It is not necessary to wait for long holidays to materialize your travel plans.

A nice escape from the noise and crowds of Shenzhen awaits in Xinfeng and Longmen counties, to the northeast of the Pearl River Delta. These are only four hours'drive away and perfect for a weekend tour.

Xinfeng, in Shaoguan City, boasts the highest mountain in the delta, while Longmen, in neighboring Huizhou, has a clear river flanked by large bamboo forests and a popular hot spring resort.

Yunji Mountain, with its main peak rising more than 1,400 meters above sea level, has fresh air, clear creeks, spectacular waterfalls, and exuberant greenery to offer. The source of the Xinfeng River flows out from the mountain, which is also home to protected wild animals such as the giant salamander and pangolin.

The name "Yunji," which means "clouds" and "woman's hair worn in a bun" respectively, is said to have come from a legend. A pretty girl in a nearby village did not want to marry a gang leader and fled into the wild. She shaved off her hair and threw it to the ground. Her hair turned into peaks and stopped her pursuers.

Seen from afar, the peaks do resemble the shape of buns shrouded in clouds. On the stairs leading up to the mountain, visitors may come across waterfalls in three cascades measuring 180 meters. There are also boulders in the shape of a dog, a turtle, a mother elephant and its calf and an eagle, all of which add interest to the tour.

Reaching the two lakes in the middle of the mountain is a wonderful experience. Soak it in, and remember it the next time the noise of the city gets you down.

The best season to visit is perhaps late fall when the trees are covered in splendid red leaves that seem to set the mountain aflame. The down side would be the crowds you have tried so hard to escape. The only place to view mountains covered with red autumn leaves in Guangdong, it inevitably attracts many photographers in late November and December. A visit in summer can be quite pleasant as the temperature is 10 degrees Celsius lower on the mountain than back in Shenzhen.

Those who stay overnight can try a hot spring at the foot of the mountain and visit an orchard in the vicinity to pick strawberries.

But many people are attracted to another hot spring resort, about an hour's drive from Xinfeng, in Longmen, which seems to be more popular and better managed. A standard double room there will cost around 300 yuan (US$40.5) per night in the low season. There are a total of 72 hot spring pools in the Longmen resort, which also features a very hot "golden pool" rich in iron and said to be especially good for arthritis. Another "fish pool" has a kind of toothless fish, members of the Cyprinidae family, imported from central Anatolia, Turkey, that will nibble the scales on the skin and help treat skin diseases. The spring's water is 36 degrees Celsius, the same as normal body heat which allows the fish to survive and people to bathe for as long as they want. The gentle jabbing, striking and nipping of the slim brown fish, each less than 10 cm, will tickle some people trying the therapy for the first time so much so that sometimes they cannot help giggling.

The correct way to bathe in hot springs is to proceed gradually from low to high temperatures. A two-hour bath will give a whole night's good, natural sleep.

On both sides of the road leading to the entrance of the hot spring resort are large strawberry fields where tourists can handpick fresh strawberries for 20 yuan per kilo on the second morning.

Not far from the hot spring resort is the 22-km-long Xiangxi River, alongside which are more than 60 hectares of bamboo forests.

Tourists can take a bamboo raft down the river and sing folk songs with local girls along the banks. With green bamboo forests reflected in the clear water, and singing heard from time to time, the 50-minute ride is refreshing.

Tourists will also come upon a few peddlers who steer their one-man rafts upstream. Good salespeople with a bunch of jokes to offer, amid laughter they will try to sell homegrown peanuts, fruits and salted fish caught in the river. One young man we encountered boasted that his dry shrimps contained vitamins "ABCDEFG." Another let people try his peanuts before paying for them. "We propose harmonious shopping," he said, highlighting a Chinese catchword of the past year.

The raft voyage takes visitors to the Gongwu ancient port and a small village that has formed around it over more than 500 years. At that time, the village had been a bustling business center, as Canton traders who came by river to Longmen would inevitably make a stop at Gongwu. The ancient banyan trees and the worn stone steps at the port are the only reminders of its past glory.

Within 100 meters of the port, visitors will see a four-storied tower by the name of "Wuzhai Ancient Tower." Built of bricks and mortar and with small holes in the wall, the stronghold is said to be the biggest tower in Guangdong with a history of nearly 400 years. Like others, it was used for defense during wars and pirate attacks. Inside the tower is a wooden structure with stairs. In the village there is also a well-preserved mansion built in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Once owned by the Liao family, it occupies about 9,200 square meters.

Today, the coming of tourists has partially revived the village, which has literally been turned into a big fresh market. The visiting urbanites simply cannot have enough of the fresh vegetables, homemade rice wine and free-range chickens at local restaurants, and often buy something to take home and share with friends.

(Shenzhen Daily January 8, 2008)