Things to do in Jingbian County

No. 2 of Best Things to Do in Northern Shaanxi

The Wave Valley Scenic Area

Wavy Valley is also known as Jingbian Red Sand Rock Canyon. It is part of the Jingbian Longzhou Danxia Landform and is located in Yanjiazhaizi in Longzhou Township, southeast of Jingbian County. The Wavy Valley is a red sandstone landform with a magical appearance and high scientific research value. The spectacular landscape naturally formed over hundreds of millions of years. It is rare in China and can compete with the Danxia landform in the United States!

No. 7 of Best Things to Do in Yulin

Tongwancheng Archaeological Site Park

Tongwancheng is located about 60 kilometers north of Jingbian County, Yulin City. Because the city wall is made of large sand, clay and lime, the walls are white, and the locals call it Baichengzi. And because it was built by the Southern Xiongnu "Helian Bobo" during the Eastern Jin Dynasty (founded in 413 AD), it is also known as Helian City. Most of this 1,600-year-old ancient city has been buried by yellow sand. What tourists see is only the ruins, and the public transportation to get here is not very convenient, so most of the people who can come here to play are Tourists very interested in history and frontiers. If you are also interested in historical attractions or frontier attractions, you can take the shuttle bus bound for Batu Bay in Inner Mongolia from Jingbian County, get off at Baicheng and walk for 15-20 minutes to reach the scenic spot. It should be noted that Baicheng probably did not have a shuttle bus back to the county seat in the afternoon (the bus back to the county seat in the afternoon would sometimes be cancelled), and only the next morning would there be a shuttle bus back to Jingbian County. Tongwancheng is the only relic of the capital of the Huns in history. The whole city consists of the inner city and the outer city, and the inner city is divided into the east city and the west city. All the existing ruins are the remains of rammed earth buildings. At that time, the materials for building the city were mainly three-compound soil composed of large sand, clay, lime and glutinous rice water. According to legend, the city of Tongwan was in charge of Gugan Ali, who was very brutal. If he could use an awl to penetrate the city wall by an inch, he would kill the builders. The city built with these raw materials has already stood in the Mu Us Desert in Saibei. for over a thousand years. When tourists come here, they can circle the city from the southeast corner, with a total length of about 5 kilometers. At present, the part that is higher than the ground and has not been buried by yellow sand is mostly in the southern section of the city wall. In the southern section of the city wall, if you walk from east to west, you can see the ruins of many enemy platforms. There is a high platform near these enemy platforms. This is the commanding height of the city, and it is also the Yong'an platform where "Helian Bobo" handled the state affairs. Going west from Yong'an Terrace, you can see a pier. The pier is about 30 meters high. It has become a paradise for birds. Many birds build their nests on the pier. It is said that the application for the World Cultural Heritage has already begun, and the Xiongnu Cultural Square is also planned to be built. If you like the original Tongwan City, it is recommended to visit it as soon as possible. There are no decent hotels near Tongwan City, you can stay in the homes of the surrounding villagers. The service facilities around the scenic spot are not very complete, and tourists can bring some drinking water and dry food by themselves.

No. 3 of Night Attractions in Yulin

Maowusu Desert

The Maowusu Desert is located between Yulin City, Shaanxi Province and Ordos (Ikezhao League), Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, covering an area of 42,200 square kilometers. The Great Wall runs through the southern edge of the desert from east to west. According to research, in ancient times, this area was a good pasture with fertile water plants and pleasant scenery. Later, due to climate change and war, the ground vegetation was completely lost, and sand was formed on the spot, forming the later desert (sand). There was a story of "Three Relocations to Yulin". Today is not what it used to be, and now Yulin has become a "famous city". There has been sand accumulation since the Tang Dynasty, and a vast desert has been formed in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. One of the big sand areas in China. It is located at 37°27.5′~39°22.5′ north latitude and 107°20′~111°30′ east longitude. It includes southern Ordos in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, northern sandy area in Yulin City, Shaanxi Province, and northeastern Yanchi County in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, with a total area of 39,800 square kilometers. The place name originated from Maowusu Village, Haizetan Township, Jingbian County, northern Shaanxi. The continuous sand belt from Mengjiashawo in Dingbian to Gaojiagou Township in Jingbian is called the small Mu Us sand belt, which is the range of Mu Us at the beginning. Since the sandy land along the Great Wall in northern Shaanxi is continuously distributed with the sandy land in the south of Ordos (Ikezhao League) in Inner Mongolia, the sandy land in the southeastern Ordos Plateau and along the Great Wall in northern Shaanxi is collectively referred to as "Mu Us Sand Land".

Wave Valley Water Danxia

Shuishang Danxia is a type of natural landform. In Jingbian County, the geological resources are rich and diverse, forming a unique and rare landscape. This area features numerous valuable geological relics such as linear valleys, alley valleys, and sheer cliffs, along with natural resources like streams, sandy areas, water system reservoirs, and reed marshes. These elements create a distinctive wavy sandstone landform, also known as "Shuishang Danxia." It combines the landscape of the Wave Valley in the USA, the features of Antelope Canyon, and the grandeur of the Grand Canyon, offering breathtaking and stunning scenery.

Danxia Landform Shiguang Rock

The Longzhou Danxia Landform Scenic Spot is located in the northwest of Shaanxi Province, southwest of Yulin City, and Longzhou Township, one kilometer southeast of Jingbian County. It is one of the "50 Scenic Spots of the Yellow River in China". Natural scenery, colorful folk customs, its unique geological landforms and peculiar appearance are known as the wonders of China's Wave Valley. At the 2018 China Yellow River Tourism Conference, the Longzhou Danxia Landform Scenic Spot was rated as "50 Scenic Spots of the Yellow River in China".

Longzhou Fort Ming Dynasty Great Wall Site

Longzhou Danxia Geopark

No. 4 of Best Things to Do in Shanxi

The Hukou Waterfall Scenic Area

The Hukou Waterfall Scenic Area is located in the Jin-Shaan Grand Canyon in the middle reaches of the Yellow River and is the Shanxi-side section for viewing Hukou Waterfall. As the Yellow River rushes here, its surface suddenly narrows from several hundred meters wide to just a few dozen meters. The water, laden with silt, churns and pours down like water being poured into a giant kettle, which is how the name "Hukou" (Kettle Mouth) came to be. This is a rare yellow waterfall on the Yellow River, with muddy waves surging skyward and a roar like thunder, displaying magnificent momentum. The attraction is located on the east side of the waterfall, where the bank is relatively low, allowing visitors to look up and take in the full panorama of the Yellow River plunging downward. Below the waterfall, mist rises and fills the air, appearing like smoke or clouds from afar and creating the wondrous sight known as "smoke rising from the water"; on clear days, sunlight refracts through the mist to form a rainbow arching across the river, called "rainbow reaching the heavens." Within the attraction, Dragon Cave is a natural stone cave; following the stone steps down leads to a viewing platform close to the waterfall, where you can look up as the river pours down from above—an ideal spot to feel the force of the waterfall up close. Downstream from the waterfall, the Ten-Mile Dragon Trough is a deep channel formed by the river's long-term erosion of the riverbed; in the dry season, the trough floor is wide and flat, and ancients once used this terrain to haul boats along the bank, leaving behind the unique scene known as "sailing on dry land." Further downstream is Mengmen Mountain, where two huge rocks in the river split the Yellow River in two before the streams merge again; carved on the rock face are the four characters "Wo Zhen Kuang Liu" (Resting Here, Quelling the Raging Flow). The view of Hukou Waterfall is distinctive in each of the four seasons. Every year between April and May, peach blossoms bloom and the ice melts, coinciding with the "March peach blossom flood," when the abundant water volume makes the waterfall particularly spectacular. From September to November, the air is crisp in fall, and rainbows often appear in the mist, a phenomenon known as the "Hukou fall wind." Water volume is greater in spring and fall, and the sound of the water striking the rocks is like thunder, making these the best periods to admire the waterfall. The image of Hukou Waterfall once appeared on the CNY 50 banknote of the fourth series of the renminbi, making it a widely recognized classic symbol of Yellow River culture.

No. 8 of Best Things to Do in Shaanxi

Hukou Waterfall tourist area of the Yellow River

The Hukou Waterfall tourist area of the Yellow River is located on the riverbed of the Yellow River in the Qin-Jin Grand Canyon, where the provinces of Shanxi and Shaanxi face each other across the river. The main stream of the Yellow River, originally hundreds of m wide, suddenly narrows to dozens of m and plunges into a deep trough with a drop of 20–30 m, resembling water being poured from a giant pot—hence the name "Hukou" (Pot Mouth). Due to the large amount of sediment carried by the river, the waterfall presents a rare golden-yellow view: the turbid waves roar down with a sound like distant thunder rolling through the valley, while the rising mist lingers before the cliff, earning the nickname "smoke rising from the water." On sunny days, sunlight casts a rainbow over the waterfall, known as "a rainbow playing in the water." The mist may drench visitors even without wind or rain, creating the wonder called "rainfall under a clear sky." Hukou waterfall is regarded as the symbol of the "soul of the Yellow River" and the spirit of the Chinese nation. In 1938, when poet Guang Weiran crossed the Yellow River, he witnessed the roaring waves of Hukou and the boatmen's chants, which inspired him to create the now-legendary Yellow River Cantata. Liang Heng's essay of the same name was selected for middle school Chinese textbooks, and the back of the fourth series CNY 50 banknote also features this scene. Many first learned about it through textbooks and currency before visiting in person. In the past, cargo ships had to leave the water and bypass the waterfall here, leaving behind the maritime memory of "sailing on dry land." The scenery here varies with the seasons: In early spring, the upstream ice melts and the water level rises sharply, coinciding with the blooming of mountain peach blossoms on both banks, known as the "March peach blossom flood." In midsummer, the rainy season brings abundant water, with muddy waves towering into the sky. After fall begins, the rainy season subsides, and the water becomes high and steady. As the fall breeze sweeps by, rainbows often appear, earning the name "Hukou autumn breeze." In deep winter, layers of ice form along the banks, and overflow freezes into inverted ice peaks, glistening under the sunlight, creating the spectacular "upside-down ice peaks." The viewing platform on the Shaanxi side stretches along the cliff top on the western bank, offering a commanding view of the "thousand-mile Yellow River funneled into one pot" and the ten-mile-long Dragon Trough below the waterfall. During high-water seasons, the mist is heavy, and clothes get soaked quickly, so remember to protect your camera and phone; the boardwalk is slippery, so watch your step while walking and taking photos.

Shenshu Jian

There are about 300 ancient willows in the sacred tree stream, most of which are unique and have a history of 600 years.