The Pearl of the Plateu - Xunhua
Introduction
On this trip 6 people went to Xunhua together. I and Xiao Zhang, my classmate, organized the trip there. How beautiful the scenery is in Xunhua! After arriving we never wanted to return home. Now we will take a look at the beautiful scenery of Xunhua, as described below. There is a Camel Pool, Mengda Heavenly Lake, the Jiezi Mosque, and the banks of the Yellow River.
Mengda Nature Reserve
This is a national level nature reserve. It is located in eastern Xunhua County in Mengda township. This place is in the eastern part of XiQingShan, south of the Yellow River JiShi Valley. It is 27 kilometers from the Xunhua County seat and 126 kilometers from Xining. These mountains belong to the DangRui/WuTai mountain range. It is in the transition zone between the northeast corner of the QingZang Tibetan Plateau and the HuangTu Loess Plateau. These mountains run north to south. The total area is 17290 hectares. The elevation is between 1780 and 3356 meters. This is a primitive nature reserve with dense forest, many varieties of plant life, and beautiful scenery. It is considered to be the “XiShuangBanNa” of the QingZang Tibetan Plateau. It is a scenic tourist area as well as a nature reserve. Its unique geographical conditions, comparatively warm and wet weather, and good soil conditions make this reserve area capable of supporting many different kinds of plant life. Based on preliminary investigations in 1982, there are 90 advanced plant species in this area which make up 80% of the provincial total, 296 sub-species which make up 65% of the provincial total, and 517 varieties which make up 20% of the provincial total. There are 77 species and 326 varieties of medical plants, of which 44 species and 81 varieties have already been collected in the National Pharmacopoeia. In this area the topography is complex, with dense forest, remote geographical features, and sparsely populated wilderness. All these conditions are very good for the sustaining of much natural wildlife. There are 3 species, 5 sub-species, and 7 varieties of animals. There are 8 species, 19 sub-species, and 68 varieties of birds.In this Mengda national level Nature Reserve there are quiet mountains, silent trees, beautiful waters, forming more than 60 beautiful scenes in this place.