As the hunt for three missing reporters in China's "Valley of Death" entered its seventh day on Thursday, rescuers have failed to find any trace of the missing people in the Changbai Mountains, in Jilin Province of northeast China.

Officials said the search for the missing journalists has been expanded to the primeval forests of four counties surrounding Ganfanpen, a valley where quite a few people have disappeared in the past few years.

The missing reporters, who were working on an environmental story, said in a piece filed on July 20 that their compass had gone haywire in the valley and that they had encountered poisonous snakes.

The three reporters, working for the City Evening News of the Changchun City, capital of Jilin, had food for five days and were well-equipped but did not have a local guide with them.

A forest police rescue team comprising of more than 50 skilled searchers arrived at the region on Wednesday to join five other rescue teams consisting of local lumberjacks, officials and police, raising the number of searchers from 200 to more than 300, officials said.

Rescuers were ordered to stick together and stay in close communication with loudspeakers.

Local residents said that for decades few had dared to enter the valley, known for its mysterious lush ravines and bizarre landforms that easily misled the unwary.

"It's easy for people to lose their way, as any equipment, including compasses, fail to work there," said Cao Baoming, an art worker, who was rescued by local people in 1986.

"I felt dizzy immediately after I set foot in the jungle," said Cao, who is also chairman of the Jilin Provincial Association of Folk Arts.

"I could hear the cock crow nearby but I just couldn't find my way out," he recalled.

An arrow chalked on a tree at the bottom of the valley temporarily raised hopes until it was discovered that it had been left by other rescue teams.

Weather forecast said the weather there would remain fine in the coming days, which might help the rescue efforts.

To add to the mystery, villagers living on the edge of the valley said cattle were attacked by unidentified animals in the 1960s and 1970s.

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