银狐洞

Yinhudong - Yinhu Cave - Yin Hu Dong - Silver Fox Cave


Useful Information

Location: Xiayinshui Village, 60 km from Beijing.
Open: All year daily 8-17.
[2008]
Fee: Cave: Adults CNY 43.
Underground boat trip: Adults CNY 20.
[2008]
Classification: SpeleologyKarst cave Speleologyriver cave Ordovician limestone.
Light: LightIncandescent Electric Light System
Dimension: L=1,000 m, T=14 °C, A=220 m asl.
Guided tours: L=3,000 m, boat trip: L=1,000 m, D=90 min.
Photography:  
Accessibility:  
Bibliography: Tieying Li (1993): Cave scenery in Shihua cave region, Beijing In: Karst landscape and cave tourism. Edited by Linhua Song; Huaiyuan Ting, China environmental science press, 192-195, 1993.
Address: Yinhudong, Xia Ying Shui Village, Fo Zi Zhuang Town, Fangshan District, Beijing, Beijing 102616, Tel: +86-8037-7936.
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

JUL-1991 cave discovered.
MAY-1992 explored and surveyed.
1999 opened to the public.

Description

This cave was discovered inside a coal mine. The artificial tunnel hits the cave right in the middle. Two branches start here, the eastern branch has been developed for tourists. The western branch is a river cave and only accessible for speleologists.

银狐洞 (Yinhudong) translates Silver Fox Cave, after a famous stalagmite with extremely white calcite crystals, which is called the Silver Fox. It is an extraordinary speleothem, a normal stalactite is covered by thin white needles of aragonite which resemble a white fur.

The wealth of this cave are definitely numerous speleothems. But there is also another highlight: visitors may take an underground boat trip on the subterranean river. Of course, the ride costs extra. The visitor gets a sort of underground roller coaster kind of experience, with a steel boat in a narrow passage. The boat is pushed by the guide who pulls on a heavy steel cable anchored to the ceiling with a great deal of enthusiasm. The ride is once interrupted by a dam, and visitors have to transfer to another boat at a lower level.

The tour ends in a rather big chamber, which was the place where the cave was discovered ten years ago during coal mining activities. The 40 m long chamber, 20 m wide and 15 m high is heavily decorated. There are helictites on the ceiling and walls.