Forces of nature create iconic landforms along the Hexi Corridor

In the Hexi Corridor, an ancient trade route in Northwest China, its historic magnitude is rivaled only by its majestic nature, which continually inspires the heroic stamina required to endure this rugged land.

Yet, natural forces that shaped this landscape were at work tens of millions of years before Homo sapiens ever walked the Earth, a fact that travelers to the corridor in Gansu province are constantly reminded of.

The corridor owes its very existence to the collision between the Indian and the Eurasian plates which began around 50 million years ago and continues slowly even today. Direct results of the collision include the formation of plateaus, the lifting of mountain ranges and the development of various landforms.