Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark

Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark

The Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark is a national geopark.

Located on the northern foothills of the Lesser Khingan Mountains in Yichun, Heilongjiang, the Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark is currently the most comprehensive, typical, and richly shaped Indosinian granite stone forest geological heritage discovered in China. Geological heritage refers to geological phenomena formed and preserved by internal and external geological forces during geological periods. This granite stone forest scenic area is situated in Tangwanghe District of Yichun City, known as the "hometown of Korean pine" in China. It is the third national-level geopark officially approved in Heilongjiang Province, following Wudalianchi and Jiayin Dinosaur National Geoparks. The massive granite base of the Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark formed 200 million years ago during the Indosinian movement and later developed into its modern landform through the Yanshan and Himalayan movements.

Travel Information Edited by Tangwanghe

Tangwanghe-Strange Stone Scenic Area is 120 kilometers from the downtown area of Yichun, taking about 2 hours by car, and 100 kilometers from Jiayin, a national first-class port to Russia. The stone forest has an average elevation of 436.6 meters and covers a total area of 163.57 square kilometers, divided into the stone forest landscape area and the landscape sightseeing area. It is characterized by various mimetic rock formations and lush vegetation in the strange stone landscape area of the Lesser Khingan Mountains, showcasing the unique charm of a national geopark and national forest park. It is also a scientific investigation and exploration base for Chinese youth.

The entire scenic area boasts lush vegetation, verdant mountains, and a coverage rate of over 99.8%, home to more than 1,240 species of animals, plants, insects, and birds from the Lesser Khingan Mountains. Strolling along the paths shaded by ancient trees and birches, you can enjoy birdsong, watch the gentle swaying of pines and cypresses, smell the faint fragrance of azaleas, and admire the strange rocks of the Greater Khingan Mountains. Coupled with cascading streams and natural oxygen bars, it is an idyllic paradise.

The scenic area features over a hundred granite stone peaks that form a unique geological landscape known as the granite stone forest. These were formed from massive granite bases created during the Indosinian movement 250 million years ago. Through hundreds of millions of years of tectonic compression, crustal uplift and subsidence, erosion by water, weathering, and chemical processes, they have evolved into today’s peculiar Tangwanghe granite structural peak forests. These peaks rise abruptly from the ground, towering and steep, with sheer vertical walls; or they are distributed along mountain ranges, varying in height and resembling birds or beasts with diverse shapes; or they are scattered among the woods, exquisitely carved and naturally wondrous, creating a myriad of strange rocks and spectacular scenes that are breathtaking. The strange rock geological heritage of the Lesser Khingan Mountains is a comprehensive geological landscape complex represented by Indosinian granite structural peak forests, Quaternary periglacial landforms, and neotectonic collapse landforms. It is the only site in China that features the most complete types, the most typical development, and the richest shapes of granite stone forest geological heritage. It is also a typical representative of granite structural peak forest geological heritage formed during the Indosinian period, holding significant scientific value for studying Indosinian granite tectonic denudation, Quaternary periglacial processes, neotectonic movements, and regional geological environmental evolution. Its discovery fills a gap in the developmental history of China’s Indosinian granite structural peak forest geological heritage.

- Strange Rocks

- Strange Stone Scenic Area: Currently, only parts of the strange stone landscape area and the landscape sightseeing area have been developed. The strange stone landscape area is divided into five major zones: the structural peak forest landscape zone, the mimetic rock landscape zone, the city wall mountain landscape zone, the periglacial stone sea landscape zone, and the Sacred Water Stream “Gorge” landscape zone.

Woodcarving Garden

The Woodcarving Garden is located on Huayuan Road in downtown Yichun. Adjacent to a tranquil pool and facing the “Lesser Khingan Mountains Stone Garden” across the road, it is an epitome of serenity and elegance. Visiting the Woodcarving Garden, you will marvel at the artists’ extraordinary creativity—this is a tribute to nature and a symphony celebrating life. The garden’s four scenic areas unfold in a grand and atmospheric sequence.

The first scenic area is the entrance archway landscape zone. It consists of a garden gate made up of three sets of archways. Six relief pillars create an external landscape with varying heights and a strong sense of layering, presenting a majestic and artistically striking presence. The entire archway combines representational and abstract elements, unifies traditional language with modern art, and contrasts low and high reliefs, condensing traditional Chinese culture while integrating romantic concepts of modern design. In the center of the archway are seven large characters, “China’s Forest Capital Woodcarving Garden,” inscribed by Mayor Li Yanzhi, reflecting the confidence and practice of the municipal Party committee and government in developing advanced productivity, promoting excellent culture, and wholeheartedly serving the people. Along a pathway paved with natural granite flagstones, you are led to the woodcarving colonnade landscape zone. This group of woodcarvings consists of 12 pieces in 4 sets, with leaves as the basic shape and images of flora and fauna conveying symbolic meanings, representing the eternal continuity of all things and expressing people’s hope for permanent ecological balance and harmony between humanity and nature.

Adjacent to the second scenic area is the central landscape zone. This is the main body of the entire garden and the largest cluster of sculptures. The main sculpture is a large totem pole symbolizing the “God of Life,” standing ten meters tall. It uses the dragon, a sacred totem of the Chinese nation, as a lucky pattern and employs symbols to express the forms of the universe, nature, flora, and fauna, carrying profound and far-reaching meanings. The twelve zodiac animals, representing the traditional cycle of life, symbolize the perpetual reproduction of life and convey a boundless spirit of vitality. This group of sculptures features a rugged style, simple techniques, and interlocking layers, achieving overall harmony and unity, with a dynamic momentum and divine charm that leaps from antiquity toward the future. Among large-scale woodcarving collections in China, this work currently leads in both overall scale and artistic achievement.

The fourth scenic area is the leisure and entertainment zone. It consists of wooden children’s play equipment and small wooden ornaments, adding vitality and liveliness to the otherwise solemn woodcarvings. The children’s facilities also infuse the theme of life with a spiritual touch, highlighting the ideal realm of harmony between humans and nature.

To raise awareness about cherishing life and protecting the environment, an ecological warning zone has been established on the west side of the Woodcarving Garden. Through elements such as dry wells, decaying trees, barren deserts, and bleached bones, it warns people that destroying the environment is akin to destroying humanity itself, and cherishing the environment means cherishing our home. In terms of overall design style, the Woodcarving Garden emphasizes creating a natural atmosphere and evoking natural rhythms. The pathway boards, leisure benches, tree-root-shaped planters, and low hedges, though made of hyper-realistic cement craftsmanship, give visitors the feeling of being in a forest and amidst nature. At night, the area is illuminated like daylight, sparkling like a sea of stars. In the hazy night, the statues’ strength and the garden’s warmth dance with a unique charm and allure.

Nestled by a serene pool, standing amid green trees and flowers, embracing distant mountains, and encircling the forest city, the Woodcarving Garden exudes a poetic and dreamy sentiment. Strolling through the garden, you may drift back to primordial times, recognizing the footprints of history through primitive totem worship; or you may journey into a future where humans and nature are one, transcending the self through unity with nature. We hope the beautiful scenery of the Woodcarving Garden can transport you to a state of harmony between self and surroundings, and we look forward to your return to the China Forest Capital Woodcarving Garden to explore its ever-new, even more beautiful, and profound realms.

Dai Ling Liangshui

The Dai Ling Liangshui Nature Reserve is located 25 kilometers north of Dai Ling District, stretching 11 kilometers from north to south and 6.25 kilometers from east to west, covering a total area of 63.94 square kilometers. It is one of the existing virgin Korean pine forest bases in China, a national nature reserve, and an experimental area for forestry teaching and research in Northeast China. The reserve has a forest coverage rate of over 95% and a total timber volume of 140,000 cubic meters. The area features a wide variety of forest types and rich species, especially a predominance of natural Korean pine. The virgin forest is home to various wild animals, plants, and precious medicinal herbs, earning it the nickname “Hometown of Little Korean Pines.” Walking into the virgin forest, you’ll find ancient straight-trunked pines towering over the dense, lush canopy. Most of the Korean pines here are 200–400 years old, standing 30–40 meters tall. By car or on foot, climb to the eastern slope of the reserve, where next to a steel watchtower stands a 50-meter-high wooden tower. On July 22, 1961, when the then President of China and his wife Wang Guangmei visited Dai Ling, they ascended this tower. To commemorate this historic moment, the people of Dai Ling named it the “Shaoqi Tower.” The reserve also features a comprehensive service area and an exhibition room for animal and plant specimens, providing areas for rest, sightseeing, and recreation.

Forest Ecology

Located 5.5 kilometers north of Wuying District, it is China’s earliest forest ecological nature reserve aimed at protecting Korean pines. The reserve is surrounded by water on three sides and backed by mountains on one, with a 40-meter-high steel watchtower at the mountaintop offering a panoramic view of the magnificent Korean pine forest. For visitor convenience, the reserve has also built mountain-looping pathways for walking or driving to the summit. Heilongjiang Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark – Heritage Significance

Heilongjiang Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark

The granite stone forest collapses and periglacial stone seas, among other geological and geomorphological relics within the Heilongjiang Yichun Granite Stone Forest National Geopark, feature unique landscapes and rich content. Particularly, the three major types of granite stone forest landforms—peak clusters, peak forests, and isolated peaks—are all distributed within the park, well-preserved, classically shaped, and extremely rare both domestically and internationally. They hold typical geological significance and are classified as top-tier protected geological landscape phenomena.

Yichun boasts many famous historical sites and cultural landscapes, including the Lesser Khingan Mountains Dinosaur Museum, Resource Museum, Woodcarving Garden, Stone Garden, Hengshan Ancient Tomb Cluster in Jinshan Town, Xiaogushan Ancient Human Cultural Site in Xilin, Ethnic Minority Culture Park, and other attractions within the city. These sites all add vibrant colors to Yichun, a beautiful forest city. It can be said that Yichun is an important forest eco-tourism destination in northern China, combining spectacular mountains, lush forests, and beautiful waterscapes, forest and ice-drifting tourism resources, as well as natural, historical, and cultural landscapes.

4 Travel Guide Edited by Travel Consumption

Parking Fee: 20 RMB per day

Tour Guide Fee: 25 RMB per hour

Car Rental Fee: 178 RMB per vehicle

Other Expenses: Vary depending on living standards

Admission

Adult ticket: 50 RMB

Child ticket: 25 RMB

Other discounts: Free for seniors; guides and military officers can enjoy discounted rates

Opening hours

Opening hours: 8:00 to 18:00

Additional note: Winter opening hours

Transportation

Bus: Take bus 65 or 76 to get there

Self-driving: Choose the appropriate route based on your departure point