Longtan Valley

The Longtan Valley lies 15 kilometers north of Mancheng County Seat. It includes two scenic spots, namely, the Longmen Lake and the Longtan Valley. The scenery is exquisite, with green hills and blue water. It enjoys the good reputation of “Small Guilin in the North” (Guilin is a famous place of interest in Guangxi in the south of China) and is a place of interest in Hebei Province.

The Longmen Lake is a man-made lake by making dams against the mountain. The lake and the mountain have merged into an organic whole. The widest part can be scores of meters, which makes the lake very grand and magnificent. Longmen is a natural stone gate and looks like an arching rainbow. The water under Longmen is babbling just like a faery playing qin (a Chinese musical instrument). From Longmen and down the valley, the cliffs are very steep, and are called “One Line Sky”. Standing on the rocks in the valley, with clouds floating overhead and water flowing under your feet, looking downward, you will have a feeling as if you were standing upside down in the sky. From the upper part of the Longtan Valley the spring water pours down, spraying droplets like jewels and jades. The valley is winding and the sound of the flowing water can be heard miles away. At the lower part of the valley, the waterfalls drop, making a sound as loud as that of a thunder, so it was called “Thunder Stream and Spring Waves” in ancient times.

According to folklore, there was a village both on the south and north of the hillock where Longmen lies. Shangjiang Village on the north suffered from flood for years continuously, while Jiao Village, though in a downfold, with the hillock as a natural barrier, was secure. One year, the rain poured down for seven days and nights continuously, and the flood swallowed Shangjiang Village. However, Jiao Hades, the local tyrant of Jiao Village, crowed over the disaster, and clapped and cheered. All this was seen by the Piglet Dragon who was then engaging in a patrol of the water and inspecting the rain. In order to persuade Jiao Hades to beat away the hillock and channel the flood, the Piglet Dragon transformed into a young man to be a hired hand in Jiao Hades mansion, and decided not to rain for three years. But Jiao Hades didn't care about him and pushed him into a well. So the Piglet Dragon started to dig the hillock with his snout. After 49 days of hard work, a hole was dug and part of the floodwater was channeled into Jiao Village. From then on, the two villages had been well clothed and well fed and lived a peaceful life.

Admission fee: RMB ￥ 20 per person

Publishes at : 07-11-29 20:17

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