructed routes, it adds another way in which people give this Fengcheng mountain a place in public life.

Continue exploring · Fenghuangshan, Fengcheng ↗
Photo credits and rights
  1. Peaks and cloud at Fenghuangshan in Fengcheng, within Dandong.Source: Liaoning Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism / People’s Government of Liaoning Province. Rights not independently licensed. · Rights status unknown Photo source ↗ Original aspect ratio retained. Display copies resized only when needed; no enlargement, crop or retouching.