Shennongjia: Land of discovery
Charming scenery at Tianmen Peak, in Shennongjia Geopark in Central China's Hubei Province |
The geopark has five major splendid geological sights, including typical geological section planes, fossils of ancient creatures, peculiar geological landforms, beautiful water scenery and relics of ancient geological disasters.
In 1995, relics of ancient Pleistocene human beings were found in a cave 2,100 meters above sea level near Hongping.
More than 1,000 pieces of stoneware and ancient fossils, including rhinoceros, pandas and elephants, were unearthed in the cave, which are of great significance to archaeological research.
The Shennongjia area has three major landforms: peaks, glaciers and Karst landforms.
Known as the "Roof of Central China," the Shennongjia area has six mountains surpassing 3,000 metres above sea level, most of which are composed of the intrusive diabase rocks.
They are the Shennongding Peak (3,105 meters), Shanmujian Peak (3,085 meters), Dashennongjia Peak (3,052 meters), Jinhouling Peak (3,019 meters), Dawokeng Peak (3,022 meters) and Xiaoshennongjia Peak (3,005 meters).
Numerous mountain passes are another characteristic of the Shennongjia landform.
Fengjingya (the Scenery Pass), 2,785 meters above sea level, is a representative of the passes. Because of intense extrusion and drape, the pass acquired a marvellous view of straight and graceful stone pillars, which are regarded by many as the "No 1 sight" in Shennongjia.
The Shennongjia area is rich in relics of the Quaternary glacier. The relics, mostly distributed around Shennongding Peak, Jiuhuping and Muyuping, have great scientific research value.
Soluble carbonate rocks are widely distributed on the top of many mountains in the area. These rocks have been easily eroded by water and have formed splendid high-altitude Karst landforms.
Located on the northern border of China's subtropical region, the Shennongjia area enjoys a reputation as "the Green Gene Pool of China."
The area has abundant resources of forests, wild plants and endangered animals, such as the Golden Monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana) and dove trees.
(China Daily 03/30/2007 page20)
