Known as the “Fairyland on Earth”. Jiuzhaigou sits on 103°46'—104°4' E and32°15'-33°19' N, within the boundary of Jiuzhuigou County, Aba Tibetan-Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. It lies between the southwest margin of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and at the north foot of Duo'erna Mountain Range, with an average altitude between 2,000 and 3,000 meters, and a distance of about 435 kilometers from Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province.
To its east, Jiuzhaigou neighbors both the Baihe River Nature Reserve and the Wanglang Nature Reserve, and to its south is the Huanglong Place of Scenic Interest. Jiuzhaigou covers a total area of 720 square kilometers, with a periphery zone of 600 sq. m. and a buffer zone of 110sq. m.
Jiuzhaigou, also called “Yangtong” in ancient times, currently has other names like “Heyao Jiuzhai”, and the “Jade Sea”. Jiuzhaigou, literally the Nine Village Valley, is hence known for the nine Tibetan villages within its boundary, that is, Panxin, Rize, Yacuo, Panya, Zechawa, Heijiao, Shuzheng, Heye and Zharu. The area of Jiuzhaigou as well as the upper reaches of the Jialing River and Minjiang River is called the land of Shiqiang (Qiang ethnic minority) in ancient times, where human activities have been recorded dating back as early as to the Yin-Shang Period (16th-11th Century B.C.). According to The Records of Songpan (vol.I-Rivers and Mountains), the “Jade Sea is 50-odd kilometers to the northeast county, within the territory of Zhongyang Tongfan Tribe. Its valleys are as long as several kilometers with green water and jade-like ripples.” This evidences that the Jade Sea beauty was well known as far back in ancient times.
Jiuzhaigou is an agglomeration of green lakes, overflying waterfalls, colorful forests and snow mountains as well as the custom and culture of the Tibetan and Qiang nationalities, characterized its primitive and natural features. In the “Y”-shape valley formed by Shuzheng Gully, Rize Gully and Zezhawa Gully of the scenic area are distributed 114 green lakes, 47 springs, 17 waterfall groups, 11sections of turbulent streams, 5 karst shoals and three Tibetan villages. The scenic area has an area of 1,320 square kilometers 30,000 hectares of primitive forest where in are living 2,576 protospeces including scores of state-protected animals and plants such as the giant panda, golden monkey and mono-leaf grass. The water the reflections on the lake, the stone mill, the Tibetan village, the Buddhist streamers and the songs and dances of the Tibetan and Qiang people constitute the unique tourist culture of Jiuzhaigou.
The Jiuzhaigou Scenic Area was listed into the world Natural Heritage Catalog in 1992, approved as one of the first state 4A-level sceneries in China in 2000, and awarded the certificate if Sustainable 21st Century Tourism in February, 2001. It is one of the excellent scenic areas in China. One of the 40 best scenic spots in the country, a provincial and prefectural civilized unit and an advanced unit in comprehensive management, and the head of the three tourist creams in Sichuan Province. |
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