Qikou Scenic Area

Qikou stands on the bank of the Yellow River, 48 kilometres south of Lin County. It takes its name from Datong Shoal, the second largest river shoal on the Yellow River.

Qikou rose to prosperity during the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty. For more than 200 years afterwards, it developed into a renowned commercial hub in northern China. Its five-li-long main street was lined with shops and crowded with merchants. Wooden boats shuttled back and forth on the Yellow River, while camel bells echoed through mountain valleys. In the 170 years before the construction of the Beijing-Baotou Railway, over 500 wooden vessels docked at Qikou Wharf every day. Large quantities of grain, oil, furs and medicinal herbs were shipped here from Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia, Suiyuan and Inner Mongolia. Meanwhile, cotton cloth, silk, tea and porcelain were transported overland from Taiyuan and Fenzhou via the "Xiangyang Gorge" to Qikou for resale across the vast northwest.

Local folk sayings go: "No amount of goods can fill Qikou, no cargo can empty Wucheng." Another ballad from Wenshui County runs: "At Qingdingtou and Nanyukou, camels are harnessed and sent straight to Qikou." More than 500 camels were raised here, a vivid testimony to its former prosperity. Truly, it was "a small metropolis on both land and water, the foremost town along the winding Yellow River".

In 2003, the Shanxi Provincial Government officially designated Qikou as a scenic tourist zone. Key attractions include Datong Shoal on the Yellow River, the ancient town of Qikou, folk dwellings in Xiwan, Lijiashan and Zhaizishan, Black Dragon Temple, the Monument to Chairman Mao’s Eastward Crossing of the Yellow River, and natural stone carvings along the Yellow River Gorge.

Datong Shoal lies 500 metres southwest of the ancient Qikou Street, where the Qiushui River flows into the Yellow River. It is the largest shoal in the Shaanxi-Shanxi Grand Canyon.

When the Yellow River reaches this section, the river channel suddenly narrows to roughly 100 metres wide. Water surges down a 3,000-metre sloped channel with a drop of nearly 10 metres. Torrential rapids churn up muddy waves, roaring loudly for miles, stunning every visitor. One hundred metres downstream, the river widens and calms down, forming a natural sandy bathing beach stretching for one kilometre.

The streets and shops of ancient Qikou represent classic mountain architecture of the Qing Dynasty. Following the contour of Wohu Mountain, the main street runs west along the Qiushui River and then turns north along the Yellow River, winding repeatedly. What makes it even more distinctive is the back street: merely over 200 metres long, yet it twists eighteen times. All buildings were erected strictly to fit the terrain. Streets are paved with flagstones; every shop features plank doors and high stone platforms at the entrance. South of the main street lie the Second Street and Third Street, each shorter than the previous one, forming a stepped architectural layout.

Historical records show large-scale construction of shops began in the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty. By the Daoguang reign, more than 60 stores had opened in the town. By the fifth year of the Republic of China, the number had grown to 204, run by merchants not only from Lin County but also from Baotou, Hequ, Suide, Fugu, Mengmen, Fenyang, Xiaoyi, Jiexiu and Pingyao.

Black Dragon Temple, first built in the Ming Dynasty, perches on Wohu Mountain in Qikou. The magnificent complex clings precariously to the steep cliff. Its opera tower boasts extraordinary acoustic effects: without any loudspeakers, singing can be heard ten li away. Climbing to the top, you can overlook jagged peaks, the hundred-li stretch of the Yellow River and the whole valley.

This was once a vital land-and-water transport hub for trade linking Suiyuan, Baotou, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Henan. Today it is an ideal spot for Yellow River rafting and white-water surfing over the dangerous shoals.

Xiwan Folk Dwellings form a large architectural complex dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties. Nestled between mountains and rivers, the compound covers an area of about 30,000 square metres, stretching 250 metres long and 120 metres wide. It was enclosed by a village wall over two metres high (now partially ruined). Two horizontal streets and five vertical lanes neatly connect the whole compound. Small side doors link every courtyard, so visitors can wander through the entire village starting from a single courtyard. It truly deserves the description: "The whole village is one compound, and each compound forms a mountain hamlet."

These courtyard houses are typical of Lüliang style, steeped in profound historical culture and strong loess plateau characteristics. Forty courtyards remain largely intact. The layout is well-organized with efficient flood control and drainage systems. Particularly exquisite are the wood, brick and stone carvings on main gates, flower gates, screen walls and halls. Stone plaques lining the lanes each carry unique charm, making this an invaluable site for studying folk customs and Ming-Qing architecture along the Yellow River Basin.

Located five kilometres south of Qikou, Lijiashan Folk Dwellings were constructed by the Li clan during the Ming and Qing dynasties. The buildings are mostly cave dwellings stacked tier upon tier along the hillside in neat order. Most are courtyard houses with extended eaves in front of the caves. Scattered across the loess slope, the larger quadrangles were built with finely polished blue bricks laid tightly together, with rigorous attention to shape, style and artistic detail. Elaborate carvings of figures, landscapes, flowers, birds, fish, insects and beasts decorate screen walls, gate towers, eaves and cave doors and windows, boasting high artistic value.

The renowned painter Wu Guanzhong listed Lijiashan alongside Zhangjiajie in Hunan and the Shanxi-Shaanxi-Inner Mongolia Loess Plateau as his three major discoveries. He commented: "Houses like these can hardly be found anywhere else in the world."

Twenty kilometres upstream along the Yellow River from Qikou, near Kaiyang Village, sheer cliffs rise on the east bank. Centuries of river erosion and wind weathering have carved a fantastic natural gallery of stone reliefs covering roughly 10,000 square metres. These natural sculptures are masterpieces crafted by nature, with abstract images of mountains, rivers, birds and animals that spark boundless imagination. The whole landscape is spectacular beyond description.