Day 2: Hot springs

After the four-hour hike needed to complete the whole of the Fanjing Mountain trail, one good choice is to head west to neighboring Shiqian county, which is famous for its natural hot springs.

Shiqian is the country's first national-level scenic area for hot springs. The oldest facilities here can be traced back over 400 years to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), making this one of the oldest hot spring clusters in China.

Soaking in the outdoor pools in winter, when the air temperature hovers around 0 Celsius and the water at around 40 Celsius, is truly worth experiencing.

We met many local residents who said that they had been coming to the hot springs since childhood, and for whom weekend baths had become a habit.

"Regular bathing not only prevents cancer, beautifies the skin, and aids in weight loss and fitness, but also has good auxiliary medical effects on diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, neuralgia, and skin diseases," they eagerly told visitors from all over the country.

In the faces of the people of Shiqian, we saw pride in their hot spring culture and resources.

Looking through the records, we found a report in the Shiqian County Chronicle that read: "Bathing in winter warms the body and dispels cold, bathing in summer lightens the body and cools it, bathing at night ensures peaceful sleep, bathing when tired restores vitality, bathing when suffering from a cold induces sweating and quickly dispels the illness, and bathing for the elderly brings refresh and comfort."

In recent years, the local government has built a new hot spring town, injecting fresh vitality into this historic hot spring county.