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The Stone Forest
The Stone Forest is to the southeast
of Kunming, belonging to Shilin County(originally Lunan
County). It is 350 square kilometers in area, and 90 kilometers
away from Kunming. It is well-known both at home and abroad.
The scenis spot consists of seven parts, namely Dashilin,
Xiaoshilin, Naigushilin, Dadieshui, Changhu, Yuehu, Zhiyundong
and Qifengdong.
The term "the Stone Forest"
suggests that it is a forest made up of stones. It is a
Karst landform. In primitive times the Stone Forest area
was a part of the Ancient Yunnan-Guizhou Sea. It began to
take shape about 270 million years ago in the Carboniferous
Period. The limestones in the sea, washed by the water,
formed countless channels and dissolved pillars. Later,because
of the movement of the crust and the collision between the
Eurasian Plate and the Indian Plate, the crust here kept
rising and in the end the sea became land then through hunclreds
of millions of years of the tests of the sun, rain, wind
and many earthquakes, the land appeared so beautiful two
million years ago. Groups of gray-black stone peaks, and
stone pillars rise abruptly, pointing to the sky, like a
very dense forest just as its name infers.
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Dashilin(the Big Stone Forest) is
the main part of the scenic spot. The land for visiting
is about 1,200 mu. Xiaoshilin(the Small Stone Forest) lies
to the northeast of the Dashilin. The stones here are different
from those in the Dashilin. Each one is isolated, exquisite
and beautiful, showing its unique charm. In the land where
the Stone Forest rises live the Sani People(a branch of
the Yi nationality), when visiting the Sani villages around
the Stone Forest Lake, you can enjoy the customs and habits
of local people and purchase the handicraft of embroidery
made by the Sani people. On the 24 th of the sixth month
of the lunar calendar every year is the traditional Torchlight
Festival of the Yi Nationality and the grand celemony activities
will be held in the Stone Forest.
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