The Yuntai Mountain Geological Park

The Yuntai Mountain Geological Park

Name:The Yuntai Mountain Geological Park Class:AAAAA Area:Jiaozuo Tel:Xiuwu County, 30 km from northeast Jiaozuo, Henan Tel:0086-400-666-0166 Email：henantour@gmail.com Skype：karenzheng2004 The Global Yuntai Mountain Geological Park is located at the south foot of the Taihang Mountain in Xiuwu County of Jiaozuo. It mainly consists of the Yuntai Mountain Natural Scenic Area, Qinglong Mountain resort and other surrounding areas. The park is known for its massive gardening areas, overhanging high cliffs, flying waterfalls, secluded valleys and spring water. The mountain is also notable for its peculiar peaks, which stretch far into the distance. The main peak, Zhuyu, is 1,308 meters above the sea level. Mounting by the scaling ladder to the top, you can have a wonderful overview of everything at your feet. Looking north far into the Taihang Mountain, you can see the mountains and hills extending continuously. Looking south to the Huaichuan Plain, you can see the Yellow River winding its way like a belt and extending fields. The place is also famous for its numerous rivers, lakes, pools and springs. The highest waterfall in the country---- Yuntai Skyscraper Waterfall, which is 314 meters high like a huge pillar, looks especially magnificent, forming a unique spectacle along with other waterfalls, such as the Tianmen Waterfall, Bailong Waterfall, Huanglong Waterfall and Y-shaped Waterfall, dashing abruptly downward. Moreover, the spring water here tastes so sweet and cool that you will never forget such refreshing experience. Also, the Qinglong Canyon here, renowned as “First Canyon in Central China”, attracts many people for ecological touring for its mild climate, rich water resources and various vegetations. Apart from its splendid sceneries of mountains and rivers, the Yuntai Mountain has temperate climate of continental monsoon. The four seasons here are quite distinctive, spring being dry and windy, summer hot and rainy, autumn cool and winter dry and cold. With the north Taihang Mountain as its natural defense, it is less windy but always sunny and hot with less rain, which is a typical climate in Central China. However, the weather is changeable in different areas of the mountain due to different regional conditions and sea levels. Covered by large pieces of thick forests with abundant spring resources, the mountain is also rich in varieties of exotic plants, flowers and herbs. Besides such valuable herbs as ginseng and magic fungus, there are also the country-known four Kinds of Chinese herbs as well as other 200 kinds of Chinese herbs, such as Cornus Officinals, Forsythia Suspensa, Gastrodia elata, Chinese angelica and so on. The Himalayas Movement, which started 23 million years ago, has upgraded the whole mountain areas, leaving large amounts of geological remains, such as unique stratums, rocks and other mineral resources. With such uniquely-shaped geological structure, the place enjoys a superior advantage in ecological and historical tourist resources. The Red Stone Canyon The Red Stone Canyon The Red Stone Canyon, which is a rare canyon sight in north China with waterfalls, lakes, pools and gullies, is highly acclaimed by gardening experts as a “natural gallery for mountain and river collections” because of its grand and exclusive landscapes. The most splendid waterfall in the canyon is the Bailong Waterfall, divided into three falls, measuring 30 meters in height. It looks as shiny as a huge silver dragon. A good place for waterfall watching is the Heilong (Black Dragon) Cave, which is as long as 30 meters with absolute darkness inside. Standing in the cave, you can not only see the marvelous falls dashing down into the deep pools but also the perilous high stiffs, narrowly separated from each other by fast-flowing gullies so that the sky is scarcely visible. The spring water flowing down the cliffs splashes into water drops that dazzle in the sunlight like colorful diamonds, looking like a unique picture hanging on the wall. The Tanpu Canyon The Tanpu Canyon, located to the north of the Taihang Mountain, is one of the main sources of the Zifang River. It is 1,270 meters long extending from the north to the south. To its east stand high rock mountains, and to the west stand lines of fancy peaks rising upright to the sky. Through the winding canyon, a small stream named Xiaolong Creek flows melodiously because its riverbed is formed by winding stone steps, which are different in level, size, color and shape. The Jade Pool also lies here; the water looks so clean that it looks just like a piece of pure jade set in the canyon. The Immortal Spring, which flows one meter above the ground from a funnel on the stone steps at the back of the pool, gushes all year round continuously. Another sight in the canyon is the Lovers’ Waterfalls, each dashing downward high above from the mountains. Located at three different levels, two falls in each level flow into each other and join together into a deep pool just like two intimate lovers murmuring closely. This is how the waterfall gets its name. Zhuyu Mountain Zhuyu Mountain, 1,308 meters above sea level, on the top of which rest the Temple of Zhenwu Emperor, bridges and scaling ladders, is said to be famous for a poem by a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty called Wang Wei, who worked out a popular poem when he climbed up the mountain. The poem Thinking of My Brothers in Mountain Climbing Day fully conveys his emotion of missing friends: Alone, a lonely stranger in a foreign land, I doubly pine for kins folk on a holiday. I know my brothers would with dogwoods pray in hand, Climb up mountain and miss me so far away. Mounting to the mountain top and looking far into the distance, you can see the Yellow River winding like a silver belt. Having a bird view of the foot of the mountain, you can see chains of peaks like sea waves. The weather on the top is often unpredictable. All at once clouds gather and wind blows, with mist rising among the mountains. The mountains looming in the mist and clouds look so vague that you feel as if you were in a fairy world. In the middle of one of the mountains, there is a mysterious cave of 30 meters long and 10 meters wide in diameter, where a legend is spread widely: the famous pharmacologist in the Tang Dynasty Sun Simiao once gathered and processed medicinal herbs in the very place. Striking enough, there is a rare huge tree of one thousand years old at the entrance to the cave. It is about 20 meters high with luxuriant foliage and strong trunks, which can only be held in a circle by three people. Moreover, there is also a famous spring like a well here, from which water flows from underground unceasingly throughout the year. The Baijia Crag The Baijia Crag, once named as “Crag of Cypresses”, is overgrown with green pines and cypresses between the crevices. There are two conspicuous sights here: one is the Baijia Temple and the other is the Tianmen Waterfall, which is nicknamed as “Silver Dragon in North China”. As a tourist resort ever since the ancient times, the place is rich in many historical and cultural sights. For example, the Summer Resort, which used to be the place where the last emperor in the Han Dynasty Liu Xie once toured after his demotion. It is also where the celebrated “Seven Virtuous Woods Hermits” in the Wei and Jin Dynasty (from the year of 220 to 420 AD) once lived for more than 20 years. Many legends about them associated with the sights are popularly spread. In the place also stand inscriptions and tablets of various kinds. On the north of the crag lies the Tianmen Mountain, at the foot of which there is canyon called “Tianmen Canyon”. It is said that in the north of the canyon, there is a place called “Tianmenguan”, where a notable national heroine in Song Dynasty named Mu Guiying won a significant battle over the Liao Army (another dynasty in the same period with Song). With so many magnificent and perilous cliffs standing high, the Baijia Crag is also a good place for mountain-climbing sports. The Rhesus Monkey Valley The Rhesus Monkey Valley is regarded as another attractive sight in the Yuntai Mountain. It was recognized as a national rhesus monkey resort under state protection in August, 1998. They are largely distributed in the whole mountain area, adding much pleasure to the monotonous plant sights. The Taihang Mountain Rhesus Monkeys are a kind of second-class protected animals belonging to the primate family in evolution system. Living in groups in cold places at the most northern latitude, they grow very big in size with long furs and short tails. They are skillful mountain-climbers and considered as the most superior species among other rhesus monkey species, because they have elegant body-built and excellent imitative ability, able to react quickly. Being one of the most popular tourist items in the world for their entertaining and cooperative nature, they have high scientific, economic and appreciative value. Usually, they live between high cliffs among thick bushes and shrubs in a large group of about one hundred monkeys, who are often governed by a monkey king accompanied with guarding monkeys. In the daytime, they come out for food, which mainly includes varied types of plants; at nights, they sleep over high cliffs. Address: Xiuwu County, 30 km from northeast Jiaozuo, Henan.