By Guan Xiaomeng

Photos: China Daily

The marathon, held on September 10 and in which more than 10,000 runners from home and abroad took part, was named after Wanfenglin scenic spot, a tour area featuring dense and bizarrely shaped karst peaks extending for hundreds of kilometers and along which runners could enjoy views of the city, villages, crops and canyons. The spot is ranked by Chinese National Geography as one of the six most beautiful peak forests in the country.

Nature rich, Wanfenglin boasts rich culture of the Bouyei ethnic group. It is home to the national intangible cultural heritage Bayin Zuochang, a Bouyei ethnic band in which members playing eight different instruments while singing. It has gone global as its Bouyei brocade design had made a splash at this year’s China international fashion week in Beijing earlier in September.

Xingyi, capital city of the prefecture, also boasts China’s largest artificial lake and fifth-largest freshwater lake – Wangfeng Lake. Covering an area of 176 square kilometers with 10.26 billion cubic meters of waters, the lake is formed by Tianshengqiao I Hydropower Station Dam, a key national hydro power project located at the nexus of Guizhou, Yunnan provinces and Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

It is emerging as paradise for water sports and outdoor lovers as visitors can go wild fishing, speed boating, yachting, kayaking and other water recreational programs surrounded by the karst peaks and ethnic villages.

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