Songpan County in Sichuan

With a long history and fascinating natural views, Songpan County in Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture is a tourism destination not to be missed when travelling around Sichuan. Songpan was a vital military town on the Chinese border in ancient times as well as a distribution center for tea-horse trade. Dubbed an ancient city on the plateau, Songpan still kept the ancient city gate and a couple of ancient buildings. There were already traces of human activities in the Neolithic period. Songpan is also home to the world natural heritage site Huanglong Scenic Area. Located in the southern part of the Minshan Mountain range, Huanglong is a scenic and historic area extending over an area of 700 square kilometers (70,000 hectares). This area is known for its colorful pools created by calcite deposits, especially in Huanglonggou (Yellow Dragon Gully), as well as for its diversity in forest ecosystems, snow-capped peaks, waterfalls and hotsprings.  Huanglong is also home to many endangered species, including the Giant Panda and the Sichuan Golden Snub-nosed Monkey. Source: china.org by Yuan Fang from China Travel & Tourism News http://ift.tt/1iB6EFm