Kuandian Manchu Autonomous County 宽甸满族自治县

Setting and landscape

The county lies among the Changbai Mountains (长白山), with Ji'an (集安) to the northeast, Fengcheng (凤城) to the west and Huanren County (桓仁县) to the north. Winters are long, cold and very dry and most of the year's rain falls in July and August. Boron is the best-known mineral: the county produces about half of China's output, which is why the area is sometimes called 'boron sea' (硼海).

History

The Dandong culture and tourism bureau dates the Hushan Great Wall (虎山长城) to 1469, when the Liaodong deputy commander Han Bin (韩斌) had it built against Jurchen raids; it marks the eastern starting point of the Ming wall. On 25 October 1894 Japanese troops crossed pontoon bridges from Uiju (义州) and attacked Hushan, the first land battle of the First Sino-Japanese War fought inside China. The defending general Ma Jinxu (马金叙) held the hill with five or six hundred men, and more than 500 defenders died.

Kuandian became a county in 1876 under Fenghuang Subprefecture (凤凰厅), came under Dandong in 1965 and became a Manchu autonomous county in September 1989.

What to see

At Hushan, the hill takes its name from its shape, like a crouching tiger, and gun emplacement remains still stand on the wall. At its foot, the spot called Yibukua (一步跨), 'one stride', is one of the closest points between China and North Korea.

Tianqiaogou National Forest Park (天桥沟国家森林公园) has four scenic zones, including Lotus Peak (莲花峰) and Red Maple Valley (红枫谷), and more than 20 sites of the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army. Qingshangou (青山沟), a national scenic area between the Changbai range and the Yalu river system, groups Qingshan Lake (青山湖), waterfall gorges and Manjiazhai (满家寨) into one area that pairs mountain scenery with Manchu folk culture. Huabo Mountain (花脖山), 1,336.1 m, is described by Liaoshen Evening News as the highest peak in Liaoning.

At Hekou (河口) on the Yalu, the Broken Bridge (河口断桥), first called Qingcheng Bridge (清城桥), was the earliest road bridge across the river and one of three crossing points of the Chinese People's Volunteers. Hekou also has a large peach orchard, and Hekou village (河口村) is where the song 'In the Place Where Peach Blossoms Bloom' (在那桃花盛开的地方) originated. The Shanghekou station (上河口车站旧址), built in November 1950, served as a temporary command post when China entered the Korean War.

Highlights

• Hushan Great Wall 虎山长城: Built in 1469 as the eastern starting point of the Ming wall; scene of the first land battle of the 1894 war inside China.
• Tianqiaogou National Forest Park 天桥沟国家森林公园: Four scenic zones and more than 20 Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army sites.
• Qingshangou 青山沟: National scenic area pairing lake and waterfall scenery with Manchu folk culture.
• Hekou Broken Bridge 河口断桥: The earliest road bridge across the Yalu and a Volunteer Army crossing point.