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Explore the region
About Lishan Forest Scenic Area
Lishan Forest Scenic Area (历山森林景区) covers the forested Lishan (历山) massif in Lishan (历山镇) and Gucheng (古城镇) towns, in the southeast of Yuanqu County (垣曲县), Yuncheng (运城), Shanxi. It forms part of the Lishan National Nature Reserve and the Zhongtiao Mountain National Forest Park.
Lishan is the high point of the Zhongtiao Mountains (中条山), a narrow range about 160 km long that runs northeast to southwest at the great bend where the Yellow River turns from south to east. The Yuncheng culture and tourism bureau describes Lishan's primeval forest as the best preserved in North China and counts more than 2,000 species of wild plants and animals, over 300 of them under state first- or second-class protection; it calls the area a gene bank of North China's flora and fauna. In March 2020 four national agencies, including the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, confirmed Lishan as a national forest wellness base.
The main summit, Shunwangping (舜王坪), reaches 2,358 m and takes its name from the legend that the sage-king Shun (舜) ploughed here. Its top is a subalpine meadow of more than 5,400 mu (about 360 hectares), in flower in July and August, with cliffs on three sides looking out over the forest. The Qing poet Zhang Eryong (张尔庸) left a poem on climbing Lishan. The Shanxi government portal notes that Shunwangping lies where three counties meet, and that visitors entering from Yuanqu must cross it to reach the other Lishan sights in Qinshui County (沁水县).
Huanggu Man (皇姑幔), in the south of the reserve, is the second-highest peak at 2,134 m. Legend makes it the home of Shun's two consorts, Ehuang (娥皇) and Nüying (女英), and its name, 'the princess's curtain', comes from the mist that often hangs over it. From the top the view runs north to Shunwangping and west over Qishi'er Hungou (七十二混沟), the core of the primeval forest. Mihouyuan (猕猴源), on the boundary between Xihonghong (西哄哄村) village in Yuanqu and Donghonghong (东哄哄村) village in Yangcheng (阳城), is a research base where more than a thousand wild Zhongtiao macaques gather; the bureau describes it as the largest base in North China for raising and taming wild macaques.
What to look for
- Shunwangping (舜王坪), the 2,358 m summit of Lishan and the Zhongtiao range
- The subalpine meadow of over 5,400 mu on Shunwangping, in flower in July and August
- Huanggu Man (皇姑幔), the 2,134 m second peak, linked to Shun's consorts Ehuang and Nüying
- Views from Huanggu Man over Qishi'er Hungou (七十二混沟), the core of the primeval forest
- Wild Zhongtiao macaques at Mihouyuan (猕猴源) on the Yuanqu-Yangcheng boundary
Location & getting there
Getting to Lishan Forest Scenic Area
- Search for 历山森林景区 with 运城市 and 垣曲县.
Find Lishan Forest Scenic Area
历山森林景区 · 垣曲县
No reliable map pin yet: search by the Chinese name.
Sources & visit information
Written from the linked sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer on 2026-09-23. Opening hours, admission and access arrangements are not covered; confirm current visitor information with the site.
Some facts checked against Wikipedia contributors, "中条山" · CC BY-SA 4.0.