Xinglong County 兴隆县

History

Neolithic finds at Dongmiaohe (洞庙河), Banbishan (半壁山) and other sites show early settlement, and in the Shang the area belonged to the state of Guzhu (孤竹). After the Qing began building imperial tombs at Malanyu (马兰峪) in Zunhua in 1661, most of Xinglong was sealed off as the "rear dragon" fengshui zone behind the Eastern Qing Tombs and placed under the Malan garrison. The ban lasted 254 years until the zone was opened in 1915, and Xinglong became a county in August 1930.

Setting and landscape

Wuling Mountain (雾灵山), in the north of the county, is the main peak of the Yanshan (燕山) range at 2,118 metres and forms the watershed between the Luan (滦河) and Hai (海河) river systems. It became a provincial nature reserve in 1982 and a national one in 1988. The county's profile describes a layered mountain climate, with peach trees in blossom below while snow falls on the heights. The Chengde government puts forest cover at 71.2 percent and the summer mean temperature at 21 °C.

What to see

The Wuling Mountain ecological tourism area reopened in 2024 after renovation. The Xinglong Observation Station of the National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences (国家天文台兴隆观测基地), stands at 960 metres on the southern slopes of the Yanshan main peak; its telescopes include a 2.16-metre telescope and the 4-metre LAMOST spectroscopic survey telescope, and the Chengde government calls it the largest optical astronomy base in Asia. Other scenic areas named in county and city profiles include Liuliping (六里坪) provincial forest park, the Jiulongtan (九龙潭) gorges, the Xinglong karst caves (兴隆溶洞), Tianzishan (天子山) and Qishigu (奇石谷, "strange-stone valley"); Xinglong Mountain (兴隆山) is used for hiking.

Food and local products

Chestnuts have been grown here since the Warring States period, and in 2001 the State Forestry Administration named Xinglong China's "home of chestnuts". Hawthorn cultivation goes back more than 400 years: in the Jiaqing reign (1796–1820) merchants carried hawthorns from around the fengshui zone to Shuntian, Baoding and other prefectures as food and medicine. Xinglong leads all Chinese counties in hawthorn area and output and holds the title "home of hawthorn".

Getting oriented

The county town is 165 km from Beijing, 170 km from Tianjin and 150 km from Tangshan. The Beijing–Chengde railway stops at Xinglong County station, and the high-speed line from Beijing stops at Xinglong County West; national highways 112 and 233 also cross the county.

Highlights

• Wuling Mountain 雾灵山: Main peak of the Yanshan range at 2,118 m; national nature reserve since 1988.
• Xinglong Observation Station 国家天文台兴隆观测基地: Observatory at 960 m with the 4-metre LAMOST telescope.
• Xinglong hawthorn 兴隆山楂: Grown for over 400 years; the county leads China in hawthorn area and output.
• Xinglong chestnuts 兴隆板栗: Grown since the Warring States; named China's home of chestnuts in 2001.