Tianzi Mountain is one of the famous scenic spots in Zhangjiajie, Hunan. On October 24, 2005, the reporter came here for sightseeing on the first stop of the Xiangyungui special train of China Railway Travel. After arriving in Zhangjiajie, the bus drove towards Tianzi Mountain and soon entered a grand canyon. The beautiful scenery outside the car window began to hit people's eyes. Under the rolling mountains, the winding Li River is green and shimmering, flowing along the mountains.

Driving in Baizhang Gorge (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The tour guide introduced that this is the famous Baizhang Gorge landscape. I saw all kinds of grotesque rocks standing among the rising peaks on both sides. It was extremely spectacular.

Tianzishan Cableway (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Baizhang Gorge is located in the south of Suoxiyu Scenic Area and consists of three canyons: Baizhang Gorge, Dongjiayu and Wangjiayu. Among them, Baizhang Gorge is located in the middle of Chaqiyu. In ancient times, this Gorge was full of apes and the cliffs were strange. The situation was dangerous and it was an ancient pass. Qing Daoguang's "Yongding County Annals" records: "There is a silver arrow stone on the cliff of Baizhang Gorge. It hangs high on the cliff. The color is as white as silver and has a shape on it, which is achievable but inaccessible."

Scenery of Tianzi Mountain (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Now this stone exists. It is said that the Qin family rebelled in the early Ming Dynasty and the court set up a pass here. It was also said that Wang raised the flag to revolt and fought with the government troops hundreds of times at Baizhang Gorge, so it was also known as the "Baizhang Gorge". On the way from Baizhang Gorge to Tianzi Mountain Scenic Area, the tour guide continued to tell about the situation in Zhangjiajie.

Endless mountains (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Zhangjiajie is located between the uplift area of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau and the subsidence area of the Dongting Lake. It is affected by both the uplift and the containment of subsidence. Coupled with the strong cutting of surface water and the extremely developed karst landform, it has formed the natural wonder of today's great disparity in height, strange peaks, towering rocks, and crisscross valleys.

Tianzi Mountain Yunqingyan (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Zhangjiajie City is located in the source of the Lishui River in the northwest of Hunan Province and the hinterland of Wuling Mountain, with a total area of 9563 square kilometers. Its climate belongs to the monsoon humid climate of the prototype of the mid-subtropical mountain, with an average annual temperature of about 16 degrees Celsius and pleasant seasons.

There are many peaks (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Before the 1980s, Zhangjiajie was unknown to outsiders. Since the painter Mr. Wu Guanzhong discovered this magical land at the end of 1979, an uproar spread. It has become a large-scale comprehensive special tourist resort that integrates mountain tours, cave explorations, rafting, ethnic customs performances and other contents in the country.

Thousands of ravines (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Zhangjiajie City is famous around the world for its unique tourism resources. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Suoxiyu Nature Reserve, Tianzishan Nature Reserve, Yangjiajie and other scenic spots jointly form China's national Wulingyuan Scenic Area, which is well-known at home and abroad.

Clouds block fog barriers (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

In addition, Zhangjiajie's main natural and cultural landscapes include Tianmen Mountain, the "Soul of Wuling", Maoyan River,"Baili Gallery", Jiutian Cave,"Asia's First Cave", Badagong Mountain, a national nature reserve, and "Famous Temple in Jiangnan" Puguang Temple,"Shengjing of Southern Chu", Wulei Mountain, the former site of the Revolutionary Committee of Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan and Guizhou Province, the departure point of the Long March of the Second Front Army of the Chinese Workers and Peasants Red Army, and the former residence of He Long. At present, Zhangjiajie City has developed 12 scenic spots, opened more than 30 tourist routes, and more than 300 major scenic spots and landscapes for sightseeing.

Tianzi Mountain Tianzi Pavilion (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

After passing through Baizhang Gorge, the bus went straight to the front of Tianzishan Nature Reserve. After entering Tianzi Mountain Scenic Area, you must first take the scenic area's environmentally friendly special tourist bus. The coach is clean and comfortable, and a VCD of Zhangjiajie scenery is playing on the silver screen on the front. Environmentally friendly vehicles are driving in picturesque scenic areas. Tourists listen to the rich explanations in the film. While watching the beautiful pictures on TV, they can also enjoy the real beautiful scenery outside the window. The feeling is really wonderful.

Xiufeng is tall and straight (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

While talking, the bus arrived at the cable car station, so the reporter and his party started their journey to Tianzi Mountain. When you come to the Tianzi Mountain cableway and go up the cableway, you can see the strange peaks of Tianzi Mountain.

Photo taken at the cableway station (Photo: Liu Jie)

According to the data, Tianzishan Nature Reserve was named after the ancient Tujia leader Xiang Dakun led a local peasant uprising to call himself "Tianzi". Tianzi Mountain is adjacent to Suoxiyu in the east, Zhangjiajie in the south, and Sangzhi County in the north. It is one of the four major scenic spots in Wulingyuan District.

The fog is vast (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Tianzi Mountain Scenic Area is located at the highest point of the "Golden Triangle", with an altitude of 1,262.5 meters (Kunlun Peak) and a minimum of 534 meters (Shilan Valley). The total area of the scenic spot is 67 square kilometers, and there are 45 kilometers of tourist routes around the mountains. The average annual temperature is 12 degrees Celsius, the annual rainfall is 1800 ml, the annual frost-free period is 240 days, and the annual freezing period is about 60 to 80 days.

Overlooking Helong Park (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Judging from the geological topography of Tianzi Mountain, except for a layer of limestone and a very small amount of turtle stone on the top of the mountain, which is more than a few hundred meters above sea level, most scenic spots are composed of quartz stone, which belongs to the sandrock peak forest landform. It is basically the same as Suoxi Yu and Zhangjiajie. It is a sedimentary rock (plutonic rock) that gradually settled from a vast ocean 380 million years ago. Later, due to the complex and long diagenesis process, the quartz sandstone we see today is formed with a total thickness of 500 to 600 meters. Various bizarre landscapes have been formed.

Stand out among chickens (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The scenery of Tianzi Mountain can be summarized in one name, which is "the original scenery and natural beauty." Her landscapes and attractions are all made in heaven and there is no trace of artificial carving. There are not only strange mountains and beautiful rivers here, but also simple people's customs, unique folk customs, unique ethnic food, etc. No wonder some people commented: "Whoever knows the face of the emperor will return without looking at the mountains in the world","If you don't visit the emperor mountain, you will go to Wulingyuan in vain."

Photo taken by Tianzishan (Photo: Liu Jie)

Coming off from the cableway station is Helong Park. At this time, a drizzle suddenly fell in the sky. Some tourists ran to the stall to buy disposable plastic raincoats to avoid the rain. Unexpectedly, the rain stopped soon. In Helong Park, a huge bronze statue of Marshal He Long stands majestically in the mountains, making tourists awe-inspiring.

Bronze statue of Marshal He Long (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

In the surrounding area of Helong Park, there are many famous attractions such as Yubi Peak, One Finger Breaking Sky, General Expedition, Fairy Offering Flowers, Cloud Qingyan, Stone Boat Going to Sea, and General Parade. Most of these attractions are named after the shape of the stone peaks.

Shili Gallery (Photo: Wang Jue)

For example, the iconic scenic spot in Zhangjiajie has such an introduction: Standing on the observation deck and looking southwest, you can see a stone peak on the right side of dozens of protruding peaks that looks like a royal pen. There is also a pen holder next to it. There are four or five pens. Thinking back then, how powerful it was to write a pen to deliver an edict to the king, review official documents, and write down and report them! If you admire it when the sky is full of red clouds, you will see the royal pen shining brightly, and there is still vermilion left on the tip of the pen! No wonder more than 30 pickets in China have published its jade photos.

Gallery Landscape No. 2 (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

There is a saying that Jiuzhaigou looks at the water, and Zhangjiajie looks at the mountains. This is really worthy of the name. The sandstone peaks and forests here are all strange, like people and objects, and are lifelike. In the quiet valley, there are no artificial carvings. Some are stone pillars and stone peaks, cliffs, ancient and famous trees, clouds and smoke, the chirping of birds and cicadas, flowing springs, waterfalls, rare birds and beasts, walking through it is like entering a magical world and a natural artistic landscape corridor.

Gallery Landscape 3 (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

When the reporters and their party were about to come down at the Tianzishan cableway entrance, dense fog suddenly covered, and visibility was less than about 20 meters. Accompanied by the fog, coming down from the Tianzi Mountain cableway, the fog suddenly dispersed and the clouds opened up. It was very strange. After taking an environmentally friendly car, you will arrive at another famous scenic spot in Zhangjiajie known as the Shili Gallery. Due to the cloudy day, it turned dark shortly after entering the Shili Gallery Canyon.

Gallery Landscape No. 4 (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

It is said that the Shili Gallery is 5 kilometers long and is known as a three-step scene. The rocky peaks here show wonderful shapes. The trees on both sides of the canyon are lush and wild flowers are fragrant. The strange peaks and rocks are in various shapes, like a huge landscape picture, hanging side by side on the cliffs of thousands of feet, allowing the beautiful natural wonders to be integrated into the ink and painting of the immortal master painter.

Photo taken in Zhangjiajie (Photo: Wang Jue)

Along the way into the Shili Gallery, there are stone scenes such as the revolving attic, the sky dog moon moon, the monkey king sentry, the birthday star welcoming guests, the elderly man picking medicine, the husband and wife holding their children, and the Three Sisters Peak. Among them, the shape of "All Women Worship Guanyin" is particularly realistic. Unfortunately, due to the bad weather, the sky turned completely dark after walking about a kilometer. The reporter's first sightseeing trip to Zhangjiajie that day also came to an end with the approaching of night. Since there were only more than three hours of sightseeing time that day and it was cloudy, the sightseeing of the beautiful scenery of Tianzi Mountain could only be a glimpse. (Photo and text: Feng Ganyong)