Mocang Forest Park

　　Mocang Forest Park is located in the vast expanse 10 kilometers east of Shidian County. It is said that the name "Mocang" is derived from the two characters “摩天” (touching the sky) in Lu You’s poem “Autumn Night: Going Out at Dawn to Greet the Cool Air” (“秋夜将晓出篱门迎凉有感”): “Three thousand rivers flow east into the sea; Five thousand cliffs tower and touch the sky.” However, naming it directly “Touching the Sky” might have seemed arrogant, so the character “天” (sky) was changed to “苍” (vast/lofty), giving rise to the name Mocang Forest Park.

　　The beauty of Mocang lies in its mountains. In the seventeenth year of the Chongzhen era during the Ming Dynasty (1644 AD), Tang Tai, also known as Dandang, a renowned painter and calligrapher from Jinning, Yunnan Province, visited this place out of admiration. Standing atop the mountain and overlooking the peaks, he was deeply moved by the vast meadows of Mocang Forest Park. He first inscribed the bold characters “离天三尺” (Three Feet from Heaven) to praise Mocang, and later wrote the cursive calligraphy works “云山” (Cloudy Mountains) and “听松园” (Pine-Listening Garden) among other poems, extolling the surrounding forests.

　　Today, Mocang Forest Park features tens of thousands of acres of natural grassland interwoven with dense coniferous forests, presenting beautiful scenery. Herdsmen driving flocks of cattle and sheep can often be seen, creating a tranquil pastoral scene. The grasslands, forests, and distinctive animal husbandry form the core landscape of Mocang Forest Park. Coupled with the lush green lawns, wildflowers blooming everywhere on the Mocang Prairie, visitors standing atop the mountain can enjoy an open view, take in the majestic mountain ridges, drifting clouds, verdant pines, ancient trees, vibrant flowers in competition, and the murmuring streams echoing through hidden valleys—like stepping into a paradise on earth, a utopia. During weekends and holidays, visitors from nearby regions flock here to fish, escape the summer heat, enjoy picnics and outings, and find endless joy and reluctance to leave.