Siguniang Berg

Siguniang Shan is esteemed by the local Tibetan residents as a devine mountain. The legend has it that four beautiful and kind-hearted girls, in order to save their treasured giant pandas, fought bravely with a ferocious leopard and thus became four graceful mountains standing tall and straight - Siguniang Shan. Rising at 6250 meters, 5664 meters, 5454 meters and 5355 meters above sea level respectively, the four peaks stand by one another in the northeast of the Hengduan Shan Range and the middle reaches of the Qionglai Shan Range where Xiaojin County and Wenchuan County share the common boundary. With elegant peaks surrounding it, Siguniang Shan area makes the high-peak center of the Qionglai Shan Range.

Yaomei Feng (peak of the youngest girl), the main peak at 6250 meters, lies at 102.9'E and 31.1'N, and ranks first among the high peaks of Qionglai Shan, which is chiefly made up of gastrodia (Gastrodia e lata). The perennial erosion and corrosion of nature make it extremely steep and full of precipices and steep walls. Plenty of glaciers hover in the air, hanging on the south slopes of the main peak while the glacier tongues go right to the foot of the mountain. On the west and north slopes are awe-inspiring steep rocks of hundreds of meters in height, below which are carpets of green grass, luxuriant forests and alpine vegetation belt with clear valley brooks.

Siguniang Shan lies in the joint where the West Sichuan Plateau transits sharply to the Chengdu Plain. Since the Mesozoic Era, it has undergone many a structural change, chiefly with the Indo-China movement of the Triassic Period, so that in the region the mountains became violently folded and rose up, the nature of the statum layer changed, the old fracture revived and the river receded to a lower position. Due to the internal and external effect of nature, Siguniang Shan is subject to great height difference between ridges and valleys, bearing complicated topographical characteristics.

The weather in the mountain region is so capricious that there exist great differences in temperature between day time and night time just because it lies in the transitional area where the tropical monsoon climate in central Asian turns gradually to the continental highland climate. In the Siguniang Shan region, its special geographical position, climatic condition and sharp vertical height difference provide an ideal environment for animals and plants of various kinds to live in rich ecological resources, it enjoys not only abundant precious trees such as Chinese larches, such rare herbal medicines as the tuber of elevate gastrodia (Gastrodian elata), fritillary, Chinese caterpillar fungus but also no less than 60 kinds of animals and up to 2300 kinds of birds. More than 30 sorts of animals, protected by the government, e.g. giant pandas, golden monkeys and lesser pandas find their proper living place here, where there lies the hometown of the famous giant pandas - Wolong Natural Preservation Center.

Charming and gentle, with its lofty peaks, Siguniang Shan is a good place for mountaineers and tourists. A 245 kilometer drive will take you form Chengdu through Dujiangyan County and Wolong to Rilong. Ride for 20 kilometers on horseback along Changpinggou from Rilong, and you will find yourself at the foot of Siguniang Shan. To climb the north slope of I Guniang Feng, II Guniang Feng and III Guniang Feng, You'd better go northeast-ward up along the Rilong Haizi Ditch. To ascend the east of Siguniang Shan, either climb over or go around the steep mountain ridges.