Eighteen Waterfalls of Jianmen

Eighteen Waterfalls of Jianmen

The Eighteen Waterfalls of Jianmen Scenic Area is located in Maxiao Township on the border between Zhejiang and Anhui provinces within Lin’an City, Zhejiang. It is an independent scenic spot within the Jingting Mountain National Nature Reserve. Adjacent to the Hang-Hui Expressway, it is a shining pearl along the golden tourist route from Hangzhou to Huangshan.

The Eighteen Waterfalls of Jianmen consists of two uniquely styled scenic areas: the Big and Small Stone Gates and the Eighteen Dragon Pools, hence ranking first among the "Ten Scenic Spots of Tangchang." The Big and Small Stone Gates face the sky atop the mountaintop where earth meets heaven, where a stone wall rises abruptly from the ground. The wall is less than ten meters wide, flanked by cliffs dozens of meters high on both sides, resembling a natural stone Great Wall. Majestic and dynamic, this spectacular natural stone wall stretches for hundreds of kilometers, winding through forests and cliffs across Zhejiang and Anhui. Due to long-term water erosion, gaps have formed in multiple places, creating naturally formed, beautifully diverse stone gates. Among them, the most distinctive is the Jianmen, hailed as the "First Heavenly Gate of China." The two rocks are less than five meters apart but rise over a hundred meters high. The cliff face is even more astonishing, as if split by a divine sword—hence its name. Other gates such as the Lion Gate, Tiger Gate, Dragon Gate, and Plank Gate resemble their namesakes with striking likeness.

With clear streams like songs and ancient trees like paintings, the Eighteen Dragon Pools scenic area features naturally formed peaks. Eighteen massive waterfalls cascade down from an altitude of 1,300 meters, hanging one after another between heaven and earth. Pools and waterfalls are interconnected, with mist swirling around, making the entire waterfall belt resemble a dragon ascending to the heavens. The area has a total of 25 waterfalls, including the majestic Lion Waterfall, the peculiar Longtang Waterfall, the serene Hidden Dragon Waterfall, and the graceful Prayer-for-Rain Waterfall, earning the area the title of "The No.1 Waterfall Group in East China." Mysterious and vast, the primitive forest spans over 30,000 acres, where rare flowers and plants vie for beauty, and wild macaques swing from branches, approaching visitors for playful interactions—offering endless fun and unforgettable experiences. In the depths of winter, all the waterfalls in the area freeze into ice, forming icicles like pillars amidst snowy landscapes, presenting a rare "northern scenery" in the south of the Yangtze River.

The scenic area is rich in historical relics and cultural heritage. It features the ancient Huizhou-Hangzhou trade route from the Ming and Qing dynasties, once bustling with merchants and goods, as well as remnants of the Tongshan Cottage and Little West Lake. There are also numerous slogans written by the Red Army during Fang Zhimin’s era, and many beautiful legends left by Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, who once stationed troops here. While enjoying the mountains and waters, you can also appreciate the profound historical and cultural legacy of the Eighteen Waterfalls of Jianmen.