The main distribution of famous mountain tourism resources in China.

1. It is high in the west and low in the east, showing a stepped distribution.

The rolling Yellow River and the surging Yangtze River originate from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in the west, flow eastward through nine or ten provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, and then flow into the Bohai Sea and the East China Sea respectively. The flow direction of major rivers in China generally reflects the topographic trend of China, which is high in the west and low in the east. The terrain of China is not only high in the west and low in the east, but also various terrain types generally surround the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, known as the "roof of the world", and gradually descend to the Pacific Ocean in a semicircle like a ladder. The terrain boundary consisting of two mountains clearly divides the mainland terrain into three steps.

With an average elevation of more than 4,000 meters and an area of 2.3 million square kilometers, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is one of the largest plateaus in the world and the highest step in China. It is located in the southwest, on the plateau, with a series of continuous snow peaks. From north to south, it is Kunlun Mountain, Altun Mountain, Qilian Mountain, Tanggula Mountain, Karakorum Mountain, Gangdise Mountain and Himalayan Mountain in turn. In the mountains of the plateau, there are many basins, large and small, with rich grass and beautiful lakes. There are all kinds of rich resources here, which need us to develop and utilize.

Passing through Kunlun-Qilian Mountain on the northern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and Minshan-Qionglai Mountain-Hengduan Mountain on the eastern edge, the terrain quickly drops to an altitude of1000 ~ 2000m, and the local area can be below 500m, which is the second step. Its eastern edge is roughly bounded by Daxing 'anling to Taihang Mountain, and southward passes through Wushan to Wuling Mountain and Xuefeng Mountain. There are a series of mountains, plateaus and basins with an altitude above1500m, including Altai Mountain, Tianshan Mountain and Qinling Mountain from north to south. Inner Mongolia Plateau, Loess Plateau and Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau; Junggar basin, Tarim basin, Qaidam basin and Sichuan basin.

Crossing the Daxinganling-Xuefeng Mountain line, heading east to the coast, here are hills and plains below 500 meters above sea level, which can be used as the third step. In this ladder, from north to south, there are Northeast Plain, North China Plain and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. To the south of the Yangtze River, there is also a vast low hill, which is generally called the southeast hill. The former are all below 200 meters above sea level, while the latter are mostly between 200 and 500 meters above sea level, and only a few mountains can reach or exceed 1000 meters.

From the coastline to the east, it is an endless shallow sea continental shelf area, with blue waves and scattered islands, and the water depth is less than 200 meters. Some people regard it as the fourth step of Chinese terrain.

As far as land topography is concerned, two boundaries and three steps descend step by step from west to east, which can roughly outline the terrain of China. This stepped terrain can be reflected from the topographic profiles of the 89 east longitude line and the 30 north latitude line in China.

The topography of China, which is high in the west and low in the east, gradually descends to the ocean, is not only conducive to the warm and humid ocean airflow from the southeast to penetrate into the mainland, but also has a far-reaching and good impact on the climate in China, enabling the plains and hilly areas in the east of China to obtain sufficient precipitation, especially when the precipitation period is the highest, which provides superior hydrothermal conditions for the development of agricultural production in China. Moreover, the main rivers on the mainland flow eastward into the sea, which is not only convenient for communicating China's land and sea transportation, but also convenient for economic and trade exchanges between the east and the west of China; At the same time, this stepped terrain also affects the river to a certain extent, forming a large multi-level gap, which contains extremely huge hydraulic resources conducive to multi-level development.

2. Various forms and vast mountainous areas.

China's landforms are diverse and colorful, both in origin and morphology. Some plateaus and mountains are uplifted by internal forces, and some low-lying basins and plains are bent and lowered. In the warm and humid east and south, there are various erosion and accumulation landforms dominated by running water; In the arid northwest, there is a desert landscape dominated by wind; On the high mountains in the west, there are unique glacial landforms; In the limestone distribution area in southwest China, there are karst landforms with charming scenery.

Qinghai-Tibet, Yunnan-Guizhou, Inner Mongolia and Loess Plateau are four famous plateaus in China. Tarim, Junggar, Qaidam and Sichuan basins are four famous basins in China. The Yangtze River, the Yellow River, the Pearl River, Heilongjiang and other great rivers flow in the vast land, creating many vast and fertile plains. The plain is dotted with lush and beautiful low hills, and there are countless tall and rugged mountains in the west. The diverse terrain provides extremely favorable conditions for the diversified management and comprehensive development of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, by-products and fisheries in China.

According to statistics, hilly areas in China account for about 43% of the total land area in China, of which plateaus account for 26%, basins account for 19% and plains account for 12%. If mountains, Zhongshan, low mountains, hills and rugged plateaus are included, the mountainous area of China will account for more than two thirds of the total land area of China. Although mountainous areas are not conducive to the development of planting, transportation and economic and cultural exchanges, they are rich in mineral deposits, dense forests and precious animal and plant resources, which are indispensable and precious wealth for China's socialist construction.

3. The mountains are vertical and horizontal and arranged in a directional way.

China is a mountainous country. There are not only vast mountainous areas, but also large and small mountains running through the country. Their distribution is regular and orderly, arranged in a certain direction. Generally, the east-west trend and northeast-southwest trend are the most, while the northwest-southeast trend and north-south trend are less.

There are three main east-west mountain ranges: Tianshan-Yinshan in the north, Kunlun-Qinling in the middle and Nanling in the south.

The northeast-southwest mountains are mostly distributed in the east, and the mountain trend is relatively low. There are mainly three rows of mountains in this direction: the westernmost row is Daxinganling-Taihang Mountain-Wushan-Wuling Mountain-Xuefeng Mountain, which is the dividing line between the second and third steps mentioned above; The central pillar includes Changbai Mountain, Liaodong Hill, Shandong Hill and the hills and mountains in southeast Zhejiang and Fujian. The easternmost column is the Taiwan Province Mountains rising from the sea.

Northwest-southeast mountainous areas are mostly distributed in the west, followed by Altai Mountain, Qilian Mountain and Himalayas from north to south.

The north-south mountains run through the central part of China, including Helan Mountain, Liupanshan Mountain and Hengduan Mountain.

These mountains form the skeleton of China's terrain and divide China into many grids. The contours of plateaus, basins, plains, inland seas and marginal seas distributed in these grids are all restricted by these mountains to some extent.

The country's east-west mountains are also the watershed of some big rivers. Qinling is the watershed between the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, and Nanling is the watershed between the Yangtze River and the Pearl River. The flow direction of rivers is obviously restricted by mountains, such as Yarlung Zangbo River, Jinsha River, Lancang River and Nujiang River in southwest China, and their flow directions are all controlled by Gangdise Mountain, Tanggula Mountain, Himalayan Mountain and Hengduan Mountain. The general flow direction of the Yangtze River and the Yellow River is from west to east, but many river sections are also restricted by the trend of mountains, sometimes wide and sometimes narrow, sometimes southeast, sometimes northeast, and finally eastward into the sea.

Extending from the third step of China land to below the sea surface is the shallow sea continental shelf, which is a natural extension of the mainland to the ocean. Generally, the depth is not large, the slope is gentle and the marine resources are abundant.