Grottes et karsts de Chine
Sur les traces de Xu Xiake

http://www.karst.edu.cn/cave/fengyu.htm

http://www.karst.edu.cn/en/index.php?c=article&a=view&id=160

Karst Landscape and Tourism Exploitation around Fengyu Cave, China

JIANG Zhongcheng

(Institute of Karst Geology, Guilin, China 541004)

 

1. Location and space structure of Fengyu Cave

Fengyu cave is located in Shanhe, passing through nine karst peaks, 16 kilometers from Lipu county town where 110 km away from Guilin of Guangxi Autonomous Region(Fig. 1 and 2).

Fig.2, Fengyu Cave in Lipu county

The cave has a whole length of 5.3 kilometers and a subterranean river course of 4.1 km long. The main cave passage is usually 6-10 m wide and 3-10 m high, with many large chambers and 10 branches.The biggest chamber is more than 25,500 square meters, with a cave height of 36 m.

The subterranean river comes from a surface stream , 3 km away from Fengyu cave entrance, originates from the southern Dayao Mountains which consists of sandstone. The stream heads into underground in the boundary between sandstone and the Devonian limestone.

The surface stream connects Fengyu subterranean river there. From Dongan to Doli, Shanhe River can also recharge the subterranean river by karst fissures and make its water discharge increase gradually. The underground river has a complex structure, with many ceil windows and exits. Besides the streams, Some sinkholes on the surface recharge the subterranean river some water too. The underground river in the cave is about 5-6 m wide, but the water depth and discharge are quite different in different parts. In Ganghu cave, the first original entrance of Fengyu cave, it is about 0.3 m deep and has a discharge of about 0.5 m3/s , and in the Dabayan cave, exit of the underground river, it is more than 1m deep and has a discharge of 1.6 m3/s. By the way, there is a plenty of red Fengyu fish in the underground river, and the cave takes its name from the fish.

 

2. Karst landscape around Fengyu Cave

This is a beautiful cave, with a lot of fresh chemical deposits. The stalagmites are young and grow quickly. The dating data of one stalagmite show that it grew 2 m needed only about 20 thousand years (From 25,000 to 3,000 year ago) . Most of the stalagmites are slender. For example, a stalagmite, named Dinghaishenzhen (marvelous needle)is 9.8 m high but only about 15 cm in diameter( Fig.3). The colorful slender stalagmite forests make the cave be very fascinating.

The lower part of Fengyu cave has already been developed for tourism since 1994. A new entrance was opened( Fig.4).

Outside Fengyu cave it is a Fengcong-valley. The high stone peaks or cliffs, usually about 300 m high, are on the banks of Shanhe river. Behind the cliffs there are typical Fengcong depressions(Fig.5) which are orderly, usually with closed polygonal patterns. Shanhe river is a tributary of Lipu river, about 25 km long.It is wide but seasonal. In summer, there is big flood water, but in winter, there is no water in the upper part of the river.

Moon hill, on the way back to Guilin, about 40 km away from Lipu town, is also known as the bright moon peaks, as there is a 50-meter wide tunnel on the top of the hill which looks like a bright moon when the night falls. Walking on the admiring moon path, you can see the "moon" appealing like a crescent moon, or half moon, or full moon, depending on where you stand. After climbing about eight hundred steps, you will arrive at the moon cave in which there are hang stalactites of various shapes. Some like Buddha? warrior attendants; some like rabbits; and some like the goddess of moon, creating the scene of the moon palace in Chinese legends. When you look around, you get the whole view of the surroundings area; the mountains, rivers, fields and peasant houses.

one kilometer north of the moon hill, there is a famous great banyan, seventeen meters high, seven meters in girth and covering an area of 1,000 m2, which was planted over 1,300 years ago .

Across the bank where the great banyan stands, is a grotesque rock cave known as penetrating cave, in front of which one river flows by.

After an 40-kilometer bus riding from Lipu, you arrive at Yangshuo, set up from the Sui dynasty in 590 A. D. , whose town is surrounded by one circle of peaks after another with its building scattered among them, so its inhabitants seem to live in a lotus flower.

Perhaps the most typical Fenglin( peak-forest) karst landscape in the world is around Yangshuo. The peaks are usually more than 50 m high and very steep. They look like towers( Fig. 6). 

3. Tourism exploitation and stuiation of Fengyu Cave

There are four parts in this tourism area. The first one is dry land scene inside the cave, with a whole course of 2.2 kilometers. There are many brilliant and magnificent stalagmites, stalactites stone curtains in the cave, looking like the pagoda kingdom, the paradise and fairyland etc.. The second one is a underground river sight-seeing by boat, with a total length of 3 kilometers inside the cave. Boarding a boat at the river, you will feel the both banks of the river strange, mystery and interesting and stimulate a memorable impression. The third part is in a big hall near the natural entrance of the cave. It is a public place of entertainment. People can drink, sing and dance inside the cave. The fourth one is for the national amorous feelings in the water playground outside Fengyu Cave in the evening. It has Yao national features. Yao Minority people's performance can attract many tourists to join them(Photo 4).

Photo 5 The Yao nationality  activity

Now Fengyu Cave becomes a modern comhensive tourism spot. There are not only many tourism activities but also a lot of modern facilaties. A tree star hotel, about 200 rooms with air conditioners stands outside the cave. A new automatic remote light and sterio system are inside the cave, which make cave scenary spots more fasinating and mysterious.

 

4. Remarks for tourism of Fengyu Cave

All tourists from home and abroad think Fengyu Cave is a wonderful tourism cave after they visited it. Some people say “ I never saw so mavellous cave like this before”. Mr.He Jingzhi, a famous poet and former minister of Culture Ministry of China, called Fengyu Cave as the best cave in Asia. Prof. Yuan Daoxian

, a famous karstologist in the world and academician of China Science Academy, and Prof.Zhu Xuewen, Chairman of Cave Association of China, think that Fengyu Cave is a first-class tourism cave in the world. And Prof. D.C. Ford, the former chairman of Cave Association, wrote down that,

Fengyu Cave is a new bright pearl of Guilin tourism district, and it makes tourism of karst landscape in Guilin perfect and faultless..

President of the board of Fengyu Cave Ltd.: Mr. LI Keqiang

General manager of Fengyu Cave Ltd.: Mr. YANG Jinhua

Scientific consultant: Dr.JIANG Zhongcheng

Tel: (0086-773-) Fax: 0086-773- Post Code: 546600

E-mail: Zh-jiang@yahoo.com