Wansheng Stone Forest |
Located 165km from downtown Chongqing (chóng qìng 重庆), Wansheng Stone Forest (wàn shèng shí lín 万盛石林), which was formed about four hundred and sixty-five million years to six hundred million years ago and it was formed two hundred million years earlier than Lunan Stone Forest (lù nán shí lín 路南石林) in Yunnan province (yún nán shěng 云南省), is called "the Ancestor of Stone Forest". The scenic area covers more than 10 square kilometers. Touted as a "geological museum", this maze of towering karst structures is fascinating. The forest here has a typical karst appearance, filled with sword, drum, pagoda, mushroom and bud shaped stones, as well as animal shapes. Owing to its having had a great variety of weird rock formations, it has enjoyed the reputation of a natural zoo of stone animals. Wansheng Stone Forest is endowed with the typical feature of a well-developed limestone zone.
This stone forest is unique as it is situated on the peak of the mountain and is often shrouded in cloud or mist. The mountain often rains, adding to its beauty and advent and enhancing the character of the stone formations. Furthermore, the place boasts a good number of scenic spots, such as the earthly slit, a group of limestone caves, underground streams and the milk stone in various shapes. Various activities are offered to the guests, which encourage every one to participate, such as ethnic dance show, teahouse and clap the mountain. Sedan chairs (jiào zǐ 轿子) are available to take visitors up the numerous stairs to the top when some one feeling tired needs to relax. In addition to the drop in elevation as large as 40 meters, copper drum shoal, a newly-developed scenic spot in this area, has a total length of 11,000 meters. Besides, the water there is good in quality. Therefore, drifting along the shoal is surely a fresh experience and a great enjoyment. The touring values of the stone forest lie in the following aspects. Transportation : You can take a tourist express train or, as an alternative, take Bus No.327 from Nanping Bus Station (nán píng qì chē zhàn 南坪汽车站) and get off at Wansheng, where you have to take another minibus directly to the forest. Both ways take about 4 hours.
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