Mount Taibai National Park is situated in Meixian County on the northern hillside of Mount Taibai,the highest peak of Qinling Mountain Range.It occupies an area of 2,949 hectares,with 137 scenic attractions of every description distributed in eight large scenic zones.The park stands 620 to 3,500 meters above sea level,the hightest of its kind in China.The vast differences four different temperature zones in altitude results in a distinctive vertical distribution of climate,soil and vegetation.The park experiences four different temperature zones in ascending order:warm temperate,luke-warm temperature,frigid temperature and severe-cold temperature.Accordingly,there are six different forest landscape zones vertically.They are representive of unique bio-communities.The park has a variegated mass of plants,including 1,500 higher plants
and 300 moss plants.Besides,lichen,fern and artemisia are also large components of its vegetation.It has more than 260 species of wild birds and animals,and those within first and second categories under state protection are the goden-haired monkey,the takin,the clouded leopard,the red-bellied tragopan and the giant salamander.Grotesque and splendid landforms scatter over the park.There are three types of hills:low,medium-sized and high.These landscape zones assume distinctivve features.The loess-covered stony low hills below an altitude of 1,300 meters are characterized by loess and stony hilly landforms,and there are many stone caves in them.Landscape varies from place to place in the medium hilly area.Available here are steep hills,symmetrical peaks,narrow vales and gullies,iagged and oddly-shaped rocks,deep water pools and gushing waterfalls.The glaciated high hilly area lies smooth and out-stretched.Angular peaks and gigantic stones come in thousands of
shapes,and present a lively sight.The landscape of "stone rivers "has grown out of boulders as a result of servere erosion by the melting ice and wind.The park is famed as "a natural geology museum " for its intanct geo-tectonics and varied rocks.The park is endowed with rich hot spring resources.The Tangyu Hot Spring Sanitarium in Meixian County,situated at the entrance of the park,gets its water source from 11 spas and three wells.The spring water is top-quality and contains more than 20 kinds of healthy minerals and trace elements.
