Little Red Cliff

Little Red Cliff

Little Red Cliff, anciently also known as White Rock. On the opposite side of the creek from Xiayang Village stands a steep cliff stretching approximately 650 meters from east to west and about 60 meters high. The cliff face features alternating ochre and white hues, resembling scorched earth from a wildfire from afar, much like the Red Cliff of the Yangtze River. Due to its smaller scale, it is called Little Red Cliff. The cliff bears an inscription of “Little Red Cliff” signed by Yin Hai (Gong Tingbin, a local official of the Ming Dynasty). The mountain was originally formed by a northeast-trending fault. Due to erosion by the creek and weathering, rocks collapsed, exposing the cross-section and creating this spectacular cliff formation.

Mother-in-law and Daughter-in-law Rock, also known as Aunt and Niece Rock. On the ridgeline of the Mother-and-Son Mountain, two rocks stand facing each other, about a hundred or so meters apart. The taller one to the north resembles a slender young woman without a head, while the shorter one to the south looks like a vivid old woman kneeling. The two rocks, one high and one low, are strikingly lifelike in form and expression. According to legend, they were formed through the weathering, water erosion, and gravitational collapse of a volcanic rock ridge. It is said that in ancient times, a widowed mother and her son relied on each other for survival. Three days after her son got married, he was conscripted to guard the frontier. The unfilial daughter-in-law often mistreated her mother-in-law, an act intolerable by heaven, so she was struck by thunder and lost her head. As it is the first scenic spot upon entering Xiandu, it is also called Greeting Guests – Mother-in-law and Daughter-in-law.

Uncle’s Sedan Rock, also known as Immortal Release Rock. On the Lion-Leopard Ridge of Xiayang Village, two adjacent rocks stand tall. The front rock is small and slender, resembling a strong man carrying a sack on his back, while the rear rock is large and square, looking just like a sedan chair. Facing Mother-in-law and Daughter-in-law Rock across the creek, the legend says the sister’s younger brother, hearing of the discord between the wife and mother-in-law, came to take her home for a break in a sedan. Unfortunately, he arrived just as the sister’s head was struck off by lightning. Horrified and grief-stricken, he froze in place and turned, along with the sedan, into the remarkably lifelike Uncle’s Sedan Rock.

Dragon Plough Path. On the cliffs of Little Red Cliff lies a natural stone corridor stretching about 400 meters in length, 1 to 3 meters in width, and 2 to 3 meters in height, standing dozens of meters above the water surface. The cliff was originally made of tuff, which over millions of years of weathering and water erosion gradually formed this stone corridor. Legend has it that before Liu Xiu of the Eastern Han Dynasty ascended the throne, he was hunted by Wang Mang’s army to this spot, trapped before a deep abyss and sheer cliffs with pursuers behind. In a moment of crisis, a golden dragon leapt out of Haoxi Creek and ploughed a stone corridor along the cliff, allowing him to escape—hence the name Dragon Plough Path.

Immortal List Rock. On Little Red Cliff are scattered many tadpole-like “heavenly scripts.” Faded and eroded over time, they are neither clearly characters nor text, making them difficult to decipher. People believed these to be proclamations written by immortals, hence naming them Immortal Lists, and the cliff where they were posted came to be called Immortal List Rock. The cliff features numerous inscriptions throughout the dynasties, with eight extant cliff inscriptions. Among them, the “Song of Little Penglai” by the renowned Southern Song poet Wang Zhi and the “Record of Visiting Xiandu Peak” by the famous Qing Dynasty writer Yuan Mei are particularly celebrated for their length.

Little Penglai. In front of Little Red Cliff lies Kun Pond, with emerald waters dotted with peculiar rocks clustered and stacked in layers, creating a picturesque scene of varying heights. Within the pond is an island shaded by maples and willows; among the islands lies a lake with rippling waves. The scenery shifts as you move, giving the illusion of being on a mythical overseas mountain, hence the name Little Penglai. It is said that the Eight Immortals often rested here, so the Eight Immortals Pavilion was built to the east of Little Penglai. The movie *The Monk Comes Down the Mountain* was filmed here.

Eight Immortals Pavilion. A 5-meter-high stone pavilion beneath the cliffs of Little Red Cliff features eight pillars and a four-cornered, single-eave hip-and-gable roof. Each corner of the pavilion is adorned with two vivid statues of the Eight Immortals. The plaque bearing the pavilion’s name was inscribed by Sha Menghai, a master calligrapher of the 20th century in China. It is said that the Eight Immortals often visited Little Red Cliff, leaving behind many beautiful legends. TV dramas and films such as *The Legend of the Eight Immortals*, *The Investiture of the Gods*, and *Scarlet Heart* were filmed here.

Cloud Pass, commonly known as Joining Palms Rock or Joining Palms Cave. To the north of the Eight Immortals Pavilion, a massive rock slid down and leaned against the cliff, forming an upper joined and lower separated shape resembling two palms pressed together in prayer. The interior wall of the cave is smooth as if cut by a knife, spanning about 60 square meters. The cave remains cool in summer and warm in winter, making it ideal for visitors to rest. On the southern cliff is a Ming Dynasty inscription of “Cloud Pass” by Yin Hai, while the northern side bears a modern inscription of “Red Cliff Cloud Pass” by Wang Jinshan. Legend has it that when the Yellow Emperor ascended to heaven, sunlight shone brightly to the south of the cave while clouds and mist lingered to the north, creating this ever-present mystical scene, hence ancient people named it “Cloud Pass.”

Alchemy Chamber. At the northeastern end of the Dragon Plough Path lies the ancient site of the “Kunyan Cave Heaven” alchemy chamber. Today, a new one has been built about ten steps southeast of the original. Zheng Rubin, also known as Kunyan, was excluded from the capital in 1579 (the sixth year of the Wanli reign in the Ming Dynasty) and resigned from his post as judicial commissioner of Guangdong the following year to live in seclusion. He was very close to the eminent Daoist Ge Lianshi of Xiandu, who wished to build an alchemy chamber on Immortal List Rock. Zheng carved steps along the cliff and built a house halfway up the Dragon Plough Path, naming the pavilion “Chaomiao” (Superb and Wondrous). Later generations engraved “Kunyan Cave Heaven” on the cave wall.

Big Belly Rock. At the northeastern end of Little Red Cliff stands a cliff barrier nearly 100 meters in circumference and 55 meters high, with an unusually small head and a large belly like a drum, hence the name. Legend says that during the Yellow Emperor’s alchemy, he placed a jade steamer and rice mother on Haoshan Mountain, ensuring an endless supply of rice. Once, a gluttonous immortal greedily ate the rice from the steamer, causing the rice mother to continuously produce more, rapidly swelling his belly. Barely able to cross the creek, he could go no further and was transformed into the giant Big Belly Rock. The rock bears thousand-year-old dark brown tail-like water marks, resembling the hem of a farmer’s straw raincoat, hence it is also called Rain Cape Rock.

Address: Xiandu Scenic Area, Xiandu Township, Jinyun County, Lishui City

Type: Mountain

Recommended visiting time: 2–3 hours

Opening hours:

7:00–17:30

Ticket information:

Gate price: 10.0 RMB