Explore the region
About Danjiangkou Reservoir Viewing Area
The dam stands about 800 metres downstream of the point where the Dan River joins the Han, the Yangtze's largest tributary, and was one of the large water-control works that China surveyed, designed and built itself in the early decades of the People's Republic. It was conceived mainly for flood control and irrigation, and only later took on the task of sending water north. At normal storage level the reservoir covers around 1,050 square kilometres with a shoreline of more than 4,600 kilometres; 453 square kilometres of that water and 2,313 kilometres of that shoreline lie inside Danjiangkou City. Mean annual inflow is given as 39.48 billion cubic metres and storage as 29.05 billion cubic metres.
The lake reshaped the district that surrounds it. When the project began in 1958 the old county seat was flooded outright and the present city was rebuilt beside the dam; the county was formally reorganised as Danjiangkou City in August 1983. Two phases of resettlement moved 260,000 people, equivalent to 57 per cent of the city's present population, and put 455 square kilometres of land under water. Since the middle route started operating on 12 December 2014 more than 70 billion cubic metres have been transferred north. Water quality is tightly managed and has stayed at national Class II or better, and freshwater jellyfish, taken locally as an indicator of clean water, are now regularly recorded in the reservoir.
What to look for
- The Danjiangkou Dam itself, the largest water-control structure in the Han River basin and one of the city's graded scenic areas.
- The confluence of the Dan and Han rivers roughly 800 metres upstream of the dam, which gives the city its name.
- The South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Memorial Park, built in the city in recent years.
- The reservoir shoreline itself, over 2,300 kilometres of it within the city limits, with water levels that change through the year.
Location & getting there
Getting to Danjiangkou Reservoir Viewing Area
Confirm the visitor entrance and which boat or walking routes operate on your date. Rainfall, water levels and weather can change access.
- Search for 丹江口水库开放观景区 with 十堰市 and 丹江口市.
Find Danjiangkou Reservoir Viewing Area
丹江口水库开放观景区 · 丹江口市
No reliable map pin yet: search by the Chinese name.
Sources & visit information
The linked sources support the identity and background described in this introduction. Opening hours, admission, activity availability and exact arrival arrangements have not been comprehensively checked. Confirm current visitor information with the venue; the original catalogue locality and editorial review flag are retained.