Mount Danxia in northern Guangdong is a cluster of red sandstone and conglomerate cliffs, peaks and domes along the Jin river, and the type locality of Danxia landform — the term geologists use for red-bed landscapes worldwide. It has been a UNESCO Global Geopark since 2004 and part of the China Danxia World Heritage site since 2010.
- UNESCO World Heritage (natural), part of China Danxia · 2010
- UNESCO Global Geopark · 2004
- National nature reserve
Key facts
Overview
Danxia Shan rises in Renhua county, Shaoguan, in the hill country of northern Guangdong. Several hundred red rock peaks, walls and pillars crowd along the winding Jin river, their sheer faces glowing red against green forest — the “rosy clouds” of the name. The main summit area of Changlao Feng carries temples and viewpoints, while the river offers views of the cliffs from below.
The mountain matters beyond its scenery because Chinese geologists defined a new landform here in the twentieth century. The term Danxia landform (丹霞地貌) now describes red sandstone landscapes across China and is used internationally, and the mountain is the reference against which others are compared.
How the landscape formed
The red beds are sandstones and conglomerates of the Late Cretaceous Danxia Formation, laid down in a basin by rivers and alluvial fans and coloured by iron oxides. After uplift, erosion concentrated along vertical joints and weaker layers: streams cut deep, narrow gorges, walls retreated as blocks fell away, and rounded caves and honeycomb hollows formed where softer layers weathered faster. The result is a landscape of flat-topped peaks, sheer walls and pillars, of which the most famous — the Yangyuan Stone — is a free-standing column shaped by the same processes.
Highlights
Changlao Peak
长老峰
The main summit area with three levels of viewpoints over the river and the surrounding cliffs.
Yangyuan Stone
阳元石
A natural red rock pillar about 28 metres high, famous for its phallic shape and long treated as a symbol of male fertility.
Yinyuan Stone
阴元石
A cleft in a cliff shaped like the female form, the counterpart to the Yangyuan Stone.
Jin River
锦江
The river that winds between the cliffs, with boat trips beneath the red walls.
Xianglong Lake
翔龙湖
A narrow lake in a wooded valley whose outline resembles a flying dragon when seen from above.
Bazhai
巴寨
The highest summit of the Danxia Shan massif, in the less-visited part of the area.
Plants and wildlife
The red rock country supports south subtropical evergreen broadleaf forest, and its cliffs, gorges and isolated summits act as island habitats. Several plant species were first described from Danxia Shan and are known only from red-bed landscapes.
Plants
Danxia parasol tree
丹霞梧桐
Firmiana danxiaensis, a tree described from the mountain and restricted to Danxia cliffs.
Danxia orchid
丹霞兰
Danxiaorchis singchiana, a leafless orchid described from the mountain in 2013 and named after it.
Wildlife
Silver pheasant
白鹇
Guangdong's provincial bird, living in the forests of the reserve.
Rhesus macaque
猕猴
Groups live in the more remote gorges.
Culture and legend
Buddhist monks settled among the cliffs from the Song dynasty, using the natural caves and ledges for hermitages. The monastery of Biechuan Si was founded in the early Qing by the monk Dangui, a former Ming official, and Danxia Shan became a refuge of Ming loyalists. Cliff inscriptions and old cave dwellings survive on the rock faces. The geologist Feng Jinglan named the red beds the Danxia Formation in 1928, and Chen Guoda proposed the term Danxia landform in 1938.
Biechuan Temple
别传寺
A Chan monastery on Changlao Peak founded in 1662, still active.
Jinshiyan Temple
锦石岩寺
A nunnery built into a cave under an overhanging cliff, with records from the Song dynasty.
Danxia landform
丹霞地貌
The scientific term named after the mountain, now used across China and internationally.
History
Song dynasty
First cave hermitages
Monks begin to use the overhangs of the cliffs as places of retreat.
1662
Biechuan Temple founded
The monk Dangui establishes the monastery that becomes the religious centre of the mountain.
1928
Danxia Formation named
Feng Jinglan describes the red beds and names them after the mountain.
1938
Danxia landform defined
Chen Guoda proposes the term for landscapes carved from these red beds.
2004
UNESCO Global Geopark
Among the first Chinese sites to join the global geoparks network.
2010
UNESCO World Heritage
Inscribed with five other red-bed landscapes as China Danxia.
Through the seasons
Spring
Rainy and humid, with mist often hanging among the peaks; the forests are at their greenest.
Summer
Hot, with heavy showers and typhoon rains; river trips are cooling, and cliffs glow at sunset after storms.
Autumn
Dry and clear, the most comfortable season for walking and for sunrise over the cliffs from Changlao Peak.
Winter
Mild and dry, with occasional frost; a quiet season with clear air.
Routes and ways in
Changlao Peak
A stepped climb or cable car to the summit terraces with Biechuan Temple and the main viewpoints; a half-day walk.
Yangyuan Shan area
Paths through a wooded valley to the Yangyuan Stone and neighbouring formations.
Jin river by boat
Boats run along the river between the cliffs, giving the best views of the red walls from below.
Practical notes
- Summer is hot and humid; carry water and start early on the stepped paths.
- Some cliff paths are narrow and exposed, with chains and railings.
- Shaoguan, on the Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed line, is the base; Guangzhou lies to the south.
Cities to start from
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- China Danxia — UNESCO World Heritage Centre (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- UNESCO Global Geoparks — UNESCO (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Shaoguan Municipal People's Government — Shaoguan Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
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