Mount Hengshan, near Hengyang City in Hunan Province, has 72 lofty peaks and winds for 400 km through seven counties and cities. The summit, Zhurong Peak, is 1,290 m. above sea level. Mount Hengshan is famous for its scenery and places of historic interest, such as the Seven Ancestors Daochang (place where Taoist rites are performed), and the Zhuling Holy Spot. Many celebrities and scholars, such as Li Bai, Du Fu and Zhao Qilin, composed poems, wrote books and gave lectures on the mountain, leaving a great many legends and stone inscriptions.

As one of the five sacred mountains in China, Mt Hengshan, different with Mt Hengshan in Shanxi Province, is esteemed as Nan Yue (South Mountain). The mountain range runs 150 km form Hengyang to Changsha, having a cluster of 72 peaks. The summit, Zhurong Feng, rises 1290 metres high and is the vantage to watch sunrise and sea of clouds. The mountain is a nice summer getaway and the only place in south China to watch snow in winter. Nan Yue Temple, lying at the foot of the mountain, is one of the best preserved temples in South China. Grand religious rituals are held annually in the middle of August.