Baligou Scenic Area, covering an area of 42 square kilometers, is located at the south foot of Mountain Taihang. It is 50 kilometers away from Xinxiang City and 25 kilometers from Huixian City.

Baligou Scenic Area is a combination of characteristics of some famous mountains in China. As the essence and soul of Mountain Taihang, it is as precipitous as Mountain Huashan, majestic as Mountain Taishan, quiet as Jiuzhai Valley and Mountain Qingcheng and charming as Mountain Huangshan and Mountain Emei. With an average temperature of 14℃, it is an excellent summer resort. In hot summer, you will feel comfortably cool, like in spring or autumn. You can enjoy fresh air, sweet spring waters and quiet surroundings in the natural oxygen bar and the gallery of landscape paintings. Thus it is an ideal destination for holiday, with opportunities for visiting primeval mountains and waters and for getting back to nature.

The Baligou Scenic Area is composed of five main resorts including more than 150 scenic spots. As a member of the distinct waterfall groups in North China, it boasts over 100 waterfalls including the Canal Waterfall, the Curtain Waterfall, and the Ditch Waterfall, among which Baligou Waterfall is regarded as “the Heavenly Waterfall of Mountain Taihang” for its fall of 200 meters, with running water for all seasons. Besides, the Baligou Scenic Area also has massive rock formations like Guan-yin, Buddha, Welcoming Stone Man and Lao Zi (the creator of Taoism) giving lectures; caverns like the Forefathers Cave, the Phoenix and Dragon Cave and the Eight Treasures Cave and other spectacles. The Red Stone River, being known as “the Heavenly River in Mountain Taihang” for its 1,100 meters height above sea-level, creates beautiful scenery of red rocks reflecting on the surface of clean water. Standing on the Jade Emperor Peak——the main peak of Mountain Taihang, you can watch the sunrise in the east, and the cloud sea in the west, and view the winding Yellow River below and the elegant peaks to the north.

In the scenic area, there is a spot called a thread of sky, which is a narrow mountain gap. A winding path between the gaps is like a grand dragon twining around the cliffs. Thus it is called “Dragon Hanging Ladder”. The path, composed of hundreds of steps along the steep cliffs, was the only the way up and out for the local villagers. A thread of sky is lined with extremely steep cliffs and fancy rocks and is shrouded in mists. Walking along the path, you have to lower your head, stoop your back, and edge along cliffs or climb cliffs every now and then. The twisting path is like a ribbon waving in the air. Walking on the steps, you can fully enjoy various sights of fancy rocks and unfathomable canyons. It is indeed an amazing spectacle.

The Red Stone River, named after the red rocks on its riverbed, is located at the Gourd Cliff in the Baligou Scenic area. Originating from Shanxi Province, it has a depth of 0.6 meters, a width of 20 meters and a height of 1,500 meters above sea-level. So it is called “the Heavenly River”. The river quietly runs along the long and narrow red valley. The water is like a precious mirror reflecting the images of blue sky and white clouds, and you will find yourself carried away by the overpowering beautiful scenery. There are eight huge rocks in the Red Stone River with the name “the Platform of the Eight Immortals”, because legend has it that the eight immortals once had a rest here when they had a visit to the scenic spot. Of course, you can dabble or take photos on the rocks, and you could think yourself one of the eight immortals.

There is a natural cave beside the Red Stone River with the name “the Guan-yin Cave” or “the Black Dragon Cavern”. It remains cool inside the cave even in hot summer. It is said that the clean mineral spring water in the cave contains many kinds of microelements and is an ideal for drinking. The spring at the north side of the mountain is named “Pearl Springs” because the spring continuously falls from the top of the mountain like beads of pearls or fragments of jade.

The hotels or teahouses in the district, which were built in the style of the Qin and Han Dynasties, are built against the mountain and beside the waters. The Holiday Area, composed of cottages with farmyards, hides in the virgin forest, isolated from the city noise. You can relax and become intoxicated in the fairyland.

By staying in a farmhouse and eating local specialties, you can enjoy the rural life. In the daytime, you can either appreciate the beautiful scenery on a horse or on a boat; at dusk, you can climb up to the mountain and watch the sunset; at night, you can have a sound sleep accompanied by the song of waterfalls. It is indeed relaxing.

Admission fee: RMB ￥ 60 per person

Two and half kilometers northwest from the center of Huixian City, Baiquan (literally, one hundred springs) Lake is located at the south foot of Mountain Sumen. The springs are also named “Pearl S prings” because underneath the lake springs bubble up from the bottom like beads of pearls.

The lake was first excavated as early as 3,000 years ago in the Shang Dynasty. During the reign of Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty, in order to prevent it from draining, a bank was built with stones around the lake and thus a rectangle lake was created. The lake covers an area of over 34,000 square meters with the maximum depth of three meters. The water temperature is around 20 degrees centigrade. With clean water all the year round, the lake abounds with fish and crabs. Along the shore the lake is lined with pavilions, buildings and old pine trees and cypresses. Through thousands of years of transformation and renovation, Baiquan Scenic Area has become a famous classical garden on the central plains of China comprising more than 90 ancient buildings of different kinds with both the petite and exquisite style of the south and the majestic and magnificent style of the North. As the representation of southern and northern architecture, as well as the landscape, it is regarded as “the Summer Palace on the Central Plains of China”; “the West Lake in Northern China”.

Baiquan Scenic area is composed of Mountain Sumen and Baiquan Lake. As a branch of the Taihang Mountain Range, Mountain Sumen is the peak of Mountain Wanxian as it extends towards east. The streams in Mountain Taihang flow to the east along Mountain Wanxian and reach Mountain Sumen, coming up through gaps at the south side of the mountain, and thus a clear lake is formed. With the mountain and the lake mirroring each other, it is really an amazing spectacle.

Mountain Sumen is located on the north side of the lake, and is only 184 meters tall. But just as a poem put it that a mountai n needn't be high, it is famous so long as there is a deity on it. The mountain holds an important position in numerous famous mountains and waters because of the cultural relics left by celebrities such as poets, litterateurs, statesmen, and other famous people in history. The well-known writer of the Book of Changes, Shao Yong of Southern Song Dynasty, and one of the top three distinguished Confucius scholars at the turn of the Ming and the Qing Dynasties Sun Qifeng, were born here. Beautiful scenery has attracted a lot of celebrities to live in seclusion, go sight-seeing or give lectures here. Being intoxicated with the verdant hills and clean water, they could not help working on poems or paintings, leaving an invaluable cultural heritage. The Baiquan Scenic Area at present has more than 350 steles, 8 cultural relics under provincial or national protection, 45 cultural relics under the protection of Xinxiang City and more antiquities under general protection.

The beautiful Baiquan Lake attracts tourists from all over the country. The shore is lined with various pavilions. In one of them, the Yongjin Pavilion, you can enjoy the handwriting of Su Shi, a famous poet of the Southern Song Dynasty. Another stele with the characters “People's Baiquan” by famous patriotic general Feng Yuxiang stands in the Huxin Pavilion built in 1928, also witnessing the history of Baiquan.

Baiquan Lake is divided by a bridge into two parts: the North Lake and the South Lake. Covering an area of 29,000 square meters, the North Lake has a state-level standard swimming pool and a children's swimming pool. It is equipped with various entertainment facilities including yachts and boats of different kinds; embodying features of the scenic area “the Northern Lake for sight-seeing, and the Southern Lake for amusement” and “it is quiet in the Northern Lake, and lively and bustling in the Southern Lake”. The two lakes, like twin lotus flowers on one stalk, are a good match.

During festivals, folk recreational activities are held, such as Lantern Fairs and fireworks, which always attract numerous tourists.

Admission fee: RMB ￥ 20 per person