Red Gate & Middle Heaven Gate
红门 中天门
The starting point for hiking the Middle Route of Mount Tai. The trail passes Wanxian Tower, Jingshi Gorge and Hutian Pavilion on its way to Middle Heaven Gate halfway up the mountain, with ancient trees, rock inscriptions and temples along the way that embody the essence of Mount Tai's culture.
Red Gate lies on the southern slope of Mount Tai, north of the Daizong Archway. It is the official start of the Middle (East) Route up Mount Tai. Red Gate Palace takes its name from the red rocks on either side. The Red Gate Square in front is where night climbers gather, and the ticket checkpoint is here too. From Red Gate to Middle Heaven Gate is about 4.5 km and more than 3,200 steps, taking about 2–2.5 hours on foot. Along the way, sights are dense: Wanxian Tower; Doumu Palace, the only nunnery on Mount Tai; Jingshi Gorge, where the Diamond Sutra is carved in large characters into a streambed from the Northern Qi dynasty, each character about 50 cm, making it the 'great-character ancestor' of calligraphy history (reached by a side trip of about 10 minutes to the east); Baidong (Cypress Cave); Hutian Pavilion; Huimaling Ridge; and inscriptions from successive dynasties alongside ancient cypress trees. Middle Heaven Gate, about 850 metres above sea level, is where the Middle Route meets the West Route (the mountain road from Tianwai Village). It has large platforms, restaurants, lodging and the Middle Heaven Gate cable car station. From here you can continue on foot up Eighteen Bends (about 2 hours) or take the cable car to the South Heaven Gate. Suggested plans: fit climbers can walk the whole way, from Red Gate to the summit in about 4–6 hours. To save energy, take the Tianwai Village shuttle bus (about 30 yuan) straight to Middle Heaven Gate and decide from there. Night climbers usually set out from Red Gate between 9 and 11 p.m. The ticket is the Mount Tai entrance ticket (about 115 yuan in peak season), checked at the Red Gate entrance. Getting there: it's about 15 minutes by taxi from downtown Tai'an to Red Gate, Bus K3 goes directly to Red Gate, and from Tai'an high-speed rail station it's about a 30-minute drive. Note that the Red Gate road has streetlights at night, but you still need a headlamp. Jingshi Gorge is easy to miss, so watch the signs. There are no buses above Middle Heaven Gate, only the cable car or walking.
Opening hours
Open all day (Red Gate ticket checks 24 hours; Tianwaicun shuttle about 6:00 am–6:00 pm)
Nearby sights
- Wangmuchi Temple (Queen Mother Pool)
- Daizong Archway
- Dai Temple
- Puzhao Temple
- Doumu Palace
- Sutra Rock Valley (Jingshiyu)
- Tomb of Feng Yuxiang
- Black Dragon Pool & Longevity Bridge