Baishishan

Baishishan, located 15 kilometers south of the city of Laiyuan County, Baoding City, Hebei Province, is at the northernmost end of the Taihang Mountains, consisting of more than 100 peaks of varying heights and relatively independent from each other, with the main peak at an altitude of 2096 meters. During the Warring States period, the ridge divided Yan and Zhao, and during the Liao and Song dynasties, one mountain divided two countries. Baishishan is named for the white marble scattered across the mountain, characterized by marble karst peak forest landforms, representing a new type of peak forest landform in China. Baishishan has a large and tall body, with fewer curves, more edges and corners, large height differences, and high density, featuring 'three tops, six platforms, nine valleys, and eighty-one peaks,' with the main ridge line extending over 7000 meters. The highest peak is the dragon's head rising northwest of the North China Plain. In 2004, the Baishishan scenic area was rated as a national scenic area by the National Tourism Administration and as a national forest park by the State Forestry Administration. On September 18, 2006, the Laiyuan Baishishan and Laishui Yesanpo National Geoparks, in joint application with the Beijing Fangshan National Geopark, were approved by UNESCO as a World Geopark. On February 25, 2017, the National Tourism Administration announced that after evaluation by the National Tourism Resources Planning and Development Quality Evaluation Committee, the Baishishan scenic area was rated as a national 5A-level tourist attraction.