Jiaoshan Island
焦山
The only mountain island in the Yangtze that you can visit surrounded on all sides by water, with the Dinghui Temple, the Jiaoshan Stele Forest and the Yi He Ming (Inscription of the Buried Crane) cliff carvings, plus late-Qing forts; reached by ferry.
Jiaoshan lies in the Yangtze northeast of Zhenjiang's urban area, surrounded by water on all sides. It is named after the Eastern Han hermit Jiao Guang, who lived here. The hill is thickly wooded, and the monastery is hidden among the trees, hence the saying 'Jiaoshan Mountain wraps the temple.' Highlights include Dinghui Temple, founded at the end of the Eastern Han and one of the famous monasteries of southern China, with a Ming-dynasty main hall; the Jiaoshan Stele Forest, one of the largest in Jiangsu, with several hundred stone inscriptions from the Six Dynasties to the Qing, including the fragmentary Southern Dynasties Yi He Ming (Inscription of the Buried Crane), praised as the ancestor of large-character calligraphy; the cliffside rock inscriptions along the riverbank, including those by Lu You and others; the Wanfo Pagoda and Xijiang Tower at the summit, overlooking the Yangtze and the far shore; and, on the eastern foot of the hill, the remains of the Qing-era Jiaoshan Fort, a witness to the resistance against the British during the Opium War. A visit takes about 2.5 to 3 hours. Entry is about RMB 45, the round-trip ferry about RMB 10. Opening hours are 08:00–17:00, and the last ferry to the island departs at about 16:15. Getting there: take a city bus to Jiaoshan station, walk to the ferry landing, and the crossing takes about 5 minutes.
Opening hours
Approx. 08:00–17:00 (last ferry back around 16:15)
Nearby sights
- Beigu Mountain
- Mengxi Garden
- Zhenjiang Museum
- Xijindu Ancient Ferry Street
- Former Residence of Pearl S. Buck
- Boxian Park
- Nanshan Scenic Area
- Jinshan Temple (Jiangtian Temple)