Shuanghe Karst Cave

Shuanghe Karst Cave

On the earth's crust where humans live, both before and after the emergence of humans, various geological processes have been continuously occurring. Among these many geological processes, there is one called karstification. This is a unique natural process related to the dissolution of rocks by water. This process continues to occur, and over time, like a master craftsman, it sculpts out uniquely shaped peaks and caves within the rocks, within the grand mountain ranges, and across hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of vast land—this is the karst phenomenon.

The geological term "karst" was named in the late 19th century by the renowned Yugoslav geographer Cvijic for a peculiar karst landform within the territory of present-day Slovenia. Since then, this name has become a specialized scientific term in geology, meaning the dissolution phenomenon of rocks.

China has a vast distribution of karst landforms, and Guizhou is the province with the most concentrated karst features, covering about 73% of its total land area, earning it the title of the "Kingdom of Karst." Suiyang is a dazzling pearl in the crown of this karst kingdom. Entering this kingdom, the mountains are so uniquely arrayed as if all things in nature are on display, so beautifully picturesque as if a painting has come to life, so enchantingly lovely as if in a captivating park, and so wonderfully dreamlike as if in an ever-changing vision. The beauty, grandeur, and uniqueness of the karst landscape captivate, inspire admiration, and stir the imagination, increasingly attracting experts, scholars, and tourists from both home and abroad.

Shuanghe Karst Cave is just such a karst cave！

In April 2006, the Global Travel Newspaper, in collaboration with 31 urban newspapers across the country, jointly hosted the selection event for the "50 Places in China Most Worth Visiting for Foreigners." Shuanghe Karst Cave stood out from 200 nominated scenic spots and became the only site in Guizhou to be selected among the "50 Most Worth Visiting Places for Foreigners."

Where is Shuanghe Karst Cave?

It is located in Guihua Village and Tonggu Village, Gongping Office, Wenquan Town, in the northern part of Suiyang County, 50 kilometers from the county seat of Suiyang and 92 kilometers from Zunyi City. It neighbors the Kuankuoshui Primitive Forest Nature Reserve. The area where Shuanghe Karst Cave is situated features vast, misty mountains and beautiful peaks. Outside the cave, two rivers converge in Tonggu Village, hence the name "Shuanghe," meaning "Double River" Karst Cave.

The Shuanghe Karst Cave system is spread out in a root-like pattern overall, with some areas forming a network. It is a cave system consisting of three levels—upper, middle, and lower—with eight main caves, 118 branch caves, four underground rivers, and 23 cave entrances interconnected. After multiple explorations by the China-Japan Cave Exploration Team, China-France Cave Exploration Team, Guizhou Mountain Resources Research Institute, and Guizhou Cave Association, as of April 2006, the total surveyed length of Shuanghe Cave has reached 100.06 kilometers. It is the longest cave in China, the second longest in Asia, and ranks 16th in the world. More uniquely, Shuanghe Cave has developed within dolomite strata deposited 400 million years ago. Such a large-scale cave system within this type of stratum is unique in China and quite rare in the world.

The Shuanghe Karst Cave system mainly includes the Gypsum Cave, Waterfall Cave, Lotus Cave, Guihua Cave (also known as Dafeng Cave), Shanwang Cave, Luojiao Cave, Lianwang Cave, Shanlin Cave, and Luohan Cave, each with distinct characteristics. The entire scenic area features caves that are adjacent to, connected with, layered above or below one another, and even nested within each other. Both water caves and dry caves are fascinating and mysterious, earning praise from geographers at home and abroad as a "Natural Karst Cave Museum." The temperature inside the caves remains constant year-round between 13°C and 15°C, making them ideal for tourism. Each cave contains various cave deposits, with rich and magical landscapes. The gypsum crystal flower cave, located in the middle section of the Shuanghe Cave system, spans 13 kilometers and features over 30,000 square meters of gypsum deposits. Nearly all the cave walls are covered with thick gypsum crystals. These crystals are crystal-clear, pure white, shimmering with silver light, immaculate, and untouched, creating an icy world within the cave. Some crystals resemble peonies, autumn chrysanthemums, magnolia, lotus flowers, with "peaks" and "butterflies" dancing among the blossoms. Such a vast expanse of gypsum crystals and such a spectacular cave scenery is unique in China and extremely rare in the world, making it a national treasure. Geographers from around the world have marveled at this as a precious geological relic and a shared treasure of humanity.

The Curled Stone Cave is 600 meters long, with curled stones distributed along over 500 meters of its interior. These stones are entirely transparent, exquisitely delicate, and shaped like palaces made of jade and silver trees adorned with crystals. They are masterpieces among limestone formations, and their large scale and unique shapes are exceptionally rare in China. Other caves also feature abundant sights such as stalagmites, stalactites, stone pillars, stone waterfalls, stone curtains, and stone flags formed from calcium carbonate deposits. These wonders are overwhelming and breathtaking. For example, the "Grape Valley" features dozens of meters of cave walls covered with gleaming stone grapes, the natural stone bridge hanging mysteriously from the ceiling of the Xiangshui Cave, and the lifelike stone lotuses in the lotus pond of the Lotus Cave—all of which have high ornamental value and are rare geological relics.

The Shuanghe Karst Cave system combines water features and biological landscapes. Many caves are complemented by waterfalls—both above ground and underground, perennial or seasonal. Dozens of cascading waterfalls form a rare natural spectacle. The Gypsum Cave is truly a waterfall cave, with a 300-meter-high secondary waterfall hanging like a silver chain at the cave entrance, stunningly beautiful. Between the Gypsum Cave and the Luojiao Cave lies a massive karst sinkhole called Tuanduwo, over 130 meters deep, with steep walls. A waterfall plunges directly to the bottom of the sinkhole and then disappears underground, like a dragon diving into the sea. Longtangzi is another deeply cut sinkhole developed in a karst region. It is surrounded by high mountains covered with dense evergreen broad-leaved forests. A waterfall cascades down from a mountain with a relative height difference of over 200 meters, dropping straight into Longtang, resembling a jade dragon descending the mountain. The pool is unfathomably deep and is home to giant salamanders. On the eastern side, an underground spring continuously flows out of one cave and slowly meanders into another cave to the west. The underground river winds through the caves, appearing and disappearing, sometimes flowing gently, sometimes swiftly, with crystal-clear water that shapes erosional features like flow marks and solution pans. The cave is also inhabited by cave-dwelling organisms such as leeches, tadpoles, shrimp, frogs, and mushrooms, adding vitality and liveliness to the serene cave landscape.

The karst landscapes and the serene, uniquely beautiful rural scenery outside the caves complement and organically integrate with the cave interiors, forming another unique highlight of the Shuanghe Karst Cave system. The external karst landscapes include sinkholes, tiankengs (giant dolines), peak clusters, and canyons, as well as tranquil scenes composed of streams, rice paddies, waterwheels, ancient bridges, cooking smoke, and blue skies. The two converging rivers in Tonggu Village—one clear and one murky—are collectively called the Yin-Yang River. On the mountain ridge at the confluence, ancient towering trees frame the hidden Tonggu Temple. The Shuanghe Cave area is rich in groundwater with numerous springs. For example, the Dayu Spring on the right bank of Chiyi Stream has three peculiarities: first, due to the presence of copper sulfate in the water, it appears blue. Where the spring water meets Chiyi Stream, you can see the spectacle of half the river green and half blue. Second, during hot and dry seasons, it becomes an intermittent spring, gushing out every hour. Third, numerous small and large scaled fish frequently emerge from the spring and swim toward Chiyi Stream...

In 2004, the Ministry of Land and Resources officially designated the Shuanghe Karst Cave system and its adjacent independent attractions—the Gongguan Bridge, Kuankuoshui Scenic Area, the Wenquan Hot Springs, the Furongjiang Canyon Scenic Area, and the Jinzhongshan Independent Attraction—as the "China Suiyang Shuanghe Cave National Geopark." The Shuanghe Cave Geopark spans six towns—Wenquan, Kuankuo, Qinggangtang, Huangyang, and Maoya—21 villages, and one market town (Wenquan Market Town), covering a total area of 318.6 square kilometers. A geopark is a unique natural area that centers around geological relics of special scientific significance and high value, integrated with other natural and cultural landscapes. The Shuanghe Cave National Geopark focuses on caves, relict plants, and their habitats, along with various other geological relics such as hot springs, karst gorges, and unique peaks. Geological relics are non-renewable natural heritage, and important ones are valuable natural resources and shared treasures of humanity. Establishing dedicated geoparks for their protection facilitates the sustainable use of geological relics. The establishment of the Shuanghe Cave National Geopark marks the arrival of a new spring for Suiyang’s tourism industry.

Wenquan Town: Located at the northern gateway of Suiyang County, Wenquan Town is approximately 85 kilometers from the historic city of Zunyi and about 42 kilometers from the county seat of Suiyang. To the east, it connects with Pingle Township of the same county, to the west with Wangcao Town, to the south with Shuangshi Township of Meitan County, and to the north with Tuping Town of Zheng’an County. Provincial Highway S207 runs through the town. The town covers a land area of over 168 square kilometers, including 26,000 mu of arable land. It governs seven administrative villages, 236 villager groups, and has a current population of 30,200, with a population density of 180 people per square kilometer. The town is primarily situated in high mountain and semi-high mountain areas, with low-lying valleys in the north... More detailed information about Wenquan Town++