The Huangshi National Mine Park, known locally as Tiě Shān Jǐng Qū, is built around what was for decades the largest open-cast iron ore mine in Asia. The pit is a staggering industrial landscape: concentric terraces of red, yellow, and grey rock descend nearly 400 metres to the floor, carved out by a century of mechanised mining. The Chinese government designated it a National Geopark in 2001 and a national mine park in 2010, acknowledging that the scale of the extraction itself has become historically significant.
The park includes a museum covering the industrial and geological history of the iron deposits, the mechanised equipment used in twentieth-century mining operations, and the role of Daye steel production in the early decades of the People's Republic. For visitors with any interest in industrial archaeology, the combination of the pit overlook and the museum is genuinely worth several hours. Admission is modest and the park is rarely crowded compared to more conventional tourist sites.
Getting here requires a taxi or bus from central Huangshi — the park is in the Tieshan district, about 15 kilometres southwest of the city centre.