The county town of Yangshuo, located 65 kilometres southeast to Guilin, is an ancient city of over 1000 years, built in the Jin Dynasty (265-420).
Yangshuo is famous for a profusion of scenic hills and rivers. The Lijiang and Tianjia Rivers, which run by the town, are the two largest of the 12 rivers in the county. Peaks are so peculiar, so beautiful and so many that they are seen one after another to an incalculable extent.
Famous scenic spots in Yangshuo include Jianshan Mountain, Bilian Peak, Shutong Hill, Yangshuo Park, Chuanyan Cave, etc. A commercial street in the town is also a tourists favorite. Native products are abundant thanks to the fertile mountains and rivers. Fruits here are most famous at home and abroad including orange, tangerine, pomelo, chestnut, kumquat, etc.
Green Lotus Peak( Bilian Peak)
Lies southeast of Yangshuo town and faces Li River, this peak rises out of the river like a lotus. Hence the name Green Lotus Peak. It is the most famous hill in Yangshuo.
Green Lotus Peak, flat and smooth, resembles a mirror in its front view. So people also named it Jianshan Hill (Mirror Hill). Looking the hill after passing it, one finds the hill silently floating on water like an elegant budding green lotus, forming an enchanting scene.
Green Lotus Peak has many inscriptions on its cliffs, in which the 5-meter-long Chinese character "Dai" caved in the Qing dynasty is the most famous. The later generations endowed the character with a meanings "as the river and mountains unfold their greatness before your eyes, young lads, you should work hard to let your name pass down forever."
The best place to view the lotus is View Lotus Bridge. Built in 1978, the bridge is decorated with relief, which depict the landscape of Yangshuo. At the end of the bridge, three characters were caved which means there is the best suitable place to view the "lotus".
Yangshuo Park
Yangshuo Park is in the western part of the town, and here you’ll find Man Hill, which is meant to resemble a young man bowing and scraping to a shy young girl represented by Lady Hill. You may just want to look from the outside-it. Other hills nearby are named after animals: Crab Hill, Swan Hill, Dragon Head Hill and the like.
Moon Hill
The highway from Guilin turns southward at Yangshuo and after a couple of kilometres crosses the Jingbao River. South of this river and just to the west of the highway is a limestone pinnacle with a moon-shaped hole penetrating the hill. Hence the name Moon Hill. With an elevation of 380 meters, the hill is 230 meters in relative height and 410 meters in length.
Over 800 marble stairs leading to the cave were completed in 1981, giving convenience to those who want to get a close view of the cave. The cave is about 50 meters in height and width, shaping like a semicircular archway. In sunny day, blue sky and white clouds can be see through the cave and in cloudy and rainy day, the "moon" is deep in mist.
Viewed from different place, the moon takes on different shapes, sometimes full moon, sometimes half-moon and sometimes crescent, forming a marvellous spectacle in Yangshuo.
A series of cave have been opened up not far from Moon Hill: the Black Buddha Cave, New Water Caves and Dragon Cave. If you head out to Moon Hill, you will undoubtedly be intercepted and invited to visit the caves. The caves and famous spots, as well as people’s villages will even bring you a wonderful time!
River Excursions
A popular riverboat trip is to the picturesque village of Fuli, a short distance down the Li River, where you’ll see stone houses and cobbled lanes. If you’re keen on a river trip, the thing is that about three hours upstream from Yangshuo, the mountain scenery around Xing ping is breathtaking, and there are many caves. |
