Jiuxiang Scenic Resort

Jiuxiang, a beautiful large scenic resort inhabited mainly by the Yi and Hui nationalities, is situated in Jiuxiang Township, over 70 kilometres away from Kunming and 47 kilometres away from the county town of Yiliang.

In Jiuxiang, mountain ridges stretch and peaks taper. Rivers and streams crisscross. Shady trees are wide-spreading. The relative height from the highest peak of the mountains to the lowest valley is about 200 metres. The elevation ranges roughly from 1,750 metres to 1,900 metres. The topography is typically of a karst type, so Jiuxiang is called the village of karst caves. There are more than one hundred karst caves in Jiuxiang scenic resort. It has been found that the caves in Jiuxiang are the largest cave group system with the most numerous karst caves in China. The stalactites in the caves take on many forms and shapes in different colours. Found in the caves are numerous natural bridges, valleys, rivers and waterfalls, which constitute a wonderful subterranean world.

With a total area of about 200 square kilometres, it consists of five smaller scenic areas, namely, the Triangular Caves (Sanjiaodong), the Overlapping Rainbow Bridge (Diehongqiao), the Upper Big Cave (Shangdadong), the Long Sandy Bank (Dashaba) and the Bright Moon Lake (Mingyuehu). Sixty-six karst caves in the area are estimably worthy of exploitation. The first phase of the exploitation project centres upon the Overlapping Rainbow Bridge which lies 45 kilometres away from the town of Yiling County. This area consists of the White Elephant Cave (Baixiangdong), the Sleeping Dragon Cave (Wolongdong), the Palace of the Goddesses (shennvgong), the Gods'Fields (Shentian) and a 600-metre long Shady Green Gorge (Yincuixia) along which tourists can have a boat ride. The entrance into the Sleeping Dragon Cave is called the Terrestrial Gate which overlooks the very depth of cave from a height of 120 metres. A spiral steel staircase of 9 windings is constructed. The waterfall in the cave has a drop of 30 metres. The Lion's Hall within the White Elephant Cave is 200 metres wide. There are a stage and a subterranean ballroom of 2,000 square metres in it. Outside the White Elephant Cave, a bridge lies 200 metres above the cave. The Palace of Goddesses is ornamented by beautiful stalactites. Shady Green Gorge winds through verdurous mountains. It is vety pleasant to have a boat ride on the stream here.

HISTORY

According to the results of investigation and demonstration made by cave experts both at home and abroad, Jiuxiang cave group developed from shallow-sea deposit in Sinian Epoch and dolomite in siliceous belt 600 million years ago. In the caves there are many hydrogeologic spectacles and scenic spots of flyover and multi-layer caves consisting of stromatolithic rock which is the fossil of microbe in paleocean and called as "prehistoric spectacle" by the experts, bioherm, stone border pool groups, underground plaza and hall, underground river and gorge, as well as fish-back rock, curly rock and vortex pot. Some of them are rare spectacles in the world. Some are cases never taught in any geological textbook. A cave expert from the former Soviet Union called it as "a matchless attraction in the world and a mystical legacy of the earth".

GEOGRAPHY

Inhabited mainly by the Yi and Hui nationalities now, Jiuxiang township where the Jiuxiang scenic resort is situated was a residential place for the forefathers of the Yi people. The climate in Jiuxiang is temperate. The air temperature is similar to that in Kunming and the yearly average temperature is 14.6 centigrade. The yearly average frost-free period has 234 days and yearly rainfall is 1064mm. The yearly average sunshine time is 2,123 hours. The altitude of the earth's surface without too many rolls and swells ranges roughly 1,750 to 1,900m. Maitian River, a tributary of Nanpanjiang River, flows southwards through the whole region. The gradient of the river bed is great and the river valley is very deep. There are many V-shape rock cliffs and narrow gorges, and knick points along the river that corroded seriously. There are sporadic survivals of two-stage etched terrace which are 10m to 80m higher than the present river bed, forming a geological spectacle in China.

ANCIENT REMAINS

Jiuxiang is one of the birthplace of human civilization. The historical and cultural background is very long. At Zhongkoudong Cave, the place where ancient people lived 10,000 to 50,000 years ago, or even earlier in the Paleolithic Period, forty-one ancient teeth and more than two thousand pieces of Paleolith were unearthed. It is the first time in China that so many stone artifacts have been unearthed. In addition, more than 1,000 fossils of ten kinds of ancient animals, including eastern stegodon, Chinese rhinoceros and panda, were found. In 1985, archaeologists found many primitive carvings on cliffs in Dabizhe and Alulong villages, the Alulong valley. These carvings of donkey, buffalo, plouph and symbols of character, were made by the forefathers of Yi people.

FESTIVAL

The local people hold various activities to celebrate the Hunting God Festival every year to express their happiness and thanks to the God, and pray for good harvest. The activities include wresting, bullfighting, singing folk songs in antiphonal style, and national dances accompanied with Dasanxian, a national musical instrument.

FLOWERS

Jiuxiang, a flowering township, is very beautiful when camellia, Rhododendron delavayi, bannana shurb are blooming there. Southern Magnolia is not only beautiful but also suffusing fragrance far away. What is deserved to be mentioned is the orchid in Jiuxiang whose family is so great that no orchid in other places can be comparable with it.

BLIND MACKEREL, a precious fish

The fish was found in Xiaogoudong Cave by the bank of Maitian River in the lower reach of the exploited Diehongqiao scenic area. This is the largest fish of such species in China. The fish has a full transparent body and the organs in the body are clearly visible. Since the fish llives in dark cave for long time, the eyes have gradually degenerated and became two white dots. They use other sense organs to look for food and alert the attack of enemies.

Scenery in Jiuxiang is a beautiful and mystical place just like the Peach Garden describe by Tao Yuanming in his poem. The scenery everywhere, mountains and rivers, exploited and non-exploited scenes, presents a natural and wonderful beauty. Grand, precipitous, mystical, beautiful and secluded are the right words for the description of scenery in Jiuxiang.