Shibing County 施秉县

Setting and landscape

The county is longer north to south than east to west. It meets Shiqian (石阡) to the north, Zhenyuan (镇远) to the north-east and east, Jianhe (剑河) at its south-eastern corner, Huangping (黄平) and Yuqing (余庆) to the west, and Taijiang (台江) to the south, where the Qingshui River (清水江) forms the boundary. The county seat is 76 km from the prefecture seat at Kaili (凯里) and 230 km from Guiyang (贵阳).

In 2014 the Shibing karst was inscribed with Guilin and Jinfo Mountain (金佛山) in Chongqing as the second phase of the South China Karst World Heritage site. Its three core zones are Yuntai Shan (云台山), Heichong (黑冲) and the Shanmu River (杉木河).

What to see

Yuntai Shan is a karst peak forest rising to 1,066 metres, known for its rock peaks, seas of cloud, old trees and waterfalls; visitors stop at the old Xugong Hall (徐公殿) or view the peaks from the summit. Heichong, a core zone of the Yuntai Shan dolomite karst, holds the site of a battle fought by the Red Army's Sixth Army Corps (红六军团黑冲战斗遗址).

The Shanmu River runs for 44 km and is promoted as "China's number one rafting river" (中华第一漂) for its clear water and gentle course; rafting began here in 1996, and the rafting run follows the river for 9 km through a gorge. Both Yuntai Shan and the Shanmu River are national 4A scenic areas, and the upper Wuyang River (㵲阳河) is a 3A site.

History

The name joins Bashi Mountain (巴施山) and the Bing River (秉水), both in the county. Written records of Shibing go back to 1283, and the Ming made it a county in 1443. In 1687 the Pianqiao garrison (偏桥卫) was merged into the county and the seat moved to the garrison town. Shibing was split between Huangping and Jianhe in 1958 and re-established in 1962. Kedao (刻道), a Miao wedding song cycle of more than ten thousand lines kept with notches cut in wood, was placed on the first national intangible-heritage list in 2006.

Food and local products

The county calls itself China's home of taizishen (太子参), the medicinal root of Pseudostellaria. Dishes named by the county government include sour-soup fish (酸汤鱼), river fish in a soup fermented from wild tomatoes and distillers' grains; shefan (社饭), glutinous rice cooked with cured pork, peanuts, tofu, artemisia and wild onion; and huangba (黄粑), a soft, sweet festival cake with the fragrance of zongzi leaves.

Highlights

• Yuntai Shan 云台山: Karst peak forest rising to 1,066 metres; a core zone of the Shibing karst World Heritage site and a 4A scenic area.
• Shanmu River 杉木河: 44 km clear river with rafting since 1996; a World Heritage core zone and 4A scenic area.
• Heichong 黑冲: Dolomite karst core zone with the site of a Red Army Sixth Army Corps battle.
• Kedao 刻道: Miao wedding song cycle recorded with notched wood; national intangible heritage since 2006.