Dinosaur Valley

The Yijie River Canyon is located one kilometre west of Zhijin Cave and divided into an upper section and a lower section.

The lower section is the "One Line with Three Troughs" scenic zone. The river flows out from Fengyue Cave, runs through a stretch of canyon, and then passes through the 600-metre-long Swallow Cave. It plunges more than 50 metres over an in-cave dam into a vertical shaft over 200 metres high. Afterwards, the water flows beneath a natural bridge ranking among the tallest and widest in the country, and empties into an enormous sinkhole with a total volume of 72 million cubic metres. The steep rift valley features mottled cliff faces that look just like painted murals. This section ranks first nationwide in terms of scale and scenery, and the river finally disappears into a ponor. The whole lower section stretches 2 kilometres.

Swallow Cave reaches a height of 100 metres and a width of 50 to 60 metres. Tens of thousands of swallows roost here, flying out at dawn and returning at dusk, forming a spectacular natural scene. The crevices and slopes are covered with well-preserved primeval vegetation, including many rare plant species such as the dove tree, a Class I national protected plant. Other attractive scenic spots here include Horse Washing Pond, Yalong Mountain, Immortal Rock, Three Caves Facing the Sun and Sister Natural Bridges.

The upper section of Dinosaur Valley extends 7 kilometres, following the river upstream from Fengyue Cave to the completed Luoshuidong Hydropower Station. This river valley is also a typical karst rift valley lined with fantastic peaks, and its vegetation remains intact. Two kilometres up from Fengyue Cave stands a unique isolated peak, on which Yangguan Fort was built by the Yi people of ancient Shuixi in the Ming Dynasty as a military stronghold taking advantage of the precipitous terrain.

The Gaojiaqiao River joins the upper-middle reach, and the Sanjia River flows into the lower reach. Both rivers wind through towering peaks and deep gorges. The Sanjia River Canyon is particularly striking, as the river passes through two caves in succession. Lying beside the tourist highway connecting Guiyang, Anshun and Zhijin Cave, it boasts eye-catching sights including the Banner-and-Drum Welcome and Layered Green Ridges.