The colored rocks of Zhangye Danxia are the colorful mountains of China. Colored cliffs of Zhangye Danxia: a paradise for a colorist photographer What other sights to see

People usually love everything colorful. And if the conversation turns to some colorful sights of the world, then all his attention is focused on them. Be it colored lakes or sands of various shades. After a person learns about the colorful lakes of the Kelimutu volcano and the even more colorful sands of Chamarel, he (and with him you) simply need to learn about the Colored Cliffs of Zhangye Danxia.

There is such a curious place in China where the rocks are painted in countless colors with a predominance of brown and red shades. This natural wonder is located in Gansu province near the town of Zhangye in the northern foothills of the Qilianshan range. The Colored Mountains are part of the national park of the same name in China. These places were declared a National Park only in November 2011. The area of the park is 510 km2.

Colored cliffs of Zhangye Danxia on the map

Geographic coordinates 38.935951, 100.107614
The distance from the capital of China Beijing is approximately 1400 km
The distance to the nearest airport is Jiayuguan City about 190 km
Distance to the nearest Lanzhou County International Airport (Zhongchuan) 400 km

Amazing reflections of almost all the colors of the rainbow can be observed on numerous hills scattered throughout the National Park. In general, it is simply unrealistic to describe this in words. You have to see this with your own eyes. It’s no wonder that tourists from all over the world strive to get to these protected and colorful places. From a distance it seems that a giant artist, who painted mountain landscapes a long time ago, was upset about something and decided to mix paints on a huge easel and leave them as a legacy for us.

Well, this is of course lyricism, in reality everything is much more prosaic. The rocks here consist of red sandstone and Cretaceous rocks. Scientists suggest that about 100 million years ago in these places there was a huge reservoir, into which the waters deposited countless amounts of silt.

Further, under the influence of various external factors, the giant pool dried up, and everything that had accumulated at its bottom began to oxidize and acquire such a variety of colors. Time passed, over millions of years a layer about 3,700 meters thick of red sandstone was formed, and at the top a layer of 1,300 meters already dates back to the Cretaceous period. From this layer the peaks of Mount Danxia began to form. We will not go deep into the theories of geology. Let's just say that once again, for the multi-millionth time, the planet surprises us with its inexhaustible imagination.

After the Colored Mountains of Zhangye Danxia became known far beyond the borders of China, strings of travelers flocked here. The once quiet and sleepy town of Zhangye has become the starting point for hikes to the Colored Mountains. For the convenience of visitors, wooden flooring and stairs were built here.

The guys from Unesco didn’t miss this corner either, and added it to the World Heritage List in 2010 (strange, why didn’t they do this earlier?).

Colorful mountains of Zhangye Danxia photo

Danxia Landscape or Colored Cliffs of Zhangye Danxia (Danxia) are colorful rock formations of the Geological Park in Gansu Province, China. These rock formations are a unique type of petrographic geomorphology that can only be found in China. The Colored Cliffs are composed of red sandstones and conglomerates, mostly from the Cretaceous period.

This is not photoshop, this is Zhangye Danxia Landform Geological Park.

When you first see these places in photos and videos, you may think that the technology has applied similar effects and filters to the image, but this is not the case. Colorful, as if painted with a brush, the Zhangye Danxia Mountains were created so many years ago as a result of millennia of changes in the structure of the earth's rocks. The composition of the unique rocks is sandstone and sedimentary rocks originally from the Cretaceous period.

According to geological research, about 100 million years ago, there was a huge pool at the site of the Zhangye Danxia Mountains, which gradually dried up as a result of exposure to high temperatures. The sediment left at the bottom of the pool oxidized when exposed to oxygen and produced interesting red and copper shades of color. About 70 million years ago, the sediments hardened and formed the "chalk bed" - the new floor of the basin. The thickness of the layer was 3.7 km. After this, the movement of rocks and new rivers gradually washed out the bottom of the basin, forming a mountainous landscape. This is how Mount Danxia, in particular, was formed. According to experts, the Zhangye Danxia Mountains continue to change and grow to this day, becoming approximately 87 centimeters higher in 10,000 years.

Since 2010, Zhangye Danxia Colored Cliffs have been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, which has increased its popularity among foreign tourists from all over the world many times over. Now wooden paths have been laid here and safe viewing platforms have been organized so that everyone can feel like a part of this unearthly beauty created by nature itself. The popularity of the colorful mountains of the Geological Park has forever changed the life of the quiet and peaceful town of Zhangye nearby. Now it is a tourist Mecca, where anyone who is interested in looking at some of the most unusual creations in this world comes.

The Zhangye Danxia Mountains may surprisingly remind you of a slightly more famous place - in the southwest of Mauritius. Only they are a million times larger than this 7-color sandbox.

This is a description of the attraction Colored Cliffs Zhangye 193 km northwest of Xining, Ganse (China (PRC)). As well as photos, reviews and a map of the surrounding area. Find out the history, coordinates, where it is and how to get there. Check out other places on our interactive map for more detailed information. Get to know the world better.

Danxia landform - colorful rocks of China! Not a consequence of an environmental disaster, although this could well be assumed (we are talking about China, after all), but a real natural attraction, formed over thousands of years.

Today there are a large number of interesting and fascinating places on the planet. One of these is located in China. Incredibly beautiful mountain ranges can bewitch and hypnotize everyone who looks at this miracle of nature. You will probably never see mountains with a similar color anywhere else. They are located in the vicinity of Gansu province and are a dream for any photographer. And it’s not without reason that here you can see hundreds of tourists and people jumping through the mountains with their cameras, trying to capture the most unique photo.

Colored rocks of Zhangye Danxia and how they were formed

The colored rocks of Zhangye Danxia have a pleasant rainbow coloring. All these colors, like a colored blanket, enveloped the area. Mostly red and rusty copper colors can be seen here. However, there are also other, completely unexpected colors. We inherited all this from the Cretaceous period. According to scientists, there was a large pool here more than 10 million years ago, with silt from the entire local area in it. During global warming, the reservoir completely dried out, but the sediment remained. After some time it oxidized and became rusty in color.

Since then, a crust of various colors began to form. About 70 million years ago, mountains began to gradually form and grow. The growth of rocks does not stop even today. This cannot be seen just like that. Scientists carried out all kinds of measurements, studies, examinations and found out that over the past 10 thousand years the mountains rose 0.87 m. It was also revealed that during their formation the local landscape and the structure itself changed several times. The color, of course, also did not remain unchanged. New colors were regularly added to it, and old ones faded or took on a different appearance over time. If you look at these mountains from the outside, you might think that mother nature, like an artist, painted them for the amusement of people. And from the photos, you might think that they couldn’t do without a photo editor. However, it is not. Everything is quite real, and you can be convinced of this if you see this mountainous area with your own hands.

How to get to Zhangye Danxia Cliffs?

Getting here is quite easy. The mountains are almost immediately visible when you are in the city of Zhangye. The colored rocks of Zhangye Danxia in China are becoming increasingly popular every year. Crowds of tourists flock here to enjoy the extraordinary beauty of these places. You can stay here and wander for hours without getting tired. Mountains attract you like a magnet. The city of Zhangye itself, in turn, does everything possible to ensure that every person is satisfied with their stay here. They made an excellent road in the mountainous area, and also built many boardwalks so that people could move freely or simply sit on the boards and relax, admiring the most beautiful pictures created by nature. It is worth noting that the UNESCO World Heritage Organization also could not resist the beauty of these mountains. The consequence of this was the inclusion of Zhangye Danxia Rocks in its list.

This is truly something unimaginable. Just think where else you can find such beautiful colored cliffs of Zhangye Danxia, which China values and is very proud of. Probably the answer will be clear. Nowhere! There are many mountains and colored massifs on earth, but they are all different from each other. But these mountains especially stand out among all earthly objects. These wave-like colors that cover the rocks are very interesting. You can look at them for hours, admiring how this could even happen. Nature knows how to surprise people. She gives people many surprises.

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The picture created by nature in the Chinese town of Zhangye must be seen with your own eyes. The impression left from this unusual landscape will remain with you for the rest of your life. Mountains that look like a soft and fluffy blanket, brightly painted with multi-colored colors, covering the Earth - this is the first impression.

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On vacation, some people like to lie on the beach, others like to hang out at discos. Those for whom a good vacation is, first of all, travel and the opportunity to see new unusual places on our planet will appreciate the Zhangye Danxia Mountains. This attraction, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010, is located on the territory of the Geological Park near the city of Zhangye in the Chinese province of Gansu. Officially, this rock formation is called Zhangye Danxia Landform Geological Park. In some other sources, the mountain formation is called Zhangye Danxia due to differences in translations.

The beauty of these places, which we see in photographs, seems unnatural. As soon as you find yourself on the spot, the fantastic landscape, the sight of which will take your breath away, I would like to call it unearthly, created for a film about other worlds. It turns out not at all. The nature of our planet is capable of creating such magnificent places. This is ours, earthly - say the researchers.

Once upon a time, 100 million years ago, this territory was the bottom of a huge reservoir. As a result of seismic activity of the Earth or other cataclysms, from which dinosaurs also became extinct, the water in this basin evaporated 70 million years ago, and the bottom sediments hardened and formed, as geologists say, a “chalk bed,” that is, this Wonder of the World is quite old. The view from above of these mountains resembles a fluffy, soft blanket, and the mountains are the folds on it. Zhangye Danxia is a blanket on the “chalk bed” of the Earth.

The word “Cretaceous” in the name refers to the period in which it was formed. This formation consists of red sandstone and sedimentary rocks of the Cretaceous period. The rocks formed during this period contain iridium, a chemical element very rare on Earth. Under the influence of the environment, precipitation, and atmospheric phenomena over millennia, these stones acquired their modern appearance.

The multi-colored color is the result of the oxidation of sandstone and other rocks, different layers of which, depending on the content of certain substances in them, reacted differently to atmospheric phenomena. New rivers that made their way and the movement of rocks shaped the landscape. Then the rivers dried up again, and now we see the result of the painstaking work done by nature over many millions of years. In these mountains there are many small caves and grottoes that are interesting to visit. Each cave is isolated from the others.

Some mountains are covered with vegetation. The colors of wildlife add rich, vibrant colors to this landscape. Here you can organize a photo session that is amazing in its beauty and unusualness. For an artist, nature has created such landscapes that without much effort on your imagination you can paint pictures about extraterrestrial civilizations. And just a landscape painted from the nature of this region will not leave an art connoisseur indifferent.

Come here to gain inspiration and strength. A few days spent surrounded by the majestic creations of nature, amidst peace and tranquility, away from the bustle of the city, will recharge you with energy for a long time. The well-deserved recognition of the Zhangye Danxia Mountains as a new Wonder of the World has made them in demand among tourists from all over the planet. In the small quiet town of Zhangye, in the vicinity of which there are colored mountains, improvement work is in full swing. Now you can stay in a comfortable hotel for a reasonable price by European standards.

Services for tourists

For the convenience of tourists who come to see this natural phenomenon, convenient paths have been laid and safe viewing platforms have been organized from which a beautiful view opens. The mountains in all their glory appear before you at sunset and you need to admire them in the right place, where a bus traveling through the park will take you.

For comfortable sightseeing, there is a bus network with convenient routes. You can rent a car with a driver for the whole day - the price is negotiable. Car and bicycle rentals are available. There are paths for hiking enthusiasts. Other services may be available upon your arrival. In general, a profitable tourism business does not stand still.

The area of the national geological park is huge, and it is possible that it will take more than one day to see everything. But so much effort has been spent on this that there is no need to rush to enjoy contemplation.

What other sights to see

Since this Chinese pearl is not yet so widely known, there are few foreigners here. Therefore, without unnecessary fuss and crowds, you can admire the surrounding beauty, take photographs and film as much as you like. You can also visit other attractions in this area of China:

Mathisa monastery 70 km from the city at an altitude of 2,500 meters, surrounded by snowy hills
Big Buddha Palace in the city center, where you can see a statue 34 meters high and 7.5 meters wide
Sutra Museum, which houses an exhibition of rare golden sutras, the emperor's sutras

How to get there

There are several ways to get to Changzhou:

direct train from Beijing and other Chinese cities to Zhangye
train: from Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu province, which you can reach by plane
plane: the airport is located 13 kilometers from the city. Flights arrive there from various Chinese cities
bus: intercity buses operate from Chinese cities to Zhangye

All you have to do is choose the appropriate option for yourself depending on cost, comfort and travel time.

Every person at the end of his life regrets two things: that he loved little and saw little. It’s wonderful that there are man-made and natural wonders on our planet, looking at which you want to explore the world more and more, so that you have something to remember and not regret anything at the end of the journey.

Colored rocks of Zhangye Danxia(Zhangye Danxia Landform) - colorful rock formations Geological Park in Gansu Province,. These rock formations are a unique type of petrographic geomorphology that can only be found in China. The Colored Cliffs are composed of red sandstones and conglomerates, mostly from the Cretaceous period.

The study shows that approximately 100 million years ago there was a huge inland basin. The water carried silt here from those around. As a result of global high temperatures, the basin dried out and under these arid conditions the sediment oxidized and took on a rust color. About 70 million years ago, a 3,700-meter-thick red layer formed in a basin known as the chalk bed. At the top there was a 1,300-meter-thick hard layer, a layer of the Cretaceous period system, from which the peaks of Danxia Mountain gradually formed.

Since 30 million years ago, mountain-building movements have reshaped the basin's landscape many times. Water flowing down through cracks in the cut and eroded sediment has worn away the slope, leaving behind red, fragmented rocks. What we see now is nothing more than the Danxia landmass.

According to experts, mountain formation is still ongoing in the region, with an average rise of 0.87 meters every 10,000 years over the past 500,000 years.

The area is quickly becoming a popular attraction for the sleepy town of Zhangye. A variety of boardwalks and roads have been built to encourage visitors to explore the amazing rock formations and colored rocks. The World Heritage Committee decided to inscribe the Colored Cliffs of Zhangye on the UNESCO World Heritage List at its 34th meeting held in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, on August 1, 2010.