When asked why he wanted to climb Everest, adventurer George Mallory famously replied: “Because it’s there.”
Turns out, Fanjing Mountain (2,336m) was also there—when we’ve paid the sunk cost of an expensive ticket and the cable took us to the foot of the mountain—so up I went.
Halfway up, Li Bai’s 《蜀道难》 (The Hard Road to Shu) rang painfully true:
“噫吁嚱，危乎高哉！蜀道之难，难于上青天！” “Ah, wretched heights! The road to Shu is harder than climbing to heaven!”
The poet wasn’t exaggerating… But I’ve managed to get a picture:
Some sections demand hands and feet. (Note to self: ‘Summit chic’ is really not a viable aesthetic.)