Ziyang Stone Stalagmites

Ziyang Stone Stalagmites

(Li Xiaofen) I had long heard about a fairly well-known stone stalagmite scenic spot in Jindai Township, Shiling Town, about twenty kilometers away. My friends all planned to go see it, but I wasn’t particularly interested. I had been to the Stone Sea and witnessed the undulating, boundless expanse of rugged, bizarre rocks, marveling at the wonders crafted by nature. I had also visited the Stone Forest, looking up at the bamboo shoot-like, towering stone peaks that seemed to pierce the clouds, and I had praised their majestic grandeur. Both the Stone Sea and the Stone Forest are wonders of karst landforms. Our local area is part of the central Sichuan hilly mountain region—what’s so special about this small scenic spot that it’s worth the effort to visit?

During this National Day holiday, I had originally promised to take my child on a trip far from home, but a friend came to visit, so I had to cancel. A couple of days later, unable to resist my daughter’s repeated pleas, and realizing that it was too late for a long trip, I was trying to figure out how to keep her occupied when I happened to come across an online post written by a friend titled “Painted Tales of Ziyang Part 1 – The Marvelous Carved Stone Stalagmites.” It was illustrated and wonderfully written, so I got the idea to go have a look.

Early in the morning, I found the weather wasn’t great—it had rained lightly during the night—but fortunately, the road was only slightly wet and didn’t affect our journey. After getting out of the car, we exited the entrance of Jindai and climbed up a small hill, where we saw several huge rocks jutting out abruptly on the distant mountainside, standing steeply and looking quite peculiar. According to the locals, those were the stone stalagmites. They didn’t look particularly impressive—just a few unusually tall rocks that stood out because they suddenly emerged from this low hill on the edge of the hilly area. Any single stalagmite near the Stone Forest would have been more striking than these. But since we were already there, I decided to put aside my disappointment and take a closer look.

We crossed the mountain gully and arrived at the base of the stone stalagmites. My daughter was very excited—after all, she rarely gets the chance to be close to nature and was curious about everything. Looking up at the stalagmites, I could still sense their towering presence and a certain majestic air that seemed to reach the clouds. Hey, there were two rows of footprints carved into the rock, quite smooth—do people often climb up there? Just as I was wondering, the sound of children’s laughter suddenly drifted over. Three or five village kids came running up from the mountain hollow—some around ten years old, others no older than five. They first looked at us curiously, then climbed up like monkeys, squeezing through the cracks between the rocks and actually made it to the middle section of the stalagmites. The older kids waved at us: “Come on up, come on up, there’s a flat spot here, it’s really fun!”

Suddenly, I got excited. The wonders of the Stone Sea and stone stalagmites elsewhere are meant to be admired, but here, they’re meant to be climbed? The urge to experience climbing the stalagmites awakened my inner child.

I said to my daughter, “Let’s go, we’re already here, let’s climb up and take a look.” My daughter looked rather timid and tugged at my hand: “Mom, let’s not, it’s too dangerous!” “Don’t worry, no matter how dangerous it is, your mom will lead the way.”

I didn’t care about wearing high heels and a skirt (I should’ve worn sneakers if I knew we’d be climbing stalagmites), nor did I mind the muddy residue on the rocks after the rain—it was a bit dirty. I grabbed onto the rock edges, stepped on the two footprints, climbed a few steps, and then told her to follow my example and climb up. My daughter panicked, “Mom, I’m scared, I’m scared, it’s dangerous!” “Huh? That’s strange, aren’t you usually as agile as a monkey? Why are you scared today? The things you’re most afraid of are the ones you should try, and the dangerous places are the ones you should experience—think of it as an adventure.”

She tentatively stepped out with her right foot, but didn’t know where to put her hands, and her left foot didn’t know where to go either. She just froze there, calling out “Mom!” over and over.

Seeing her so at a loss, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. My usually smart and clever daughter didn’t know how to climb a mountain? Is this what modern kids, raised with toy dolls, are like? Is this the child who wanted to try every new and exciting thing at the park or amusement park? I never expected that something as simple as climbing a mountain—a task even four- or five-year-old village kids can do—would be beyond her. Isn’t that a kind of failure too? It seems that to experience life and learn survival skills, one must first get close to nature.

I quickly encouraged her, urging her to believe in herself, to learn to be brave and strong. I patiently explained that climbing requires using both hands and feet. The other kids shouted loudly, “Go for it, go for it!” After a few tries, my daughter found her confidence and started climbing with all her might, and I only occasionally reached out to give her a hand. Ten minutes later, we finally made it to the middle section. When I looked up, I was surprised to find a gap in the middle of the stalagmite, over two feet wide and six or seven meters high. Only someone with great arm strength could brace themselves in the crevice and climb to the top. It seemed we could only sigh in admiration. But my daughter showed some spirit and said boldly, “In a few years when I grow up, I’ll definitely climb up from here and see the view at the top.”

After catching our breath, as we surveyed the surroundings from our victorious position, my daughter laughed gleefully. The villages below were peaceful and serene in the light mist, with the occasional crow of a rooster or bark of a dog. The air was fresh, a cool breeze brushed against our faces, and with arms outstretched, it felt as if we could float away on the wind.

While chatting, the oldest child told us a story: “My great-grandpa’s grandpa said that the big one on the right is called the Big Stone Stalagmite, and the small one on the left is called the Small Stone Stalagmite. Around the Small Stone Stalagmite, there are also a Stone Bell and a Stone Drum, and whenever they sound, a Golden Ox and a Golden Rooster appear. Later, someone stole the Golden Ox and Golden Rooster, and the Stone Bell and Stone Drum haven’t sounded since. At the foot of the mountain, there used to be a temple that was quite lively. Legend has it that fox spirits often performed operas there. And do you know Zhang Sanfeng, the founder of the Wudang Sect you see on TV? He once traveled here and even left behind two prophecies.” The child imitated the way adults spoke, looking quite proud, while my daughter listened with rapt attention.

So, behind such an ordinary stone stalagmite lies such a beautiful and moving legend, and such a common mountain peak holds such a magical allure for children. A trip to the Jindai Stone Stalagmites was truly worthwhile. As for the saying, “Having seen the ocean, one finds it hard to appreciate other bodies of water; having seen Mount Wu, one finds other clouds unimpressive”—perhaps it’s time to look at it from a different perspective.

Shiling Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Ziyang City. Established as Shiling Township in 1951, merged into Qianfeng Commune in 1958, re-established as Shiling Commune in 1962, reinstated as a township in 1984, and upgraded to a town in 1992. Located in the southern part of the city, 27 kilometers from the municipal government. Covers an area of 54.4 square kilometers with a population of 43,000. Accessible by road. Administers 19 village committees including Shiling, Tuqiao, Zitong, Liangyi, Yihé, Wuyi, Changgou, Shuizhu, Guangji, Qunli, Gaofeng, Shihé, Dashan, Erlong, Baiguo, Honghu, Hongque, Jianshan, and Peide, as well as the Shilingchang Neighborhood Committee. Industries include construction, building materials, brewing, food, commerce, and trade... More detailed information about Shiling Town++