Jiangyou 江油市

Setting and landscape

The land rises from southeast to northwest. Flat ground along the Fu River gives way to broad hilly valleys in the centre and south, and to the Longmen Mountains (龙门山) in the northwest, where Jiaoziding (轿子顶) reaches 2,356 metres. The Fu River runs 62.3 km through the city, and the Tongkou River (通口河), coming down from Beichuan, joins it at Qinglian (青莲镇).

History

A Jiangyou County was first set up in 505 under the Northern Wei, at present-day Nanba in Pingwu; the name is explained as the Fu River running as clear as oil. Jiangyou and Zhangming (彰明) counties were merged in 1958, the name Jiangyou returned in 1959, and the county became a city in 1988. The city government counts 32 surviving sites linked to Li Bai, among them Longxi Courtyard (陇西院), the Taibai Shrine (太白祠) and Mozhen Stream (磨针溪), and it counts the tale of grinding an iron pestle into a needle among the legends he left here; Deng Xiaoping wrote the inscription "李白故里" ("Li Bai's home town"). Jiangyou also claims to be the birthplace of Nezha (哪吒) culture, at Mount Cuiping (翠屏山), Mount Qianyuan (乾元山) and Jinguang Cave (金光洞), and a long gunpowder tradition: the Laojunshan saltpetre cave site (老君山硝洞遗址) is a nationally protected monument that the city describes as the largest ancient saltpetre cave site found in China.

What to see

Jiangyou has five 4A scenic areas: the Li Bai Memorial Hall (李白纪念馆), Li Bai's Former Residence (李白故居), Mount Douchuan (窦圌山), Foyedong (佛爷洞) and Zhonghua Dongtian (中华洞天). Mount Douchuan, in Wudu (武都镇), is named after Dou Chuan, a Tang official said to have lived there as a recluse. A line Li Bai wrote about it is carved on a tablet in the calligraphy of Yu Youren (于右任). Foyedong, in Dakang (大康镇), is a karst cave and national geopark with an underground river, the Tongtian (通天河), running through it, explored by bamboo raft; scenes of CCTV's Journey to the West were filmed there. The Yunyan Temple (云岩寺) and the Qinglinkou old buildings (青林口古建筑群) are national heritage sites.

Food and local products

Jiangyou pork intestines (江油肥肠) are made by a technique on Sichuan's provincial intangible-heritage list, as is the brewing of Zhongba mushroom soy sauce (中坝口蘑酱油). Jiangyou lily (江油百合) is a national geographical-indication product.

Getting oriented

Jiangyou lies 35 km from Mianyang and 160 km from Chengdu. The Baoji–Chengdu railway and the Xi'an–Chengdu high-speed line run through the city, with Jiangyou, Jiangyou North and Qinglian stations.

Highlights

• Li Bai's Former Residence 李白故居: One of the five 4A scenic areas; the city counts 32 surviving sites linked to the poet.
• Mount Douchuan 窦圌山: 4A mountain in Wudu named after the Tang recluse Dou Chuan, with Li Bai's verse carved in Yu Youren's hand.
• Foyedong 佛爷洞: 4A karst cave and national geopark with an underground river toured by bamboo raft.
• Laojunshan saltpetre cave site 老君山硝洞遗址: National heritage site linked to Jiangyou's gunpowder history.
• Jiangyou pork intestines 江油肥肠: Preparation technique on the provincial intangible-heritage list.