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 Cangshan Mountain, also known as Diancangshan, is
located at the southern end of the Yunling Mountains and forms a
trailing section of the Hengduan (transversely faulted) Mountains.
Cangshan is always jade-green, hence the name. Cangshan Mountain
stretches from Shangguan (Upper Pass) in the north to Xiaguan
(Lower Pass) in the south, and touches the limpid water of Erhai
Lake in the east and reaches the turbulent Heihuijiang River in
the west. It measures 42 km. from south to north and 20 km. from
east to west. The mountain range comprises 19 peaks and 18 brooks.
The names of the peaks are as follows: Yunlong
Peak, Canglang Peak, Wutai Peak, Lianhua Peak, Baiyun Peak, Heyun
Peak, Sanyang Peak, Lanfeng Peak, Xueren Peak, Yingyue Peak,
Xiaocen Peak, Zhonghe Peak, Longquan Peak, YujuPeak, Malong Peak,
Shengying Peak, Foding Peak, Ma'er Peak and Xieyang Peak. Malong
Peak is the highest, measuring 4,122 metres above sea level, while
the rest of the peaks average over 3,500 metres in elevation, and
are covered with snow throughout the year.
There are 18 brooks among the peaks. They rush down
torrentially into Erhai Lake. From north to south, the 18 brooks
are respectively named the Xiayi, Wanhua, Yang, Mangyong, Jing,
Lingquan, Baishi, Shuangynan, Yinxian, Mei, Tao, Zhong, Luyu,
Long, Qingbi,
 Mocan, Tingming and Yuangnan Brooks.
The vegetation over Cangshan Mountain has a
distinctive distribution and it is a treasure house of more than
3,000 species of plants, mainly consisting of evergreen coniferous
trees, shrubs and grasses. In spring and summer, azaleas,
camellias and rhododendrons bloom in profusion over an infinite
expanse.
Cangshan Mountain is famous for the following eight
scenic wonders named in the Qing Dynasty: Painted Screens at Rosy
Dawn, Spring Snow on Cangshan, the Belt of Clouds across Autumnal
Cangshan, the Radiance of Phoenixes' Eyes, Multistage Falls of
Limpid water, Clouds Hovering over Yuju Peak, Clear Streams
Running over the Pebble Bed in Early Winter, and Rosy Clouds at
Sunset. The Clouds Hovering over Yuju Peak, believed to resemble
the blank wife who is longing in rain for the return of her
husband, has evoked a touching legend. Hence the more popular name
"the Cloud Longing for the Return of Her Husband" (Wang Fu Yun).
The story goes like this: In the days of Nanzhao, Ah Feng, the
sweet princes of th e King of Nanzhao fell in love with ah Long, a
poor young hunter. The king was enraged and had the young man
killed and thrown into Erhai Lake. Ah Feng, the princess in turn
died and became a white cloud - the Longing-for-Husband Cloud
floating over Cangshan Mountain - waiting for her husband to
appear. The story praises the unswerving loyalty in love between
Ah Feng and Ah Long.
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