Hezhang National Forest Park

Hezhang National Forest Park is located in Hezhang County in the northwest of Guizhou Province. It consists of Pingshan Forest Area and Reservoir Forest Area. The total area of the park is 4733 hectares. The forest coverage rate in the park is 87.8%, which is a very important biological gene bank and water conservation forest area in northwestern Guizhou. The forest landscape in the park is very beautiful, with nearly 10,000 mu of natural evergreen broad-leaved and deciduous forest, thousands of seedlings in Zhongshan pasture, about 10,000 mu of mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forest, and nearly 20,000 mu of coniferous forest. In spring, there are rhododendrons and camellias in full bloom; in summer, thousands of trees are green; in autumn, the forests are dyed; in winter, there are jade trees. The park is located in the plateau canyon area, with rich geographical and cultural landscapes, and has the characteristics of majesty, strangeness, danger and beauty. Yelang Three Gorges, Qixingjian Gorge, Tonggu Gorge, Axe Gorge and other canyons are full of high mountains and emerald green peaks. There are three natural bridges developed from karst caves on the Qixing River, which span the river with a span of 100--120 meters. Standing on the bridge is like being in an ethereal fairyland. There are more than 10 deep and mysterious karst caves in the scenic spot, which are good places for exploration and scientific research. The hydrological landscape of the park is spectacular. Large and small natural rivers gallop and sing all the way. Some of the falling waterfalls are fluttering, and some are roaring. The dissolution depression in the park forms the "Vanilla Lake" with a water capacity of 22,000 cubic meters, and 17 artificial reservoirs are dotted in the green ocean. The park is rich in human landscape resources, and its history and culture is dominated by Yelang culture, including the prehistoric culture more than 2,000 years ago and the culture of various ethnic groups in Yelang's hometown in the middle of 2,000 years. The "Hezhang Kele Tomb Site" in the park was rated as one of the "Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries in China" by the Chinese Archaeological Society in 2001.