Pinggui District 平桂区

Setting and landscape

The land is high in the northeast, low and level in the middle and steep in the south. Gupo Mountain, at 1,730 m, is the district's highest peak, and Litouding (犁头顶), the main summit of Dagui Mountain, reaches 1,253 m. Around Huangtian (黄田), Xincun (新村), Wanggao (望高) and Baisha (白沙), eroded and dissolved limestone stands in pillars, peaks and cliffs that often form stone forests, and more than a hundred karst caves have been found.

The main river is the Fu River (富江), which rises in Hunan and flows through Fuchuan and Zhongshan before entering Pinggui at Yangtou (羊头) and Xiwan (西湾). The Lisong River (里松河), also called the Mawei River, rises on Ma'an Mountain (马鞍山) and runs south past the Lisong and Xinlu mining areas to join the He River (贺江).

History

The district's forerunner was the Pinggui Mining Bureau (平桂矿务局), founded in 1938 and run under the national metallurgy ministry after 1949. It produced mainly tin and tungsten and was one of China's three main sources of refined tin. As its ore ran out it declined, and it was closed through bankruptcy in 2002. Guangxi set up the Pinggui Management Zone in 2007, and the State Council approved Pinggui District on 8 June 2016.

What to see

Hezhou Jade Stone Forest (贺州玉石林) in Huangtian town was first opened as the Jinqi Stone Forest. It took its present name after geologists attending a 2003 national geology meeting in Hezhou visited and noticed the mountain's white stone. Moss that has dried on the rock stains many pillars black, so the forest is patterned black and white, and tin has been mined from its ore veins since the Song dynasty.

The stone forest shares a tourist route with Gupo Mountain National Forest Park (姑婆山国家森林公园), Hezhou Hot Springs (贺州温泉) and Shibashui (十八水, "Eighteen Waters"). The Gupo Mountain nature reserve, the Shibashui scenic area and the hot springs are all in Huangtian.

Food and local products

Fanglin water chestnuts (芳林马蹄) are a geographical-indication regional brand. Pinggui lotus root, oil-sticky rice (油粘米), black tea, tomatoes and fragrant pigs (香猪) joined the national list of distinctive new farm products in 2023.

Getting oriented

Pinggui lies 6 km from Hezhou's urban area. It borders Babu (八步区) to the east, Zhongshan (钟山) and Zhaoping (昭平) to the west, Cangwu (苍梧) to the south, and Fuchuan (富川) and Jianghua (江华) in Hunan to the north. Hezhou Station on the Guiyang-Guangzhou high-speed railway (贵广客运专线) serves the district.

Highlights

• Hezhou Jade Stone Forest 贺州玉石林: Black-and-white stone forest in Huangtian with tin veins mined since the Song dynasty.
• Gupo Mountain 姑婆山: Highest peak of the district at 1,730 m; national forest park and nature reserve in Huangtian.
• Shibashui 十八水: Scenic area at Luhua village, on the same route as the stone forest and hot springs.
• Fanglin water chestnut 芳林马蹄: Geographical-indication regional brand of the district.