Shennongjia
UNESCO World Heritage Site (Hubei Shennongjia, 2016); UNESCO Man And The Biosphere Reserve; UNESCO Global Geopark · Shennongjia, Hubei
A vast mountain forest in western Hubei, protected as a World Heritage Site in 2016 for holding some of the richest temperate forests left in the world - a refuge where plants that vanished elsewhere during the ice ages survived, and where more than three thousand species of vascular plant grow. It takes its name from Shennong, the mythical Divine Farmer who is said to have climbed here on ladders to gather medicinal herbs, and the mountains are still known for their herbalists. Shennongding, the Peak of Shennong, rises to about 3,100 metres, the highest point in central China, and the road up passes through bands of forest into bamboo, rhododendron and alpine meadow, with boardwalks and viewpoints along the way. The reserve is the stronghold of the Hubei golden snub-nosed monkey, whose troops are sometimes seen from the road, alongside black bears, takin, clouded leopards and unusually many white-coated animals; it is also the heart of China's long-running legend of the Yeren, a wild man of the forest never actually found. Dajiuhu, the Nine Lakes, is a high wetland basin of meadows, pools and morning mist crossed by boardwalks, and Guanmenshan and Tianshengqiao offer gentler valleys, waterfalls and streams. Winter brings snow and a small ski area.
Shennongding Scenic Area, Muyu Town, Shennongjia Forestry District, Shennongjia, Hubei, China
Scenic areas open daily in daylight hours, roughly 7:30-17:00 with seasonal variation (check); mountain areas can close for snow, ice or fog.