Yunding Shicheng Peak Scenic Area is located 65 kilometers away from the urban area of Chengdu. Originally, it was a defensive castle built by Yu Yue, a famous general of the Southern Song Dynasty, in 1243 AD to resist the Mongol army. The mountain city is surrounded by eight city gates, all of which are built on steep cliffs. Most of the city relies on the mountain terrain and cliffs as its walls, with gaps filled with stone blocks to form walls, and the city walls are equipped with battlements and artillery positions.
Within the city, there are 18 wells and 32 pools. The entire stone city is strategically positioned, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. The area now preserves the North City Gate, Changning Gate, and other ancient buildings covering an area of about 5000 square meters. Today, Yunding Shicheng has become a scenic spot, composed of scenic areas such as Yunding Mountain and the Tuojiang River’s ‘Little Three Gorges’, with a scenic area of 46 square kilometers, and is a provincial-level scenic tourist area in Sichuan. It is the only surviving ancient castle from the end of the Southern Song Dynasty in Western Sichuan that resisted the Yuan Dynasty. The combination of beautiful green mountains and waters with a long history of cultural relics is a major feature of this scenic spot, where the spirit of the Southern Song Dynasty’s anti-Yuan heroes coexists with the landscape. Open all year round, 24 hours a day.
