Xianshan Lake Scenic Area

Xianshan Lake Scenic Area

Xianshan Lake Scenic Area is a national wetland park.

The Xianshan Lake Scenic Tourism Area can be regarded as the gateway to the green ecological corridor of northwest Zhejiang. Stepping through this beautiful gateway opens up a magnificent scroll painting stretching two hundred li from South Taihu Lake to Huangshan. The scenic area mainly consists of two parts: Xianshan Mountain and Xianshan Lake.

“A mountain need not be high — with immortals it becomes famous.” Xianshan Mountain stands 162 meters tall, and its shape resembles that of Japan’s Mount Fuji. Within a radius of ten li, although not particularly high, it offers views across three provinces, and though not vast, it is covered in lush greenery and brimming with spiritual energy. The legends surrounding Xianshan are ancient and mysterious.

Especially the story about how, following a court coup in the early Tang Dynasty in the Silla Kingdom, the Silla prince became a monk here and eventually transformed into the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, adds boundless charm to Xianshan. Historically, there has been a saying: “First came Little Xianshan, then came Great Jiuhua.” This means that the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva of Jiuhua Mountain came from Xianshan, making Xianshan the ancestral home of the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha.

“Water need not be deep — with dragons it becomes divine.” Xianshan Lake lies beside Xianshan Mountain, covering a water area of approximately 10 square kilometers. A long causeway runs east-west through the lake, dividing it into southern and northern sections. Willow trees sway gracefully along the causeway, reminiscent of the Su Causeway at West Lake. The lake water is pristine and cool, shallow yet expansive, with gently sloping shores. Beneath Xianshan Lake lies a mysterious ancient river channel and a long-lost ancient village named after the celestial body “Venus.”

Thanks to the excellent natural environment of Xianshan Lake, it is not only home to numerous water birds but also to the very rare swan, a truly rare natural ecological phenomenon.

As mysterious as Xianshan and Xianshan Lake is the Chinese Alligator Village here, which is home to an animal as ancient as the dinosaurs — locally called the “water gecko” — the Chinese alligator. This animal is a nationally protected endangered species in China.