The 8,000-plus peculiar pillar formations punctuating a sea of lush, rolling green have made this forest in China’s northern Hunan Province world-famous. More than half a million tourists per year flood to the UNESCO World Natural Heritage site to witness its dense forests — covering an estimated 98% or more of the total 12,000 acres — deep ravines and canyons, and stacked peaks, often cloaked in a mystical. low-lying fog.