Summary of Key Points
This article exposes the "absurd practices" of several domestic tourist attractions: Mount Tai and Mount Song have been enclosed with barbed wire, Wuling Mountain's Tianchi Lake has a stainless-steel bottom, and the caves have been decorated with nightclub-style lighting. The giant snake head painted on the rock walls of Mount Song is just another example. These measures seem to be intended to address issues such as safety and water leakage, but in reality, they reflect a lazy approach to management that involves simply enclosing or welding things in place. This not only destroys the natural landscape but also goes against visitors' desire for a genuine and authentic experience. The article calls on tourist attractions to abandon such rough management practices and adopt more humane and nature-respecting approaches that promote a two-way interaction with visitors.
I. Barbed Wire: A Measure of "Safety Protection" or a Cover for Lazy Administration?
The use of barbed wire at Mount Tai and Mount Song is essentially about keeping people out for fear of accidents:
- Mount Tai Example: 25 million yuan was spent on 135 kilometers of barbed wire (longer than the Shenzhen-Guangzhou high-speed rail), with the rationale being to prevent fires, insects, and unauthorized visitors. However, the flaws are obvious: how does it prevent fires when firefighters need to enter the mountain to extinguish them? How does it prevent insects when the pine wood nematode is spread by flying insects (netting is like using a mosquito net)? And how does it prevent unauthorized visitors when wildlife can get caught in the wire and die? Public pressure eventually led to the removal of the wire, which was then used to secure a chemical plant.
- Mount Song Follows the Same Pattern: The free, undeveloped Bajulongtan area uses five layers of barbed wire to prevent falls and wasps. But there are no guardrails or first aid stations; the barbed wire simply keeps people out, thus preventing accidents.
Key Issue: Safety protection does not mean complete isolation. True safety should involve clear warnings and adequate support, not separating people from nature with barbed wire.
II. Stainless-Steel Tianchi Lake: A Brilliant Solution for Water Leakage or a Failure in Natural Beauty?
The decision to cover Wuling Mountain's Tianchi Lake with stainless steel is an example of sacrificing natural beauty for a perceived solution:
- Background: The cave, with its karst terrain, has a lake that leaks water, and conventional methods failed. 656 tons of stainless steel were used to create the lake bottom, claiming it to be the "largest stainless-steel lake in the world".
- Controversy: While the water leakage problem was solved, the stainless steel prevents the natural water cycle with the ground, and the ecological impact is unknown. Netizens criticize it, calling it a "giant bathtub". The lake, which has existed for millions of years, now looks more like an industrial product.
Core Conflict: Attractions are trying to maintain their appearance at the expense of authenticity. Visitors want to see the real landscape, not a man-made imitation.
III. Cave Lighting & Rock Wall Paintings: An Attempt at "Beautification" or a Destruction of Culture?
The lighting in caves and the giant snake head painting on Mount Song represent a misinterpretation of what is considered beautiful:
- Cave Lighting: Caves across the country use bright, colorful lights (purple, green, red) that turn stalactites into a nightclub atmosphere. However, the strong light accelerates the erosion of stalactites and disturbs the cave animals' habitat. Scientific knowledge is ignored for the sake of visual appeal.
- Mount Song's Snake Head Painting: Painting a giant snake head on a thousand-year-old mountain wall scares visitors. This is not beautification but a destruction of cultural heritage. The value of a famous mountain lies in its historical significance, not in the whims of managers.
Essential Issue: Attractions mistakenly believe that the more flashy the better, forgetting that the charm of nature and culture lies in their authenticity.
IV. The Management Logic Behind These Practices: Lazy Administration vs. Respect for Nature
The root of these absurd practices is a lazy attitude that avoids responsibility and seeks convenience:
- Lazy Management: Fear of accidents leads to enclosure; fear of water leakage leads to welding; fear of unauthorized access leads to barriers. The simplest and most brutal solutions are chosen, ignoring the core purpose of attractions, which is to allow visitors to experience the real nature.
- Comparison with Abroad: New Zealand limits the number of people on hiking trails, Japan's Yakushima Island has no barriers and uses guidance, and the Alps in Europe preserves their original beauty. Their management is more restrained, with guardrails only where necessary and reservation systems and guidance to show visitors the true nature of the mountains.
Direction for Improvement: Mount Tai's improvements, such as using QR codes for access, electronic fences, and hedges, demonstrate that smart management is possible. Attractions should provide clear warnings and adequate support (patrols, first aid), trusting that visitors can make informed decisions.
In Conclusion
What we lack are not attractions but genuine natural beauty; what we lack is not safety but humane management. If all landscapes are enclosed by wire and transformed into artificial structures, what's the point of visiting them? The purpose of attractions is for visitors to experience the real world, and for attractions to provide a genuine experience. Both should work together: visitors should follow the rules, and attractions should offer a true representation of nature.