The Taihang Gorges are outstanding, not just for one section, but because the Juma, Hutuo, Zhanghe and Qinhe rivers and eight defiles create the Taihang Gorge system that stretches 600 kilometers noah to South, and 250 kilometers east to west. It is a gorge group rare in China or anywhere in the world that matter, with both individual aesthetic features and excellent regional qualities.

The vertical composition of the Taihang Mountains is diverse. In the centraI and southern areas the mountains are comprised roughly of three strata; the base of the Taihang Mountains is formed of 1.8 billion year-old gneiss a type of ancient metamorphic rock; then there is purple-red quartzite laid down one billion years ago; then limestone laid down 500 t0 600 million years ago.

The gorges were formed predominantly through the quartzite and limestone of the upper and central parts of the Taihang Mountains, but in terms of topography, the Taihang Gorge system demonstrates an amazing consistency. The strong uprise of the Shanxi Plateau against the North China Plain created mountain fault-blocks, and then downward erosion by water formed typical combinations such as Zhang valleys, jar-like valleys, hanging ditches, long cliffs, and stepped terraces. These, plus the various rock textures, colors and striations, combine to create a scroll painting of the Taihang Gorge group in all its austerity, strength and simplicity.

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