Dàbié Shān 大别山This is a mountainous area about 3 hours on the bus from Hefei (about 25km from Lu An). The coach leaves from Hefei Passenger transport terminal 合肥汽车客运总站 directly to Maotanchang 毛坦厂 town. In Maotanchang, there is a picturesque old street 老街 that is not frequented by tourists. From the town, you can catch a bus a few miles out to the main Dàbié Shān 大别山龙之谷 scenic zones (which are a few kilometers from each other). There is some rigorous walking through a few gorges (involves hauling yourself up with ropes) and waterfalls and grottoes. Each site costs about 70RMB/person. It's really a 2 day trip. You can ask around and stay in a farmhouse/inn or go to Lu An for accommodation.
http://www.dabieshan.net/Gǔniú jiàng nature reserve 牯牛降风景区This is about 3 hours from Hefei. First go to Dàwáng dòng cavern 大王洞 in Shitai county 石台县. This is a 3km long underground cavern walk that has many amazing natural formations. The walk follows an underground tributary. From there go to Gǔniújiàng villa 牯牛山庄. This is a wooden cabin complex set next to a lake, mountains in the background, surrounded by bamboo forest. A room is about 200/night. Very natural and the air is great. The surrounding area has scenic walks and some waterfalls. This area is also known as Xiǎo huángshān 小黄山.
