Yellow River Stone Forest

The Yellow River courses through uncountable terrains and regions, but the Stone Forest in Gansu Province is definitely one of the more dramatic landscapes it graces. The Stone Forest is well-known for its peculiarly shaped towers of rock and heart-stopping mountain precipices that stretch out beyond the horizon.     

 

Nowadays, a geographical park has been established in southern Jingtai County to preserve the Yellow River Stone Forest four billion years ago. Yellow River Stone Forest Scenic Spot is located in Longwan Village in Jingtai District of Baiyin City. It was formed by the rising of the Earth's crust. Just as beautiful as the famous Stone Forest of Yunnan, Yellow River Stone Forest Scenic Spot is composed of many sand stalagmites and stone pillars in various sizes and shapes. 

Some are about 80-200 meters (262-656 feet) tall. Unique pattern on the cliff sides formed by water and wind erosion made the stone forest more attracting. The fabulous scenes reflect the prodigious craftsmanship of nature's creation. People have imaginatively given many peaks vivid names, such as "Lovers under the Moon", "The Goddess Looks at the Moon", "Qu Yuan Asks Heaven" and "A Gleam of Sky".

Unique rock formations proudly sun themselves while peaks as sharp as swords stab at the sky. Inexplicable holes puncture otherwise uninterrupted rock faces. Rock arches and windows defy gravity. Some rock faces are so immense, smooth and perfectly vertical that many visitors wonder if they’ve been reshaped by mechanical means.

The views from above the Stone Forest slowly reveal that they share little in common with the views from within, which are marked by obscure rock contours and a touch of claustrophobia. From above, the “forest” transforms into a sea of jagged edges, tinged in sepia. Stunningly desolate, the broken layers of precipices receding into the distance appear entirely devoid of life. It’s a beautiful meditation on the painstaking and relentless passage of time, and a peek at a quiet and forsaken world that somehow offers solace in our ephemeral lives.

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