Exposure to an Ideal Summer Resort

■ The well protected primitive forest, pure rivers and natural herb bathing pool are highlights of Shiwan Mountain

Have you ever had an interest in unsolved mysteries since your childhood? If you come to Shiwan Mountain, you will not feel disappointed. The tales of python, the worldfamous views, as well as the local primitive custom have endowed this mountain with profound cultural connotation and characteristics. With a long history of human civilization supported by archaeological evidence, Shiwan Mountain has nurtured people for generations. Yao ethnic group dwelling in the mountains are good at both singing and dancing. Shiwan Mountain is like a goblet of mellowed wine. Once you taste it, you will be as drunk as a lord.

  Heavenly charm of Shiwan Mountain 

Located in the southeast of Shangsi County, Fangchenggang, Guangxi, China, Shiwan Mountain National Forest Park is an ideal place for summer escape and sightseeing. The well protected primitive forest, pure rivers and natural herb bathing pool are highlights. For city-dwellers longing for fresh air, Shiwan Mountain in Shangsi County with its vast forests is a natural oxygen bar. For adventure seekers, the mountain peak, with its almost vertical and slippery steps, offers a challenge guaranteed to quicken the heartbeat.

It is also been nominated as the district with abundant golden camellias. Shiwan Mountain has the most varieties of golden camellia genes in the world. From December to March the next year, golden camellia flowers blossom and cover the whole area. Shiwan Mountain’s golden camellia is of rare species which can be dated back over 170 million years ago. Over 95% of the golden camellias in the world grow in Shiwan Mountain, making the mountain the largest natural conservation area of golden camarillas. In 2011, it was honored as the “Land of Golden Camellia in China”.

With regard to the environment, the Shiwan Mountain has the charm of majesty, uniqueness, tranquility, elegance, wildness and primitiveness. In addition, Shiwan Mountain can serve as transfer areas for the migrant birds to spend winter and they have the function of wind prevention, soil protection and siltation accretion, purification of water and the air. The forest covers 254,000 hectares, more than 40,000 hectares of which is of virgin forest. In 2011, the city was awarded as a famous city with “Natural Oxygen Bars in China” by China Ecological Society. There are more than 1,500 species of plants in this ecological system and 40 of them are listed among key national preserved species. Animals of every size can hide easily in such places and many are recorded. The mountain also provides a habitat for rare and endangered species, such as egret, cloud leopard, leopard, forest musk deer, giant lizard and python.

The well protected primitive forest, pure rivers and natural herb bathing pool are highlights.

Nanping Yao Township, located in the hinterland of Shiwan Mountain in Shangsi County, is an area where Yao ethnic group is most concentrated. Isolated by Shiwan Mountain, people of Yao don’t like to go out and socialize, offering few opportunities for people from the outside world to get close to them. This is why Yao has maintained their indigenous culture for thousands of years and reserved numerous primitive tribal relics till today, which have become precious samples of ethnologic and anthropologic researches. These people tend to be very friendly and possibly invite you to their home for a meal and a short stay.

 Enjoy summer in mountains 

As you approach, you see the well-preserved Shiwan Mountain surrounded by dense forests and creeks with their almost crystal clear water. As you climb the winding mountain road, you find yourself surrounded by thick clouds and dense canopies below you. As you are halfway up the mountain, the evergreen forests, dotted with stunning wildflowers, offer you a spectacular view of the landscape. On the horizon, valleys, rocks, cliffs and peaks start to reveal themselves. Depending on a magnificent view of undulating hills covered with lush forests, all the weariness brought by travel disappears. With the rolling mountains looming in the distance and a sea of clouds hovering over the lower part of the mountains, the visit indeed refreshes the mind and heart.

■ Yao girls are relaxing in the Shiwan Mountain, with stream gurgling down in the valley

At the foot of the Shiwan Mountain, there is the Jiulong Pond of Yao Village. The Pond has a total length of five kilometers, and a fall of 180 meters. It takes about two hours to walk from one end to the other. There are full of strange stones and forests. Visitors can experience the excitement of the rafting and relax themselves fromtheir busy work. When the sun shines on the river, the seawater is just like silver glistening on the surface, creating a dreamlike view. As the sun sets, the sunlight is taken away. A few minutes later, a vast stretch of evening clouds over the mountain will give away to the twinkling stars. Besides exciting rafting, visitors can also enjoy themselves by wandering around the forests at the Yao Village. Visitors can experience what it is like to be a fisherman near the pond. It is also an ideal place for those who just want to immerse themselves in the scenery or just wander in the water with bare feet.

■ Shiwan Mountain boasts rare plants

Thanks to its unparalleled beauty, Shangsi County’s Shiwan Mountain attracts travelers from all over the world, featuring a vast stretch of forest, rare wild animals and plants, mysterious ethnic group. Upon arrival, you will be greeted by the cool breeze from mountain. Around the Shiwan Mountain, you are still able to find more.

Moshi Valley is meandering forward like a giant dragon, coiling itself around the Shiwan Mountain. It boasts the combination of peak, rock, pond, waterfall and forest. Located in the south part of Shiwan Mountain, Nanshan Longevity Tourism Resort is especially famous for its Green Pond, also known as the “Queens’ Bathing Pool”. It is said that the water in the pond was a kind of miracle water in which queens in ancient times bathed. The water is said to have the function of improving people’s skin and making it smoother. Near the Shiwan Mountain, Birds Paradise is a theme park for the appreciation of all kinds of rare birds, together with leisure vacation, popular science education, sports training, as well as environmental protection.

■ Shiwan Mountain is an ideal place for sightseeing

Thanks to its unparalleled beauty, Shangsi County’s Shiwan Mountain attracts travelers from all over the world, featuring a vast stretch of forest, rare wild animals and plants, mysterious ethnic group.

Tips 

■Location: In the southeast of Shangsi County, Fangchenggang, 136 kilometers away from Nanning, Guangxi, China 

■Best Time to Visit: From May to October 

■Activities: Trekking, rafting, fishing, shooting, swimming, and tasting local specialty