Yangshuo Karst Formation

With over 70,000 karst peaks, Yangshuo is one paradise for rock-climbing. Let’s get some more info on these formations of karsts before exploring them. It may make you more excited when you know about them.

Karst Topography & Formations Karst topography is a three-dimensional landscape shaped by the dissolution of a soluble layer or layers of bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite. These landscapes display distinctive surface features and underground drainages, and in some examples there may be little or no surface drainage. The karstification of a landscape may result in a variety of large or small scale features both on the surface and beneath.On exposed surfaces, small features may include flutes, runnels, clints and grikes, collectively called karren or lapiez. Medium-sized surface features may include sinkholes or dolines, vertical shafts, disappearing streams, and reappearing springs. Mature karst landscapes, where more bedrock has been removed than remains, may result in karst towers or haystack/eggbox landscapes. Beneath the surface, complex underground drainage systems and extensive caves and cavern systems may form. A karst river may disappear underground a number of times and spring up again in different places, usually under a different name.

The entire region is surrounded by mountains while the central part is covered with hills and plains. The karst geomorphy around Yangshuo is an area of irregular limestone formations in which erosion has produced fissures, sinkholes, underground streams, and caverns. This is wide-spread in the region, creating numerous natural scenic spots.

Two crustal movements of the earth took place about 200 and 180 millionyears ago thrusting the limestone sediments out of the sea from its bottom more than 200 meters below the surface to form a large expanse of land. The karst formation became the hills and rocks with unusual shapes through many years of erosion by the wind and rain. There are many complete karst, which are of high scientific value and tourist value. Karst caves and stone forests are a feature the natural environment of Yangshuo. The altitude is 140-160 meters. Yangshuo is in subtropical and monsoon zone with warm and moist climate. All this makes Yangshuo a unique natural experience for the visitor.

Source: yangshuocountrysidehotel.com