Northern Shaanxi Xintianyou: All the Yellow River Gathered in One Pot

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Northern Shaanxi Xintianyou: All the Yellow River Gathered in One Pot

The ten-thousand-li Yellow River flows from the foot of Bayankala Mountain on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, passing through ninety-nine bends, and enters the Qin-Jin Grand Canyon. With mountains on both sides of the canyon, the river's width narrows from over 400 meters to 40-50 meters, confining the Yellow River water into a narrow dragon channel. As recorded in the "Tribute of Yu" in the Book of Documents: "The river whirls as if in a pot." All the Yellow River is gathered in one pot; the water converges here, contracts into a single torrent, rushes and roars, plunges into a deep pool, splashing turbulent waves, like yellow water boiling in a giant pot, its sound like thunder in a clear sky.

The Hukou Waterfall presents different landscapes in different seasons. In spring, ice melts and rivers open, majestic and mighty; in summer, yellow water surges, muddy waves empty into the sky; in autumn, hundred-zhang flying waterfalls, misty rain; in winter, a silver-clad world, a fairy tale. But note, during the flood season around early autumn or when sluicing, the scenic area may close. In the summer of 2014, I chose a day tour of the Yellow River Hukou from Yan'an on the Shaanxi side.

July 2014, Hukou Waterfall ticket 91 yuan.

Taking a bus from Yan'an, passing by the Nanniwan Great Production Exhibition Hall, but no time to visit.

In July, apples are on the market; northern Shaanxi is a high-quality apple producing area.

The Hukou Waterfall on the Shaanxi side of the Yellow River is located in the Qin-Jin Grand Canyon riverbed, 35 kilometers from Yichuan (belonging to Yan'an). It is the second largest waterfall in China, the largest yellow waterfall in the world, the only submerged waterfall in the country, a moving waterfall, a waterfall with ever-changing scenery in all seasons, and a waterfall rich in cultural connotations.

Hukou Waterfall has eight major landscapes appearing at different times: Smoke Rising from the Bottom of Water, Dry Land Boat Sailing, Rainbow Playing with Water, Clear Sky Sprinkling Rain, Thunder in Clear Sky, Mountains Flying and Seas Standing, Icy Peaks Hanging Upside Down, Ten-Li Dragon Trough.

Smoke Rising from the Bottom, Clear Sky Sprinkling Rain, Thunder in Clear Sky, Rainbow Playing with Water

The Hukou Waterfall has a drop of 9 meters. The Yellow River water pours into the river valley, rushes into the deep trough, hits rocks, immediately with roaring waves (Thunder in Clear Sky), water mist rises into the air (Clear Sky Sprinkling Rain), shaking heaven and earth (Thunder in Clear Sky), overwhelming. The splashing water mist forms a screen; at a certain angle, one can see a rainbow formed by sunlight on the mist (Rainbow Playing with Water).

Mountains Flying and Seas Standing, Icy Peaks Hanging Upside Down, Ten-Li Dragon Trough

Mountains Flying and Seas Standing is an effect seen from a low angle. Looking up at the water curtain from below the waterfall, the rolling yellow water pours down from the horizon, like thousands of mountains collapsing and the four seas tilting, forming the core scenery of Hukou Waterfall. Icy Peaks Hanging Upside Down is of course a winter scene. Below the waterfall is a trough, legend says it was formed by the dragon's body, hence called the Ten-Li Dragon Trough or Dragon Ditch.

The Yellow River was once a golden waterway for shipping. Throughout history, all downstream boats could not continue here; they had to unload cargo and transport it by human and animal along the riverbank to the downstream dock. Because the riverbank is relatively wide and flat, composed entirely of hard rock, it was possible to pull the empty boats out of the water using human, animal, and machinery. Round wooden sleepers were laid under the boat, allowing it to roll on the riverbank to the lower reaches where the water was calm, then put the boat back into the water, load cargo, and continue downstream. Dry land boat sailing mostly occurred on the Shanxi side of Hukou; it can no longer be seen now, but with luck there might be a performance.

The riverbanks on both sides of the waterfall look like "loess land," but they are actually fairly flat large rocks covered with a layer of loess.

The Qin-Jin Grand Canyon is the longest canyon on the main stream of the Yellow River, with a total length of 726 kilometers, serving as the natural border between Shaanxi and Shanxi. In August 2009, I saw the Yellow River Hukou from the Shanxi side (Jixian of Linfen). Visitors on both sides also look at each other across the river.

Yellow River Hukou, Shaanxi side

Yellow River Hukou, Shanxi side

In September 1938, the poet Guang Weiran led an anti-Japanese drama troupe to cross the Yellow River eastward near Hukou, Yichuan, northern Shaanxi, and entered the Lüliang Mountains anti-Japanese base in Shanxi. He witnessed the boatmen battling the strong winds and furious waves, listened to their high-pitched and melodious boatmen's chants, and wrote the recitation poem "Yellow River Chant." Later, it was adapted into music by Xian Xinghai in Yan'an, resulting in the immortal masterpiece "Yellow River Cantata," which represents the soul of the Chinese nation.