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October 17, 2018

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Karst attractions spread across three provinces as World Heritage Site

China is considered the largest karst area in the world. Centered in Guizhou Province, the area covers 550,000-plus square kilometers.

Apart from the Stone Forest in Yunnan, karst landscapes are found in a wide range of areas in the southern part of the country, including Guizhou, Guangxi and Chongqing. In 2007 and 2014, UNESCO included several sites in the area on its World Heritage list as “South China Karst.”

The South China Karst protects a diversity of iconic continental karst landscapes, including towers pinnacles and cones. More rarely found formations also feature in the area, such as giant dolines, or sinkholes, that the Chinese call tiankeng, or “pits made by heaven.”

Caves and sinkholes are always associated with karst landscapes, and southern China is no exception.

Nearly all the key areas on the World Heritage list, including Chongqing and Guangxi, have large caves that feature stalactites and stalagmites in unique formations.

The caves are not merely awesome viewing for visitors; they also provide a living natural history habitat for a variety of plants and animals.

Here are some other karst attractions on the list:

Wulong Area and Jinfo Mountain near Chongqing

It takes around two hours to reach the Wulong Karst Geological Park from downtown Chongqing. In the area, the karstic formations create the very rare “Three Natural Bridges.” The huge arch spans — Tianlong, Qinglong and Heilong bridges — all stretch more than 300 meters, with widths of more than 200 meters. They are the largest group of natural bridges in Asia, and they stretch over two enormous natural pits, forming a marvelous spectacle.

Furong Cave is another must-visit site in Wulong. Considered a subterranean hall of art, the stalactites and stalagmites form waterfalls, flowers, clusters of grapes and shields, reflecting thousands of years of limestone deposits.

Jinfo Mountain is about a two-hour ride from downtown Chongqing. It is best known for its “table-shaped” peak — a 2,238-meter-high plain slope surrounded by steep cliffs. It looks like a giant table in the sky.

For the past century, experts have been fascinated by the plant life in the 1,300-square-meter in the mountain area. It has one-sixth of China’s seed plant species, making it a valuable horticultural research center as well as a sightseeing attraction.

Daqikong and Xiaoqikong in Libo of Guizhou Province

The names of the two areas — Daqikong (Larger Seven Apertures) and Xiaoqikong (Smaller Seven Apertures) — actually don’t have anything to do with karst structures but rather refer to two bridges built in the late 19th century. Both bridges have seven archways so that they were named according to their sizes.

One of the wonders of this karst landscape is waterfalls in all shapes and sizes, especially in Xiaoqikong. The Wolong Pond Waterfall, for example, is an icon of Xiaoqikong.

The wide and tender water current pour down from the Wolong Pond in all seasons. It is believed that the pond is so deep that even in flood season it is tranquil like a mirror.

Another iconic waterfall is the Cuigu Waterfall, or “Waterfall in a Green Valley.” Just as its name implies, the slim and long waterfall runs through a slope covered in thick green trees, creating a picturesque view.

Daqikong, on the other hand, is more known for grotesque limestone shapes and colorful ponds in the bottom of valleys.

The Tiansheng Bridge, a natural archway in Daqikong, is another must-see site. Formed around 3 million years ago, the bridge looks like an arch of triumph of the kind frequently seen in Europe.

Yangshuo and Guilin in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

There is an old Chinese saying: “The mountains and waters of Guilin are the best under heaven.”

It captures the long-held awe of the Chinese toward the famous landscapes in Guilin, the region on the Lijiang River celebrated for centuries in classic poetry and paintings.

The Elephant Trunk Hill, for example, is a typical karst wonder in Guilin. Towering more than 55 meters above waters, the hill resembles an elephant drinking water from the Lijiang River with its trunk.

Meanwhile, in Yangshuo, a nearby county, the landscapes are no less stunning than those in Guilin.

The dreamlike karst mountain scenery and rivers rippling through lush green fields in both Yangshuo and Guilin attract millions of tourists from all over the world. The panorama of this area has been described as “surreal, other-worldly and sublime.”

The entire area is covered with trees and shrubs, creating a green canopy along roads.

The scenery is so unique that it is rarely seen in other karst areas in China.




 

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