荫碧峡

Yincuixia - Green and Shady Valley

Useful Information

Location:	Yi Hui Township, Jiuxiang, Yiliang County, Kunming City, Yunnan Province. Jiuxiang village, 70 km from Kunming, 47 km from Yiliang. Kunming Prefecture. (25.071452, 103.382554)
Open:	All year daily . [2023]
Fee:
Classification:	Collapsed Cave,
Light:	n/a
Dimension:	L=600 m.
Guided tours:	boat tour
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:	Yuhui Li, Maocheng Li, Zhiqiang Ding (2022): Study on methodology of assessing synergy between conservation and development of karst protected area in the case of the Diehong Bridge Scenic Area of Jiuxiang Gorge Cave Geopark, Yunnan, China Environment, Development and Sustainability. 24. DOI pdf researchgate
Address:	Jiuxiang Scenic Resort, Yi Hui Township, Nine Townships, Yiliang County, Kunming City, Yunnan Province.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1994	included in the third batch of Chinese national-level scenic spots.
2001	Jiuxiang Scenic Area rated as a national AAAA tourist attraction.
AUG-2009	part of the new Yunnan Jiuxiang Canyon Caves National Geopark.

Description

荫翠峡 (Yīn cuì xiá, Shaded Green Gorge) or 荫碧峡 (Yīn bì xiá, Green and Shady Valley) is a 600 m long gorge with a river of deep green colour. The gorge is used for motorboat trips with tourists. The special thing with this gorge is the fact that it is a karst feature. It is a so-called cave ruin or roofless cave.

Obviously a roofless cave is a sort of paradox, as the definition of a cave requires the existence of a roof. If it is roofless, it is not a cave. This term is used to describe the formation of a gorge, which formed underground as a cave. As the cave became bigger and the roof thinner, the roof started to collapse. The karst windows were subject to intense erosion and grew fast, the roof shrank until it became a series of natural bridges and at the end those collapsed too. The result is a gorge with former cave walls, often - like in this case—with stalactites and other speleothems.

This valley is called Lovers' valley by the native Yi people.