Zhuoshui Ancient Town and Puhua Underground River 濯水古镇与蒲花暗河

About Zhuoshui Ancient Town and Puhua Underground River

Zhuoshui town covers 105 square kilometres in southern Qianjiang District, with 68 per cent forest cover, and is designated a China Historic and Cultural Town and a China Featured Town. The People's Daily report describes the old town as having originated at the end of the Tang dynasty and flourished in the Ming and Qing, its street layout still well preserved, and calls it one of the most famous old towns in southeastern Chongqing. Its landmark is a 658-metre covered bridge across the Apeng River, which the report calls the 'world's number-one wind-and-rain bridge'; it has won a Chinese lighting-engineering design award and a place among Chongqing's 'ten landmark cards'. Municipal-level protected buildings in the old town include the Gong family baoting, the Fan family courtyard, Guangshun Hao, Wang Benshan's former residence, the Wang family workshop and the Yu family courtyard, and the report lists a morality stele and a stone memorial archway among the core sights inside the scenic area; the town's intangible heritage includes Houhe old opera, mung-bean noodles and Shijituo earthenware.

The Puhua underground river's giant-sinkhole landscape is known as 'Heaven Has Eyes', and its natural bridges are described as 'water-borne natural three bridges', where 'one glance takes in three bridges'. The Puhua leisure agriculture park connects the old town and the underground river. In building toward its AAAAA rating, the scenic area planned 33 key construction projects and completed 1.06 billion yuan of investment, 90 per cent of the projects built in under a year, and it has also been given the titles 'China rhyme-culture scenic area' and 'China couplet-culture ancient town'; the permanent award base for the 'China Tujia Literature Award' is located at Zhuoshui.

What to look for

• The Zhuoshui Canglang Bridge, the 658-metre covered bridge across the Apeng River that the report calls the 'world's number-one wind-and-rain bridge'.
• The morality stele and stone memorial archway among the sights the report lists inside the scenic area.
• Municipal-protected historic buildings including the Gong family baoting, the Fan family courtyard and Wang Benshan's former residence.
• The Puhua underground river's giant sinkholes ('Heaven Has Eyes') and its natural bridges.

Location & getting there

Getting to Zhuoshui Ancient Town and Puhua Underground River

Identify the main visitor approach and any separately managed houses, museums or performances. Ask before entering residential spaces or photographing residents.

• Search for 濯水古镇与蒲花暗河 with 重庆市 and 黔江区.