Situated in Huayin City, 120 kilometers (about 75 miles) east from Xi'an City of Shaanxi Province, Mt. Huashan is known as 'The Number One Precipitous Mountain under Heaven'. It is one of the five sacred mountains in China. The other four mountains are Mt. Taishan in Shandong, Mt. Hengshan in Hunan, Mt. Hengshan in Shanxi, and Mt. Songshan in Henan.
In ancient times, Mt. Huashan was called Mt. Taihuashan. From a distance the five peaks seem to form the shape of a 'flower' (hua in Chinese), hence the name 'Huashan'. It is famous for its natural vistas of steep and narrow paths, precipitous crags, and a high mountain range. It is home to several influential Taoist temples where emperors of past dynasties made pilgrimages, making Mt. Huashan the holy land of Taoism.
East Peak (Facing Sun Peak)
As one of the main peaks of Huashan Mountain, East Peak is 2096.2 meters. It is named East Peak because it is in the east. There is a platform on the top of the mountain, from where travelers can look down from a height in a broad view. It is the most famous place to watch the sun, called Chaoyang Platform”, so East Peak is also called Chaoyang Peak. East Peak is made up of four mountains. The peak which has Chaoyang Platform is the highest, with Yunv Peak in the west, Shilou Peak in the east and Botai Peak in the south. These three peaks all have their features. The east, west and south peaks are the “three peaks of Huashan Mountain” in the ancient time while Yunv Peak is a part of East Peak. Nowadays Yunv Peak is called Central Peak and regarded as one of the main peaks of Huashan Mountain.
There are many tall blue pines on the top of East Peak and the environment here is quite and calm. The travelers will feel really relaxed when walking through the forests. There are over 10 scenic sites here. The natural inscription on the cliff of Shilou Peak, like a huge palm print, which is exactly the first of “eight views of Guanzhong”- Magical Palm of Huashan Mountain and it is also the origin of the story about Juling God cutting into a mountain for waters. In the north of Chaoyang Platform, there is Yanggong Tower, which is opposite to Yanggong Tower of East Peak. The tower is built by general Yang Hucheng and there is an inscription of “myriads of things” by general Yang Hucheng. Apart from this, there are also other famous sites like Green Dragon Pond, Sweet Dew Pool, Sanmao Hole and so on. It is unfortunate that some sites are destroyed by natural calamities and man-made misfortunes and there are only their remains. However, after 80s, some sites are repaired and reconstructed. The East Peak Hotel is built on the basis of remains of Eight Sites Palace which was destroyed by fire in 1953.
http://blog.chinatraveldepot.com/2011/08/east-peak-of-huashan-mountain/
360-degree panorama photography by yunzeng liu