Guyuan

Liupan Mountain, a Red Army Long March memorial site and cool summer retreat, plus the Northern Wei-to-Tang Xumishan Grottoes, the Danxia landforms of Huoshizhai and Silk Road treasures at the Guyuan Museum.

Guyuan lies in southern Ningxia at the northern foot of Liupan Mountain. Known in ancient times as Xiaoguan and Yuanzhou, it was a key town on the northern route of the eastern Silk Road and is the main city of the "Xihaigu" region. The Liupan range runs north–south at 2,000–2,900 m; its cool, moist summers make it one of Northwest China's best-known summer retreats. In 1935 the Red Army crossed Liupan Mountain on the Long March, inspiring Mao Zedong's poem "Qingpingle · Liupan Mountain", and in 1936 the Red Army columns joined forces at Jiangtaibao in Xiji, so revolutionary sites are plentiful. Cultural highlights center on the national first-class Guyuan Museum in the city (a Northern Zhou gilded silver ewer and a Northern Wei lacquered coffin painting) and the Xumishan Grottoes about 55 km northwest. The natural scenery falls into three areas: the forested gorges of Jingyuan County in the south, such as Laolongtan, Wild Lotus Valley, Liangdian Gorge and Yanzhi Gorge; the Huoshizhai Danxia landforms and Zhenhu Lake in Xiji County to the west; and the loess terraced fields of Pengyang County to the east. Guyuan has an airport and a high-speed rail station (on the Yinchuan–Xi'an and Baoji–Zhongwei lines); getting from the city to the sights requires a self-drive or a chartered car, and roads around the Liupan Mountain tunnel are prone to icing in winter. Allow 3 days: one for the city museum and Xumishan, one for the Liupan Mountain memorial hall and the Jingyuan gorges, and one for Huoshizhai and Jiangtaibao in Xiji. The best season is Jun–Sep; winters are cold and some sites close. The area is home to a large Hui Muslim community, so food is mainly halal—try Jingyuan beef, youxiang (fried flatbread) and buckwheat noodles.

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