Mountain Tianzi is named after Xiang Dakun who led the local farmers' revolt and called himself Tianzi——the Son of Heaven. Bounded by Suoxi Valley on the east, Zhangjiajie on the south, Sangzhi County on the north, Mountain Tianzi is one of the four scenic zones in Wulingyuan.
Mountain Tianzi lies on the highest point of “Golden Triangle”, its highest point being 1262.5m (Kunlun peak) and lowest point being 534m (Shilan valley). It has an area of 67 square kilometers, a touring line of 45 kilometers, an average temperature of 12℃, an annual waterfall of 1,800 mm, a frost-free period of 240 days and a frozen period of 60-80 days.
Except a layer of limestone and a few areolate stones at the peak, some hundred meters above sea level, the majority of scenic spots is formed of quart stones, belonging to sandstone ground feature which is the same as Suoxi Valley and Zhangjiajie. The 500-meter or 600-meter thick quartzite sandstone has evolved from neptunic rocks that subsided from oceans 380,000,000 years ago and after a complicated and long process formed strangely shaped spectacles.
Mountain Tianzi has four scenic wonders, namely Cloud Billows, Moon Brightness, Sun Glow and Winter Snow. The Cloud Billows are ever changing, morning and evening sun glows vast sky, moon shines in the still night, winter snow falls enchanting the scenery, like a lyric, like a landscape painting.
To sum up, the landscape in Mountain Tianzi is natural and primeval. Every scenic spot is created by nature and of no artificial trace. There are not only primeval forests and beautiful water but also plain folkways, special customs and local specialities and delicacies awaiting tourists from home and abroad. No wonder people make comments, like “people who have climbed Mountain Tianzi will not climb any other mountains” and “It can not be said that you have been to Wulingyuan without reaching Mountain Tianzi”. |