Lvshilin Forest Park in Jinghong City, XishuangBanna

Green Stone Forest Park (绿石林森林公园) is located in Menglun Town (勐仑镇), Xishuangbanna (西双版纳). The park is open all day and is said to be the legendary residence of Princess Xiangfa (香发公主). It features a remarkable combination of tropical rainforest and seasonal rainforest landscapes. Known for the unique sight of “forest above, stone forest below,” its exposed rocky outcrops host diverse plants and intertwined vines. Notable attractions include strangler plants, tree waterfalls, giant buttress roots, Silk-Twine Cave (缠丝洞), Wangjiang Rock (望江岩), and Wild Elephant Rock (野象石).

The park holds several “world records” — it has some of the richest water resources and biodiversity globally and marks the northernmost boundary of the tropical rainforest climate distribution. It is home to over a hundred wildlife species such as white monkeys, Phayre’s leaf monkeys, white-lipped deer, stump-tailed macaques, gibbons, and many bird species. With 90% forest coverage, it is often called a “natural botanical garden.”

Geographic Setting

Green Stone Forest Park is only 1 km away from the renowned Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (中国科学院西双版纳热带植物园).

Park Overview

The park’s design incorporates the pristine forest nature reserve, blending natural, ethnic, and modern styles. Its landscape features rolling hills, cascading waterfalls, and winding green rock formations. Visitors can follow mountain trails down to the Luosuo River (罗梭江), then ride a traditional Dai bamboo raft to the Tropical Botanical Garden.

Name and Landscape Features

As its name suggests, Green Stone Forest (绿石林) is famous for its verdant scenery and striking karst stone forest peaks. The park combines rainforest and stone forest landscapes in perfect harmony. Visitors encounter an endless tropical rainforest with clean, humid air.

The park’s vegetation varies by terrain:

• Gentle slopes: dry seasonal rainforest on limestone hills
• Valleys: seasonal rainforest
• Ridges: evergreen broad-leaved forests on limestone

The intertwining of tree roots and rocks creates spectacular scenes. In the shaded stone forest area in the northwest of the park, at an altitude of 908 meters, there are limestone peaks, stone buds, and stone pillars — some over 40 meters tall, some shaped like wild beasts, swords, or sprouting bamboo shoots.

Unique Rock Formations

Near the main scenic area, nature has shaped lifelike karst formations such as “Crocodile Emerging from the Cave” (鳄鱼出洞), “Stone Sea Cucumber” (石海参), “Inverted V Gate” (人字门), “Well-Gazing Sky” (坐井观天), “Camel Peak” (骆驼峰), and “Hen Rock” (鸡婆石). These rock sculptures blend with surrounding rainforest, creating striking natural art.

Rainforest Highlights

The park’s tropical rainforest includes:

• Old Stem Flowers — century-old trees that bloom and fruit directly from their trunks
• Tree Curtain — banyans with thousands of aerial roots forming a hanging curtain
• Banyan Waterfall — a giant banyan over 30 meters tall, growing on a cliff, with more than 200 aerial roots cascading down like waves of water

Famous Landmarks

• Giant Buttress Root Tree (板根大王) — a Four-Whorl Tree (四薮木) with 11 massive buttress roots covering over 500 m², the largest root base measuring 7.3 meters wide.
• Tiger Viewing Ridge (虎眺岭) — an observation deck formed by two low hills, once a scientific research base. From here, visitors can see Gourd Island (葫芦岛), the botanical garden, Luosuo River Suspension Bridge, Menglun Dam (勐仑坝), and distant Dai villages like Manhage (曼哈阁).

Cultural Activities

The park hosts daily ethnic song-and-dance performances and monthly cultural festivals, allowing visitors to experience the unique blend of rainforest scenery, stone landscapes, and Xishuangbanna ethnic traditions.