Ancient Guiliu Canal

Ancient Guiliu Canal

Ancient Guiliu Canal (also known as Dou River): Located in Huixian Town, it lies opposite to the Xing’an Lingqu Canal (East Canal), and is also referred to as the West Canal. Dug in the first year of the Changshou era during the Tang Dynasty (620 AD), it stretches 15 kilometers in total. Along the canal, there are 24 sluice gates and water slopes, all built with cut stone. The canal originates from a 30-acre watershed pond at the northern corner of Huixian Market, flowing eastward to Shemenling in Yanshan Town, Guilin City, where it connects with the Liangfeng River and empties into the Li River; flowing westward through Sitang Dawan to Suqiao, it joins the Luoqing River, which then flows into the Liu River. It is 25 kilometers away from Guilin, with the road being a third-grade asphalt pavement, locally called Mudong Lake. Small lakes are scattered across the landscape, crisscrossing one another, and a flat-bottomed boat is an essential means of transport for every farming household. Oxen riding boats is a unique sight in this southern water town. Every morning, as the dawn breaks in the east, hundreds of boats set off in a grand procession, carrying farming tools to their respective fields; when dusk falls, the small boats return, laden with the fruits and joys of labor, gliding over the waves—truly a picturesque scene of a southern land of fish and rice.