The Chinese term danxia means “pink clouds” but in this case it does not refer to the cloudy masses of the sky : in the great Asian country it is used to designate some peculiar and colorful mountain ranges located in the northwest of its territory.
They are geological formations of sedimentary origin characterized by the reddish or pinkish colors of the rocks that form them, mainly sandstones and conglomerates. Although cliffs and ravines abound, the peaks that dominate the views are rounded, and the gentle slopes that draw the valleys are adorned with furrows of different shades. They are the layers of different materials that accumulated and compacted during the Cretaceous period.
About 50 million years ago, the collision of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian tectonic plates caused the elevation and undulation of the land in this area, as well as the formation of the Himalayas further south. The phenomenon, together with the erosion caused by the wind and other meteorological agents, revealed the polychromy of the soil and gave rise to the various geographical features and natural sculptures that can be seen in the area.
Most of this curious landscape is within the limits of the Zhangye Danxia Geological Park , which occupies some 300 km2 in Gansu province, not far from the border with Mongolia and the Gobi Desert. In this part of China, rainfall is low and winds very strong. Since 2010 the Danxia Mountains or Pink Clouds are part of the World Heritage Site.
