Changbai Mountain Scenic Area, located in Sino-Korean border and southeast border of Jilin Province, is a national Grade-AAAAA tourist attraction, an international biosphere reserve, an international Grade-A natural reserve, a national natural reserve, and one of top ten famous mountains of China. It is located in Sino-Korean frontier and in southeast backland of Jilin province.
Changbai Mountain is a Sino-Korean boundary mountain. The main peak is 2,691 meters tall, the highest peak in Northeast China. The mountain is a typical representative of forest ecosystem in the northern half of Eurasia and a region with the best preserved natural state and richest biodiversity compared with other areas over the same latitude. Changbai Mountain is a dormant volcano, with the last eruption in 1702, dating back over 300 years.
Changbai Mountain is rich in natural resources, including 2596 kinds of wild plants and 2,442 kinds of wild animals, of which there are over 50 grade-A and grade-B protected animals. The mountain is the hometown of “king of beasts” manchurian tiger, the source land of “three treasures in Northeast China”, and the headstream of Songhua River, Tumen River, and Yalu River.
Changbai Mountain will present different colorful landscapes over different altitudes in four seasons. There are 49 landscapes such as Tianchi Lake, waterfalls, hot springs, Grand Canyon, glaciers, underground original forests, alpine gardens, vertical vegetarian landscapes, circular pools, canyon pumices, Changpai Scotch Pine (Beauty Pine), and Swan-watching Scenic Area.
1. Changbai Mountain Tianchi Lake
Tianchi Lake is on the top of volcanic cones of the main peak of Changbai Mountain. It is slightly elliptical and a crater lake naturally formed from the volcanic eruptions. The north-south length is about 4,850 meters and the east-west width is 3,370 meters. The water area’s perimeter is 13.1 kilometers, the lake elevation is 2,194 meters, the deepest point is 373 meters, average water depth is 204 meters, the water area is 9.82 square kilometers, and the total storage capacity is 2.04 billion cubic meters. It is the largest-area Crater Lake with the tallest altitude and deepest water, a Sino-Korea boundary lake, and surrounded by 16 mountain peaks.
2. Small Tianchi
It is also called Yinhuan Lake and is the outdoor scene shooting place of TV plays “Flying Foxes in Snow Mountain” and “Journey to the West”.
3. Changbai Mountain Waterfall
Changbai Waterfall, located on the north slope of Changbai Mountain and 1,250 meters away from Tianchi, is the outlet of Chengcha River between Longmen Peak and Tianhuo Peak. The Tianchi water overflows along the Butian Stone (Heave-repairing Stone) to form a gurgling trickle and runs stably. However, one kilometer away, the terrain suddenly plunges so that the water becomes rapid to flow at 1.255 m3 / s. The water suddenly falls from the vertical cliff between two mountains to jump into a deep valley, forming the Changbai Waterfall with falling head of 68 meters. Changbai Waterfall is a Crater Lake waterfall with the largest falling head in the world and listed in the Guinness.
4. Changbai Mountain Grand Canyon
Changbai Mountain Grand Canyon is located in west slope of Changbai Mountain and also known as Jinjiang Grand Canyon. It is over 70 kilometers long. The deepest point is 100 meters and the widest point is 300 meters. After volcanic eruptions, the ash and soil on lava stone surface are washed out by rivers and rains so as to form the canyon. It can be called a natural volcanic lava bonsai integrating strange peaks, rare rocks, quiet valleys, beautiful waters, ancient trees, and precious grasses. The north Jinjiang water flows down from the bottom, rare rocks stand on the two sides, and wonders stack out, which are a feast for eyes.
5. Alpine Garden
Alpine plants in Changbai Mountain are amazing. They come out, flower, set seeds, and then go into dormancy at a very rapid speed in the two frost-free months in July and August. Once the season comes, from the 2,000-meter slope to the top of Changbai Mountain, it is magically covered by a layer of tapestry, where countless rare flowers and grasses flourish. Especially, in the west slope, this magical flower season is more obvious. Since the west slope faces the sun, the spring comes earlier than that in the north slope. Around the end of June, in the west slope, flowers are blooming, with many varieties and covering a vast area, which is amazing. There are 170 kinds of tundra plants, including highly ornamental flowering plants such as lily, lily of the valley, aconite, iris, daily lily, herba violae, garden columbine, and moth orchid. It is a park in paradise, where angels walk.
6. Julong Hot Spring
There are numerous spring months, including a dozen of large ones. The maximum water temperature hits 82°C, where eggs can be boiled.
7. Changbai Sixteen Peaks
The attitude of these peaks is above 2,500 meters. Baiyun Peak (Cloud Peak) is the highest peak in Northeast China with an altitude of 2,691 meters.
8. Underground Original Forest
It is also known as “Valley Forest” and is a forest landscape formed by rupture, incision, and collapse at the eruption of Changbai Mountain main volcanic cone. The valley wall is up to 50 meters tall, and the north-south length at the bottom is about 3,000 meters. Old trees at the valley bottom are reaching to the sky and boulders scatter. It is a natural oxygen bar here.
9. Ladder River
It also is known as “Prey River” and “Natural Refrigerator”. The river, with narrow upstream and wide downstream, is similar to a ladder for civil use, so it is called “Ladder River”.
10. King Pond
The diameter is 134 meters, and the area is about 1, 4000 square meters. The water is clean, the pool bank is covered with sand-grasses - wula sedge and cattail, and there are fishes and frogs in the pool and many birds in nearby forest.
11. Luyuantan (Green and Deep Pond)
It is named because it is shaded by Betula ermanii and the water is green and deep. The water area is about 2,000 square meters, average water depth is five meters, and the maximum falling head of waterfalls is up to 26 meters.
12. Alpine Tundra Landscape
The landscape covers from the 2,100-meter slope to the top of mountains. Many plants are polar plants left from the Quaternary Glacier, of which there is an evergreen plant Rhododendron chrysanthum that flowers in snow. And the flowers are bright, so it is known as “Changbai Mountain Tea”.
13. Changbai Mountain Coniferous and Broad-leaved forest Landscape
It is one of the most beautiful forests in China and is distributed below 1000 meters above the sea level, where there is a great variety of plant and animal species. Main conifers include Pinus koraiensis, which mixes with many broad-leaved trees. The animals include manchurian tigers, spotted deer, mandarin ducks, and oviductus ranae.
14. Coniferous Forest Landscape
The altitude ranges from 1,000 meters to 1,800 meters. Trees mainly include fir and dahurian larch. Sable and squirrel are representatives of beast animals in this place.
15. Betula Ermanii Forest Landscape
The altitude ranges from 1,800 meters to 2,000 meters. The Betula ermanii forest is sparse, dwarfing themselves into a clustered state, and is like a bonsai.
e Village, about 110 kilometers away from the gate. Changbai Mountain Airport Tel: 0439-6259002;