One of China's most ancient Buddhist sites, the Five Terrace Mountain (Wutai shan) is a quiet area that, despite recent tourist infiltration, still retains its Buddhist roots. With an almost alpine atmosphere of dense forests and often snow capped peaks, the mountain is a great place to have your introspective wanderings interuppted by some stunningly beautiful scenery. The area is also known for its purity, with clean air, that distinguishes it from the province's polluted cities of Datong and Taiyuan, clean streams, including the aptly named Clear Water River (Qingshui he), and a piety of Buddhist thought.

Wutaishan is one of China's four sacred Buddhist mountains (Si da fojiao mingshan), along with E'meishan, Jiuhuashan and Putuoshan. It is located close to the northeastern border of Shanxi, not far from both Datong and even the Great Wall (about 150km). The mountain is so named for the five terraces that form a coarse circle around a hilly valley. The tallest of these peak terraces is the northern peak, that jutts to 3058 meters above sea level, making it the largest in the north of China. The valley that these five peaks surround is centered upon a small village, Taihuai, that itself holds around 15 to 20 temples, and that is the focal point for travellers to start their trecking in the area.

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