Maopao Shan rises at the edge of Yanji and is the city's closest and most accessible hiking. A boardwalk path winds through forest up the hillside, passing through stands of Korean pine and deciduous trees, before reaching a lookout tower at the summit. The views over the city and the surrounding bowl of hills are clear on good days, and the walk up takes an hour at an easy pace.
The mountain is popular with residents for morning exercise and weekend walks — you will share it with elderly Koreans doing tai chi in the lower forest and families with children in the afternoon. This is part of the appeal: it is a genuinely used local space rather than a stage-managed attraction, and the mix of Korean and Chinese languages overheard on the path is a small illustration of the city's character.