Yonghe County 永和县

Setting and landscape

This is loess plateau cut into ridges, mounds and more than 2,500 gullies, with nine mountains in three ranges running roughly parallel. The land falls from the northeast to the southwest, from 1,521 metres to under 512 metres. Besides the Yellow River on its western side, the main rivers are the Zhi (芝河) and the Sangbi (桑壁河). Jujube, walnut, apple and wild locust-tree plantings cover large areas. Xixian (隰县) lies to the east, Daning (大宁) to the south and Shilou (石楼) to the north.

History

The Western Han set up Huzhe County (狐讘县) here, and the name Yonghe dates from 598 under the Sui. Between February and May 1936 the Red Army crossed the Yellow River into Shanxi on its Eastern Expedition; Mao Zedong's headquarters stayed in Yonghe twice, for 13 days in all, and there the plan changed to a return west across the river. The county government also records a Communist Party branch founded at Lijiaya (李家崖) in 1926.

What to see

Qiankun Bend (乾坤湾), a loop of the Yellow River, became a national 4A scenic area in December 2021. At the head of the Zhi River, the county describes the Yonghe Terraces (永和梯田) as the largest terraced landscape in northern China. The Confucian Temple (永和文庙) on Dongmen Lane (东门巷) off the main street of the county town has been a national monument since 2013; the county dates its Dacheng Hall (大成殿) and the Dragon King Temple at Loushan (楼山龙王庙) to the Yuan. The Red Army Eastern Expedition Memorial Hall, which includes the house where Mao stayed, is a provincial monument, and Wanghai Temple (望海寺) is among the other sights the county lists.

Getting oriented

National Highway 341 and the Huozhou–Yonghe Expressway (霍永高速) cross the county from east to west, while provincial road S248 and the road along the Yellow River run north to south; the riverside "Yellow River No. 1" (黄河一号) tourist road links the county's sights. Yan'an (延安) is 138 kilometres away.

Highlights

• Qiankun Bend 乾坤湾: Yellow River meander; national 4A scenic area since December 2021.
• Yonghe Terraces 永和梯田: Terraced fields at the head of the Zhi River, described by the county as northern China's largest.
• Yonghe Confucian Temple 永和文庙: County-town temple, national monument since 2013.
• Red Army Eastern Expedition Memorial Hall 红军东征永和纪念馆: Provincial monument including the house where Mao stayed in 1936.