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When Shanghai-based designer Guo Qingshan posted a vacation photo on Valentine\u2019s Day and captioned it \u201cPuppy Mountain,\u201d it became a sensation in China and even created a tourist destination.<\/p>\n
Guo had gone on a hike while visiting his hometown of Yichang in central China\u2019s Hubei province in late January. When reviewing the photos, he saw something he hadn\u2019t noticed before: A mountain shaped like a dog\u2019s head rested on the ground next to the Yangtze River, its snout perched at the water\u2019s edge.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was so magical and cute. I was so excited and happy when I discovered it,\u201d Guo said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe puppy\u2019s posture is like it\u2019s drinking water, or it\u2019s looking at some fish. It also looks like it\u2019s quietly protecting the Yangtze River,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Guo\u2019s post on Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu, or RedNote, received 120,000 likes within 10 days. On the media platform Weibo, the hashtag #xiaogoushan \u2014 Chinese for \u201cPuppy Mountain\u201d \u2014 drew millions of views.<\/p>\n
Dog owners started to post pictures of their dogs to see which one had the closest resemblance. Many people traveled directly to the location in Yichang to see the mountain for themselves and some even brought their dogs to take photos.<\/p>\n
Yang Yang, who lives about an hour and half from the location, drove there with her friends and her 2-year-old grey poodle named Yang Keyi.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was really happy to see the mountain,\u201d she said. \u201cI always travel with my dog if possible, so Puppy Mountain and my own little dog really match.\u201d<\/p>\n
The mountain is in Yichang\u2019s Zigui County, where it can be seen from an observation deck. The Yangtze River, the longest river in China and the third-longest river in the world, flows through the mountainous area.<\/p>\n
After Guo\u2019s photo went viral, many people shared photos of the view they previously had taken from the same deck, many saying they hadn\u2019t realized it looked like a dog. Some discussed how the dog\u2019s appearance has changed over the years.<\/p>\n
Yichang resident Shi Tong said he knew he had seen the mountain before, and posted a photo he took of the location in 2021.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter I saw the Puppy Mountain photo online, I tried to look up where it is. And then I realized that I have been to this place before. I thought it looked like a dog at that time too!\u201d<\/p>\n
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