Shennongjia Forestry District

Shennongjia occupies the most rugged stretch of the eastern Daba Mountains in northwestern Hubei, and its summit, Shennongding, is regarded as the highest peak of central China. The name recalls the legend that the culture hero Shennong built ladders here to gather herbs and tasted a hundred plants, so forest lore and medicine are its oldest cultural symbols. The land was once sea floor, lifted into stepped plateaus by the Yanshan and Himalayan orogenies, which carved deep gorges, dense forest and narrow passes. Because the mountains stayed remote for centuries, rebel bands sheltered in the woods during the Qing dynasty, and tales of a wild man still circulate among villagers. Inscribed as a World Natural Heritage site in 2016, Shennongjia protects golden snub-nosed monkeys and one of the richest concentrations of species in central China.