In winter, the cold bites on Dujian Mountain in eastern Zhejiang, but the chilly weather hasn’t dampened Jin Weifang’s enthusiasm for hiking and fitness. The 63-year-old farmer hikes up and down the village hiking trail three times a day. “In our village, over 100 people exercise on this hiking trail every day,” Jin Xianrong, head of women’s affairs in Zhangjiaxi Village, told reporters. “Not only locals, but also an increasing number of tourists from outside.”
Zhangjiaxi Village is located in Qiaotouhu Subdistrict, Ninghai County, Zhejiang Province. In early 2009, the Ninghai Hiking and Fitness Trail was completed, consisting of a main route and countless branch routes. Since then, the villagers of Zhangjiaxi—located by the mountains and sea, and traditionally reliant on fishing and aquaculture—have gradually taken to this fitness activity. It is reported that in just over two years, the Ninghai Hiking Trail has attracted more than 1 million visitors. During the “Golden Week” holiday in October 2011 alone, it drew nearly 200,000 tourists, generating tourism revenue of over 5 million yuan.
Dujian Mountain is located east of Ninghai County and is the highest peak in the urban area. As Zhang Huafei, director of the Ninghai County Sports Bureau, put it, for the Ninghai National Hiking and Fitness Trail, Dujian Mountain is just one “pearl” in the string. The trail system is like a rope, linking scattered natural landscapes, ancient villages, and other resources along the way into a complete and beautiful “string of pearls.”
As the only national-standard hiking and fitness trail in China so far, the Ninghai Hiking Trail was built just over two years ago. With a total length of over 500 kilometers of hiking trails and 50 kilometers of mountain biking trails, it organically combines traditional outdoor sports with tourism and public fitness. The construction of the trail preserves the original state of natural mountain paths, creating functional surfaces such as leaf-covered trails, gravel paths, wooden boardwalks, and pebble trails. Supporting facilities such as rest stations, camping areas, reception centers, alarm points, and waste management systems have also been installed along the trails.
Zhang Huafei also told reporters: “Most importantly, besides the facilities, we also have a professional mountain rescue team here to ensure hikers’ safety. This makes Ninghai’s hiking trails natural, safe, and eco-friendly.”
“Currently, 45% of the county’s population regularly participates in physical exercise. Fifteen towns (subdistricts) have passed the provincial-level standards for strong sports towns (townships), and 891 public fitness trail routes have been built, achieving full coverage of sports facilities in all administrative villages,” Zhang Huafei told reporters.
What makes Ninghai residents even prouder is not just this: the hiking trails have also boosted the local sports industry. Currently, there are over 120 enterprises engaged in sports services in Ninghai, forming a preliminary sports market system encompassing five major categories: fitness and leisure, competitive events, sports goods, and service trade. In Shen Town alone, there are 25 companies producing trekking poles, with an annual output value of 436 million yuan, accounting for 90% of the national total production of trekking poles...
“The sports industry can definitely become a new growth point for the national economy. We hope to actively build a public fitness service system that is people-friendly, convenient, and beneficial to the public through widespread public fitness activities. In the next five years, we aim to preliminarily establish a six-in-one industrial development model comprising sports forums, sports events, sports industry, sports affairs, sports complexes, and sports lottery,” said Chu Langliang, County Chief of Ninghai.
