Route: Lingshui Village - Yanhecheng Village - Pearl Lake Scenic Area
Reason for Recommendation: mountains covered with autumnal red leaves create a fabulous reflection in maple-tree-lined lakes with fallen leaves drifting along in silence.
Lingshui Village
Lingshui Village is a famous historical and cultural village of China. Despite of a population of only over 200 households, the village has a lot of respect for teachers and attaches great importance to education. Hence, studying hard has become the trend here all along. Back in the Ming and Qing Dynasties when imperial examination system were introduced, the village had cultivated twenty-two recommended men (juren), two advanced scholars (jinshi) and ten-odd Guozijian scholars (jiansheng) enrolled by Guozijian School. Till the early period of the Republic of China, six people who were born here graduated from Yanjing University, giving rise to the unique cultural phenomenon of fostering a galaxy of contemporary scholars and a host of modern celebrities. Moreover, the first episode of Where Are We Going, Dad?, a Chinese reality parent-children TV show broadcast on Hunan Television, was filmed here. All houses where stars lived are well preserved and opened to tourists.
Tel.: 010-61817034
Self-driving Route: city proper of Mentougou District - National Highway 109 - Lingshui Village
Yanhecheng Village
Founded in the sixth year (1578) under the reign of Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Yanhecheng Village nestles in a grand canyon sandwiched by rolling lofty mountains in Zhaitang Town, Mentougou District. With a locality near Yongding River, it has gotten its name as Yanhecheng Village. According to record, as early as the Neolithic Age, there have been inhabitants around Yanhecheng Village. Conveniently placed as a stronghold linking the then capital with the regions beyond the Great Wall, it was ever called “Sancha Village” in history. About 100m in circumference, this stronghold spreads along a straight line on one side, and it is surrounded by mountains on three other sides. Its locality along Yongding River has demonstrated the designer’s calculation to use the terrain to reinforce the stronghold. With the passage of time, this once-solid stronghold has been largely damaged, being reduced to only the base, walls, crenel and lookout tower.
Self-driving Route: city proper of Mentougou District - National Highway 109 - Zhaiyou Road - Yanhecheng Village
Pearl Lake Scenic Area
Pearl Lake Scenic Area is located in the middle section of Guanting Valley. Sprawling 9.5km, this strip of lake is a typical scenic area featuring towering gorge and placid lake. When you survey it from a height, it looks like a bright pear mounted on the string of Taihang Mountains. Otherwise known as the Small Three Gorges and the Small Li River in Western Beijing, it is not only like magnificent Mount Tai and precipitous Mount Hua, but also more like serene Yandang Mountains. Continue along the lake, you will see Sanxian Cave, Huxinshuangliu Island, 24 Dongmingtielong, Asia’s First Bridge, Tongxin Island, Shifang Bridge, Hengliu Bay, and other breathtaking landscapes. Come autumn, it is carpeted with beautiful red leaves, rendering a sight to behold.
Tel.: 010-61817917
Self-driving Route: city proper of Mentougou District - National Highway 109 - Zhaiyou Road - Yanhecheng Village - Pearl Lake Scenic Area
