Jiuzhaigou Scenic and Historic Interest Area is located in Nanping County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, over 400 kilometers away from Chengdu City. It is a mountainous valley extending more than 40 kilometers in depth, named after the 9 Tibetan villages surrounding it, covering an area of about 620 square kilometers, with approximately 52% of the area covered by dense primeval forests.
The forests are interspersed with arrow bamboo and various exotic flowers and plants, making it a haven for rare animals such as giant pandas, golden monkeys, and white-lipped deer. The natural scenery combines the beauty of lakes, waterfalls, snow-capped mountains, and forests. The area is remote with sparse population, distinctive scenery, rich in its original natural features, and is known as the ‘Fairy Tale World’. It comprises six major scenic areas: Changhai, Jianyan, Nuorilang, Shuzheng, Zaru, and Heisea, famous for their clear waters, cascading waterfalls, colorful forests, snow-capped peaks, and Tibetan customs.The waters of Jiuzhaigou are naturally pristine, with ever-changing scenery throughout the four seasons, especially in autumn when the continuous colorful forests along the lakes are a sight to behold. The spirit of Jiuzhaigou is its water, with lakes, springs, rivers, and beaches interconnected, displaying a myriad of colors. The waterfalls, varying in height and volume, sing and murmur, while the numerous lakes are clear and azure. The water reflects the red leaves, green trees, snow-capped peaks, and blue sky, offering an ever-changing spectacle. Water flows among the trees, trees grow in the water, and flowers bloom in the middle of the water.
Shuzheng Scenic Area is the epitome of Jiuzhaigou’s scenery, with over 100 lakes of varying sizes in the valley area. Along the valley, there are multiple connected lakes, each as clear as crystal. Due to differences in depth, sediment, and surrounding scenery, each lake has its unique color, giving each pool its distinct characteristics.
Nature has ingeniously placed 108 peculiar lakes within the Y-shaped main valleys of Shuzheng, Ri Ze, and Ze Cha Wa, totaling over 50 kilometers in length. These are connected by waterfalls and streams, making every scene in the valley resemble a beautiful and outstanding painting.
The uniqueness of Jiuzhaigou’s landscape lies primarily in its 108 ‘Emerald Seas’ (locally referred to as ‘Haizi’). Legend has it that in ancient times, the goddess Wunose’s lover Daguo gifted her a magic mirror. Overwhelmed with joy, Wunose accidentally dropped the mirror, shattering it into 108 pieces, which became the 108 ‘Emerald Seas’ or colored lakes. In reality, the formation of most lakes in Jiuzhaigou is related to the calcium carbonate content in the flowing water. In ancient times, during the cold interglacial and glacial periods, the calcium carbonate in the water here could not coagulate and was carried away by the water. About 12,000 years ago, as the Earth’s climate warmed, the calcium carbonate in the water became active. It adhered to any obstacles it encountered, accumulating over thousands of years, growing higher and higher, forming the ‘Haizi’ or lakes seen today in Jiuzhaigou, which are composed of milky-white calcium barriers that retain water, known geologically as barrier lakes.Many people learned from fairy tales at a very young age that there are colorful Jasper Pools in the palace garden of the Queen Mother of the West in the heavens, but no one has ever seen them. However, in Jiuzhaigou, one can actually see colorful lakes. That is the Five-color Pool hidden at the bottom of Zechawa Valley. Through the gaps in the forest, one can see that in some places in the pool, the water is blue, some are light green, some are crimson yellow, some are grayish black, and some are pinkish blue.
.. If there is a mountain breeze blowing, the whole lake is full of colorful hues. It really seems as if the colorful Jasper Pool has fallen into the mortal world. Locally, it was once widely rumored that this was dyed by the rouge water of fairies. However, in fact, it is closely related to the aquatic community formed by aquatic plants such as Spirogyra, Chara, and Ceratopteris that grow in the lake. Compared with it, the Five-flower Sea in Rizegou is even more spectacular. When people look down from the mountain at the sea-shaped like a gourd surrounded by mountains on three sides, they will find that it is like an upside-down large colored gourd pouring out never-ending colorful water down the mountain. What is very peculiar is that there is a deer leg-shaped pattern on the belly of the gourd, which is about ten meters long. The entire leg is light blue in color, and the middle of the leg is dark green due to the plum blossom-shaped depressions in the lake bottom strata. Looking from a distance, the color tones are distinct, naturally forming a plum blossom leg shape. Legend has it that this was accidentally left behind by a frightened sika deer when the mountain god was chasing the mountains. The waterfalls in Jiuzhaigou have unique characteristics. Taking the Nuorilang Waterfall at the end of the Shuzheng Lakes Valley as an example, it overflows through the gaps in the trees. People can see that at the top of the waterfall about 100 meters wide, there is a row of weeping willows growing neatly. The branches and leaves are intertwined, forming a green wall. The trunks at the lower end of the green wall are spaced in an orderly manner, just like the teeth of a long comb, combing the endless flowing water day and night. The most peculiar waterfall in Jiuzhaigou is definitely the Pearl Shoal Waterfall in Rizegou. Its stone shoal is above a cliff and seems to be hanging obliquely in the sky. There are many circular pits melted by ten thousand years of flowing water on the shoal. After being rushed in and bounced back by the rapid flowing water, many flying water droplets are formed. They are in rows, in strings, and in layers. The large ones are like balls, and the small ones are like marbles. Each one is crystal clear. Especially after being reflected by the sunlight, they are like colorful pearls. Going up along Zechawa Valley, when approaching the top of the valley, one can see a vast and boundless large lake. This is the crown of the group of lakes in Jiuzhaigou, the Changhai Lake located above 3000 meters above sea level. Changhai Lake, which is accompanied by snow-capped mountains all year round, has remained unknown like a paradise on earth for centuries. Until the 1970s, it was discovered by loggers who entered the mountain. Some people who have been there said that boating in Changhai Lake in summer is very pleasant. In spring and autumn, the world in the water either reflects the snow-capped mountains surrounded by a hundred flowers or the maple leaves set off by the snow-capped mountains, making it difficult for people to distinguish whether it is winter spring scenery or autumn winter scenery for a moment.In the depths of winter, the Changhai transforms into a vast lake of ice. .. Immersed in the Jiuzhaigou valley, one feels as if in a dream. No matter whether you look up, down, or around, you are greeted by stunning scenery at every turn, prompting many visitors to exclaim: ‘Walking in the valley is like walking through a painting.’
Jiuzhaigou’s landscape was shaped during the Pleistocene Ice Age and still preserves numerous relics from that period. The groundwater in Jiuzhaigou is rich in calcium carbonate; crystallized deposits of this substance can be seen on the lake beds, banks, and shores. The living water springs from the snow-capped mountains and forests are exceptionally pure, and as they pass through the terraced lakes, their clarity increases, with visibility reaching up to 20 meters. The emerald waters, cascading waterfalls, colorful forests, snow-capped peaks, and Tibetan customs are known as the ‘Five Wonders’ of Jiuzhaigou. The harmonious blend of water and nature is truly a feast for the eyes.
‘After returning from Yellow Mountain, one no longer looks at clouds; after returning from Jiuzhaigou, one no longer looks at water.’ The essence of Jiuzhaigou is its water. Lakes (Haizi), springs, streams, waterfalls, rivers, and beaches are interconnected, combining movement and tranquility, strength and gentleness, presenting a myriad of colors and forms. The waterfalls, large and small, cascade down from the cliffs and forests, singing in high and low tones, full of passion.
The lakes, nestled in the high mountains and deep valleys, are azure and clear, serene and beautiful; the water reflects the red leaves, green trees, snow-capped peaks, and blue sky, changing with every step, infinitely variable. Water flows among the trees, trees grow in the water, and flowers bloom in the middle of the water, earning Jiuzhaigou the reputation of ‘King of Chinese Water Scenic Wonders. ‘
