Yehliu

Yehliu
Light and dark brown rock formations in hoodoo shape
Rock formations within the geopark

Yehliu (Chinese: 野柳; pinyin: Yěliǔ) is a cape in Wanli District, New Taipei, Taiwan.[1]

The cape, known by geologists as the Yehliu Promontory, forms part of the Daliao Miocene Formation. It stretches approximately 1,700 metres (5,600 ft) into the ocean and was formed as geological forces pushed the Datun Mountains out of the sea.[2]

A distinctive feature of the cape is the hoodoo stones that dot its surface. These shapes can be viewed at the Yehliu Geopark operated by the North Coast and Guanyinshan National Scenic Area administration. A number of rock formations have been given imaginative names based on their shapes. The best known is the "Queen's Head" (女王頭), an iconic image in Taiwan and an unofficial emblem for the town of Wanli. Other formations include the "Fairy Shoe", the "Beehive", the "Ginger Rocks", and the "Sea Candles".

Queen's Head

Rock formation with thin section halfway up
The Queens Head Rock in 2019

Queens Head Rock is a natural formation in Yehliu, Taiwan. Named after its resemblance to a woman's head, it took over 4,000 years to form. The length of its neck is 125 centimetres (49 in) and has been weathered at a rate of 0.2 to 0.5 centimetres (0.079 to 0.197 in) per year. The popularity of the site draws increasing numbers of international tourists.[citation needed]

Princess' Head

There is a successor to Queen's Head Rock, which is called the Princess’ Head in the park. The successor is chosen to distract the attention of the Queen's Head and prevent the Queen's Head Rock from being touched by tourists and accelerate the damage.

Since the Queen's Head Rock is fragile, it has been protected by a stone necklace.

See also

References

  1. ^ Specer, David (24 November 2017). "Taiwan's Top 10 natural wonders". Taiwan News. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
  2. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-05. Retrieved 2014-01-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

25°12′47″N 121°41′53″E / 25.2131°N 121.698°E / 25.2131; 121.698