Covering an area of three-hundred square kilometers (or 186 miles) the Shilin Stone Forest is a massive otherworldly landscape of karst formations over 270 million years old. Over the millennia seismic activity and water and wind erosion have carved the present-day limestone formations.Listed as Word Heritage Site by UNECO in 2007, Stone Forest is located in the hinterland of Yunnan Plateau – Shilin Yi Autonomous County, and is 78km from Kunming. It’s the only karst landform scenic spot located in subtropical plateau area. The Stone Forest has the most unique karst landform in the world due to its long history, large scale, and rich categories. It’s reputed as First Wonder under the Heaven and enjoys a high reputation in world geography circles.The stone peaks here have smooth lines and stand upright and abrupt, and the color of them is a kind of steel-gray. The highest rock pillar can reach over 40 meters.Stone Forest can be divided into eight districts, and at present, open tour districts are Stone Forest Scenic Area, Naigu Stone Forest Scenic Area, Feilong Waterfall Forest Scenic Area and Chang Lake Forest Scenic Area. Among them, Stone Forest Scenic Area is core area of the whole scenic spot, and most famous attractions are located here, including Major Stone Forest, Minor Stone Forest, Bushao Hill, Lizi Yuanqing, and Eternal Mushroom.
