Pai Ting Waterfall

Pai Ting Waterfall

Pai Ting Waterfall is located 15 kilometers south of the county town and is the widest waterfall within Danzhai County. It is also the only major waterfall in eastern Guizhou, earning the title “The First Waterfall of Eastern Guizhou.”

Walking into the Pai Ting Miao Village, which has over a hundred households, and following a clear stream downstream for just about one kilometer, before you even have time to prepare, the stream suddenly disappears. As you approach, you see the creek plunge down into a waterfall over 40 meters high.

The rock wall on the right side of the waterfall curves inward at the bottom and juts outward at the top, hanging suspended in midair. At the top of the cliff, several farmhouses are built above the lush, tree-shaded precipice.

During spring and summer when the water is high, the thunderous roar of the waterfall can be heard from several miles away, and mist sprays high into the air. Approaching the waterfall, the river water plunges down from the edge of the cliff, creating a spectacle of mist, rainbows, and thunderous sounds. The flowers and grass along both banks dance in the wind. The spray and foam stirred up by the waterfall rise dozens of meters high, drifting through the air and enveloping the surroundings in a fine misty rain. After the rain clears, the two-tiered waterfall cascades vertically into the shallow pool, splashing water and producing a rainbow-colored mist, creating a dreamlike, poetic scene.

In the dry season, the waterfall resembles a gentle Miao girl adorned with strings of pearls. At this time, the stream is as clear as a mirror, flowing with graceful undulations, with small fish swimming within, and beautiful flowers and birdsongs along the bank. Walking along the clear stream feels like strolling through a painting. The exposed yellow cliffs are deep and ancient, with strands of white water flowing through them. In the early morning, the surrounding mountains and Miao villages are shrouded in thin mist, with peaks overlapping in layers, some bright and some dark, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, presenting a thousand wondrous views all at once.

Pai Ting Grand Waterfall is divided into two levels, with the second level being 15 meters high. The ingenuity of nature has carved out two powerful drops in less than a hundred meters of river, creating this natural wonder. In summer, if you take a “farmer’s bath” midway down the waterfall—stripping off your clothes and immersing yourself in nature—you’ll feel as if you’re on a dreamlike journey, a kind of heavenly joy you can’t experience in the city. In the evening, when farmers return home carrying firewood and leading cattle, you’ll witness a scene straight out of a painting: “woodcutters and ploughmen coming and going within a painted screen.”