Of all the stone carvings in China, the ones at Baodingshan are the most surprising, because they are not tucked into a cave but laid out like a huge outdoor theatre in a horseshoe-shaped valley. This is the best-known part of the Dazu Rock Carvings, in the hills of Chongqing, about fifteen kilometres from the old county town, and it was largely the work of one monk, Zhao Zhifeng, who spent decades in the twelfth century turning a valley into a sermon in stone.
The most famous scenes are the Wheel of Life, held in the jaws of a great figure, and a giant reclining Buddha whose body seems to run for the length of the cliff, with only the upper part visible. What makes the site so fascinating is the narrative: hell scenes, filial piety, parents and children, and ordinary people, carved with such care that it feels like a comic strip for the illiterate. Drainage channels were cut into the rock to protect the carvings from the rain, and that engineering is a big part of why they survived.
The landscape around Dazu is a low, folded patchwork of paddy, bamboo and small farms. The riding is gentle, with slow bends over red-soil country, narrow lanes where locals walk and chat, and plenty of small villages. Surfaces vary, and the rain turns some side roads slick, so take your time. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, because summer is hot and humid and the winter mist can be cold and grey.
You will not find much in the way of services at the carvings themselves beyond tourist stalls, so fill the tank in Dazu before you head out and eat there as well, since this is the heart of Chongqing hotpot country. The local dishes are generous with chilli and the Sichuan peppercorn that numbs the lips, so order carefully if you do not fancy a challenge.
On the same ride, Baodingshan makes a good pair with Shizhuanshan, which is a smaller and quieter site. Together they give you a sense of how the same stone culture produced both the grand public statement and the personal, almost private one.