Qingtongxia Dam

Qingtongxia Dam

Qingtongxia Dam

In 1958, construction began on the Qingtongxia Dam, the second major water control project in the Yellow River basin. In 1960, a 42.7-meter-high, 697-meter-long dam was built across the Yellow River at Qingtongxia. Along with it, China’s only pier-type hydroelectric power station with an installed capacity of 305,000 kilowatts was completed, forming a canyon-style reservoir with a capacity of 6 million cubic meters and a backwater length of 5 kilometers. The reservoir allows visitors to go boating and enjoy the natural scenery of the Yellow River in northwest China.

Opened to the public in 1985.

Standing on the majestic dam and looking around, to the east lies the solemn Buddhist sacred site — the Niushou Mountain Temple Complex; to the west stands the rare "One Hundred and Eight Pagodas" — also known as Mu Guiying’s General Platform (a pagoda cluster, actually a Buddhist commemorative structure); to the south is the vast "high gorges and flat lake" — the reservoir area. This is the grand and spectacular large-scale water conservancy hub project located in the Qingtongxia Scenic Area, integrating power generation, irrigation, and flood control. Known as the "Pearl of the Frontier," it is the Qingtongxia Dam.