Baishuizhai Scenic Area 白水寨

About Baishuizhai Scenic Area

Baishuizhai Scenic Area (白水寨) is a mountain scenic area of about 170 km² in Paitan town (派潭镇), Zengcheng District (增城区), Guangzhou (广州), whose centrepiece is a 428.5 m waterfall, with a stairway of 9,999 steps laid out around it.

The Tropic of Cancer runs through the area, which borders Shimen (石门) and Nankunshan (南昆山) national forest parks. Nine peaks rise above 1,000 m; the highest is Niuguzhang (牛牯嶂) at 1,088 m. The area has virgin forest, shallow-water wetlands and lakes set in the gorges, which the Zengcheng District government describes as rare in Guangdong. Guangdong lists it as a provincial scenic area, and it holds a national 4A rating.

The centrepiece is the Baishui Xian waterfall (白水仙瀑), which drops 428.5 m from the top of the 828 m Baishuizhai Mountain; the district government calls it the waterfall with the greatest drop in mainland China. Local legend takes it for the Immortal Maiden He (何仙姑), one of the Eight Immortals (八仙). Its source is Xiangu Tianchi (仙姑天池), "the Immortal Maiden's Lake", which is the Baishuizhai Reservoir (白水寨水库); its name comes from a legend of the tears she shed, homesick, after becoming an immortal.

The stairway, called the "First Stairway South of Heaven" (天南第一梯), climbs 6.6 km from the southern entrance over three mountains to the road on the south side of Qixian Lake (七仙湖), linking two upland lakes and the main sights. It is divided into six named stages. At step 699, Shuanglonghui (双龙汇, "Two Dragons Meet") is where two mountain streams join and fall into a green pool. Four waterfall viewing platforms stand at steps 1,299, 1,499, 2,199 and 3,299; the first has a turtle-shaped rock inscribed "神龟游" ("the divine turtle roams"). A 2 km boardwalk of heavy ship timber follows the streams and falls from the Shanshui park (山水乐园) up to the platform at step 1,499. Xianyuan Park (仙源公园) sits at step 4,099 on the south side of the reservoir, and Qixian Lake Park, around the Qixingdun Reservoir (七星墩水库), lies at the top of the climb.

What to look for

• Baishui Xian waterfall (白水仙瀑), a 428.5 m drop from Baishuizhai Mountain
• The 9,999-step "First Stairway South of Heaven" (天南第一梯), 6.6 km over three mountains
• Shuanglonghui (双龙汇) at step 699, where two streams meet in a waterfall and green pool
• Four waterfall viewing platforms at steps 1,299, 1,499, 2,199 and 3,299
• The ship-timber boardwalk beside the streams, 2 km up to step 1,499
• Xiangu Tianchi (仙姑天池), the reservoir lake that feeds the waterfall
• Niuguzhang (牛牯嶂), the area's highest peak at 1,088 m

Location & getting there

Getting to Baishuizhai Scenic Area

• Search for 白水寨 with 广州市 and 增城区.