The Stone Forest is 270 million years of geology doing its best impression of architecture: a plain of limestone karst pinnacles, some 30 metres tall, packed so densely they read as petrified woodland. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2007 and a celebrity among Chinese landscapes for centuries.
The central maze around Sword Peak Pond is spectacular and busy; give it an hour, then walk out to the minor stone forest and lakeside paths where the crowds evaporate. This is also Sani Yi country — the legend of Ashima, the girl turned to stone, is told on every sign and in every song you’ll hear.