Heavens Gate Cave, Tianmen Mountain National Park, China Jan 26, 2023

Heavens Gate Cave, Tianmen Mountain National Park, China

The rock arch formation you"re looking at today is Heaven"s Gate Cave, a popular landmark in Hunan province, China. This busy tourist destination is located on Tianmen (Heaven"s Gate) Mountain in Tianmen Mountain National Park. To reach the arch, you must either ride a cable car or take a bus up a twisty, winding road with 99 turns. (The number 9 represents eternity in Chinese numerology.) Once off the bus, you"ll need to walk 999 steps up a 45-degree incline—a stairway to the heavens. It"s no easy feat, but this is no ordinary cave. At an elevation of 4,100 feet, the arch is 440 feet high and 180 feet wide.

© Shane P. White/Minden Pictures

palette

Today in History

Jan 26, 2018Eastern grey kangaroos in Australia’s Kosciuszko National Park
Jan 26, 2019Visiting a Maratha fortress
Jan 26, 2020It s Republic Day in India
Jan 26, 2021It s Australia Day
Jan 26, 2022India Republic Day
Jan 26, 2024Northern hawk-owl
Jan 26, 2025European beech forest, Belgium
Jan 26, 2026Neuschwanstein Castle, Bavaria, Germany

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Apr 16, 2022National Park Week begins
Sep 27, 2018High seas commerce
Dec 29, 2019Helloooooo, Innsbruck
Jan 8, 2026Starling murmuration over the ruins of Brightons West Pier, England
Sep 16, 2024Wallabies at sunrise, Australia
Dec 5, 2018’Chess on ice’
May 28, 2024The Monastery of Roussanou, Greece
Oct 17, 2025Rock River Falls, Upper Peninsula, Michigan
Mar 4, 2018Australian baobab tree, Kimberley region, Western Australia
Aug 18, 2023Avatar Mountains, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, China
Oct 13, 2025Cedar Mesa, Utah, for Indigenous Peoples Day
Mar 5, 2024Bangkok, Thailand
Oct 2, 2019Wild scene on the Merced River
Aug 28, 2018Class, please take out a No. 2 pencil…
Nov 5, 2022Tigh Mor Trossachs on Loch Achray, Scotland
Jun 23, 2019Adorable activism
Jan 20, 2025Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Jul 18, 2022Marine Day in Japan
Feb 24, 2021Getting to the bottom of the underwater waterfall
Oct 9, 2021Birds of a feather
Mar 5, 2025Khao Sok National Park in Thailand
Oct 10, 2022Indigenous Peoples Day
Feb 24, 2022Glacier cave in Iceland
Aug 3, 2025Blooming sunflowers
Apr 20, 2021Terraced fields of green
Sep 5, 2025Pacific Park, Santa Monica State Beach, California
Mar 14, 2021Perfect timing
May 27, 2020Clouds over the River of Grass
Jun 9, 2021Ring of fire
Jan 29, 2021So, how long till springtime?