Tucked away in a bamboo sea

Sculptures of several ancient Chinese scholars, who praised bamboo in their works, are located near the bamboo museum in the park. [Photo by Li Yang/China Daily]

Unlike forests that are made up of various kinds of trees and plants, the bamboo forest consists only of bamboos of the same moso variety, which are of the same size and color, because local people cut the bamboos every few years to support local bamboo industry. It takes many years to have a forest. But it takes only two to five years for a bamboo shoot to grow into a mature bamboo plant. If the typical forest has the charm of diversity, the bamboo forest demonstrates a beauty of uniformity.

In the reserve, there are a valley lake, several brooks and springs. The water adds vitality to the mountains. Tourists can rent bamboo rafts on the lake to view the bamboo forest from another perspective. It is like reviewing troops.

Because of the thick plantation, landform and altitude, the temperature in the bamboo forest is about five centigrades lower than that in the surrounding areas. The air is cool, humid and redolent with the faint scent of bamboo, making it a good place not only for sightseeing but also for physical exercises.

Several villages are located in the reserve, and the villagers are proud of the natural environment. There are several centenarians living in the villages. The local people attribute their longevity to the natural environment, a gift from heaven.

They abide by a set of rules that has been passed down the generations, observing the laws of the bamboos' growth. They maintain a good balance between the amount of bamboo to cut and to plant, and the balance between economic benefits and ecological protection.