Yichun is located in northeastern Heilongjiang Province, named after the Yichun River, a tributary of the Tangwang River. It is adjacent to Hegang City in the east, Jiamusi City in the southeast, Harbin City in the south, Suihua City in the southwest, Heihe City in the northwest, and Jiayin County in the north, which is across the river from Russia, with a long border of 249 kilometers and an area of 39,017 square kilometers, and has a continental monsoon climate of the mesothermal zone. Yichun has the world's largest area of virgin red pine forest, known as the "natural oxygen bar". It is known as the "forest capital of the motherland" and "hometown of the red pine". The city tree, flower and bird of Yichun are the red pine, Xing'an cuckoo and woodpecker respectively. Since 2007, Yichun has been honored as one of the world's top ten harmonious cities and the hometown of natural water rafting in China.
