Wuqia Colorful Mountains

Wuqia Colorful Mountains

Wuqia Colorful Mountains

These two colorful mountains are known as the Ancient Sea Shipwreck and the Monk’s Hat Mountain respectively. Legend has it that the Ancient Sea Shipwreck is the legendary “Noah’s Ark.” The other, Monk’s Hat Mountain, is said to be where the monk Xuanzang’s hat fell during his journey to the West to retrieve Buddhist scriptures along the southern route of the Silk Road in the Pamir Plateau. Due to the high altitude, strong winds, and unpredictable climate of the Pamirs, his hat was blown off and landed here, eventually transforming into a magnificent multicolored mountain. According to experts, this mountain formed during the Tertiary period and is a Yardang landform composed of layers of red sandstone and gypsum.