Wulingyuan, jewel carved by the Nature

Wulingyuan is a colorful area located to the northwest of the province of Hunan. Its great beauty was delayed open pie at the beginning of years 70 of this century, not like the Five Mountains Sagradas, the Huangshan mount and the landscapes of Guilin, that enjoy prestige for more already than thousand years.

“It is a lost Rep it in the deep thing of mountains”, exclaimed Wu Guanzhong there – famous Chinese painter when arriving by chance. From years 80, it has ample celebrity more and more. To be in the sector of the Wuling mountain range, the place was denominated with the present name.

It makes million years, Wulingyuan was a vast one and stirred up the ocean. Thanks to the orogenetic movement and the erosion caused by the wind and waters, the area became mainland with an arenaceous natural environment, with valleys and rocky tips populated with trees. There, throughout, are strange grass and flowers; the pines and cypresses grow leafy; the tips are yerguen monumental; the rocks present/display fantastic forms; the streams wind winding between mountains guarded by clouds and mists. With his incalculable natural value, it excelled quickly between famous mountains, so that, in 1992, it was including in the List of the UNESCO of World-wide Patrimonies.

It is integrated by the State Forest Park of Zhangjiajie and two natural reserves: the Suoxi valley and the Tianzi mountain. It locks up five wonders: surprising tips, rocks of thousand forms, calm and deep valleys, calcareous caves and crystalline streams.

The arenaceous tips, present/display an aspect like few in China and the rest of the world. In a surface of 360 km ² that occupies Wulingyuan, is grouped more than 3 000 rock tips. 1 000 of these reaches 400 ms in vertical sense. They seem bamboo buds, others resemble screens or swords, Everything offers a truly impressive spectacle. The strategically important points to contemplate them are in Zhangjiajie and the Tianzi mountain. They are about 80 altogether.

The tips take, generally, suggestive names like “ Bay of the Room of the Divinities ", “Book of the Sea of the West”, “You foretell Celestial Scatter Flowers”, “Qu Yuan Compone Verses”.

In days of rain, the floating ones form vast “ sea ", in which the tips either show or disappear. A spectacle that it changes of constant way. When there is sun, the mist returns these pleasant, windy rock tips, seductive – the best time to contemplate them is the summer, and the ideal point, the Tianzí mountain, very frequented by photographers.

The Wulingyuan mountain is surrounded by crystalline waters. There the wonderful springs, streams, pools, Lagos and cataracts add 800. Their waters maintain these forests leafy. The Jinbian stream (Gold Whip) part of Zhangjiajie to enter the pools Zhicao and Tiaoyu, and soon to cross the Nanmu esplanade, jumps to Tianzizhou and finally it spills his waters in the Fengshui river in the Suoxi valley; a passage of about 10 km. To both borders – bordered by high mountains winds footpaths. Throughout these, embelesa one being listened to the glad songs of the small birds, contemplating the free one swim of the fish, appreciating the elegance of the wood bridges or the sinuosity of the stone stairs.

Wulingyuan has another attraction: its innumerable calcareous caves. They emphasize between these: Huanglong (Yellow Dragoon), Guanyin (Goddess of the Mercy), Xiangshui (Sonorous Water), Guiqi (Turtle in rest), Feiyun (Flying Clouds), Jinluo (Gold Caracol) – the Huanglong (7,5 km of prrofundidad) is divided in four floors, in which there is a dam, two rivers, three cascades, 96 galleries.

The 97,9% of the area are covered by millenarian trees. In a steep solitary summit several old pines even yerguen themselves. The leafy trees of the primitive secondary florestas, that grow in vast extensions, covering the sky. Such are seen anywhere by glyptostroboides rare plants and precious the Melaseguoia, gingko, the living appreciated ones like “ fossil ".

Macacos the rare animal –, pheasants, Megalabatrachus davidianugs, etc. – also appear throughout. In the first years of the 80, when the scientists realized investigations on the area, they could not express his emotion: Wulingyuan is “ asylum " of the animal and “ bank of genes " of vegetables.

There the climate is tempered and rainy, it is not cold nor warm. The annual average temperature is of 15°C. Favorable conditions for animal habitat and plants.

In Wulingyuan the minorities live tujia, bai and miao. Their houses and terraces are scattered between green hills and crystalline waters. During the local celebrations, their songs and dances are appraised. All this form, with high mountains and the inextricable forests, an immense, bordering picture with the original times.