Hangzhou | Gem Mountain of West Lake, avoid the crowds to see the sunrise over West Lake

🚗Gem Mountain of Hangzhou is located on the northern shore of Beili Lake in Xihu District, Hangzhou City. It is one of the famous attractions within the West Lake Scenic Area. Located north of West Lake, it forms the northern screen of West Lake together with Ge Ridge. The mountain is 78 meters high and is mainly composed of rhyolite and tuff from igneous rocks, containing iron oxide, which gives the mountain a reddish-brown color. Under the sunlight, the mountain shines like a colorful glow, glittering like jade and agate, hence the name Gem Mountain. In the selection of the new ten scenes of West Lake, this place was named 'Gem Flowing Glow.' 🚗Gem Mountain was originally called Giant Stone Mountain, named for its many strange peaks and rocks. Later, due to the composition of its rocks and their unique luster under sunlight, it was named Longevity Star Gem Mountain by King Qian, and finally named Gem Mountain. The mountain also has ancient relics and famous sites such as Ge Ridge and Baopu Taoist Temple. Ge Ridge is said to be the place where the Eastern Jin Dynasty scholar Ge Hong practiced alchemy and wrote books, leaving behind relics such as Ge Xian An, Liudan Valley, Huandan Ancient Well, and Baopu Cottage. Baopu Taoist Temple is now one of the twenty-one key Taoist temples in China and is the location of the Hangzhou Taoist Association. 🚗Gem Mountain is open all day, but I personally recommend getting up early in the morning to avoid the crowds and go to Gem Mountain to watch the sunrise. Under the glow of the morning light, the entire West Lake is very beautiful, and this scenery will definitely make you feel it is worth it.