Travel with Jack: 2 Days Dujiangyan Best Highlights Tour (Panda & Irrigation System)

“Visit the Dujiang weir,and ask for the way of life at Mt Qingcheng”

That is to say Dujiangyan Irrigation System is famous for water and latter is well –known mountain but I have to mention China Panda Valley which is different from Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding as it is more wild with less people.

The Panda Valley is located in Baima Village, Yutang Town, Dujiangyan, about 50 KM away from Chengdu. It is the newest transitional training area, providing a safe environment for the endangered bears to develop pandas' survival skills.

Giant Pandas were Eating in Panda Valley, Dujiangyan

The Panda Valley is doing its best to help captive pandas get what they need to survive in the wild. The center has been fully prepared in the construction, farming facilities and equipment, environmental enrichment, diet, staffing and other aspects. The door is metal material mixed 11-meter-high giant panda style building. In half the original ecological transition into the wild experimental zone, the giant panda will live temporarily outside the den in the shape of the bunker, and gradually adapt to the wild life in the future. In the half original ecological transition into the wild experimental zone, the giant panda will train to gradually adapt to the wild life.

I have been to Dujiangyan for a few times and stay 2 nights there because the air is really fresh, the sky is clear and the night view in the town is splendid and I recommend Holiday Inn Hotel considering the good location to walk around the ancient street and food street.

Night Views of Ancient Streets from Holiday Inn Hotel

Dujiangyan is located on the west of Chengdu Plain, about 59 kilometers from Chengdu (within 1.5 hours’ driving), the capital of Sichuan Province. Dujiangyan, with profound history over 2,000 years, was formerly a county named Guanxian (Guan means irrigation) and later renamed after the world-famous Dujiangyan Irrigation System. Dujiangyan is the backyard of Chengdu which becomes the best destination to do a side trip from Chengdu.

It takes about 1.5 hours by car from Chengdu. Dujiangyan has been threatened by the frequent flood of the Minjiang River. Li Bing, a local official of Sichuan Province at that time, together with his son, decided to construct an irrigation system on the Minjiang River to prevent flooding. After a lengthy study and a lot of hard work by the local people, the great Dujiangyan Irrigation was completed. Since then, the Chengdu Plain has been free of flooding and the people have been living peacefully and affluently. What a great wisdom of the ancient people!

Dujiangyan Irrigation System

Dujiangyan Irrigation System, composed by three projects - Fish-mouth Dyke, Feishayan Spillway and Bottole-shaped Water Intake, works well which is especially success in flood diversion and disaster reduction.

When you go into the gate, the first main attraction Baopingkou (宝瓶口) like a neck of a bottle, is used to bring water into the inner river from Minjiang River and controls the amount of the water due to its reasonable location.

It is a diversion project, which works as a control valve. It can control the water flow of Inner River automatically. The natural scenery of Baopingkou is stunning, and it’s a famous attraction in ancient time.

Baopingkou - Water Inflow Gate of Dujiangyan Irrigation System

Feisha Yan（飞沙堰） is a spillway that diverts the sand and stones of the inner river into the outer river.

It is a flood discharge project, and the key to protect Chengdu Plain from flood. It mainly works as flood discharge, spilling and regulating water flow. When the water flow has excess the upper limit of Baopingkou, the excess water will overflow from Feisha Yan.

Feisha Yan - Vital Spillway of Dujiangyan Irrigation System

There is a magnificent bridge called the Anlan Cable Bridge（安澜索桥） crossing the Minjiang River near Yuzui, which is the most scenic place of the whole project. The body of the bridge was constructed with wooden blocks and the handrails were made of bamboo. Later the wood and bamboo were replaced with steel and reinforced concrete to ensure the security of the visitors. But it is still a little bit scared if many people try to rock and jump on the bridge, so take care of your mobile phone and camera.

Anlan Cable Bridge - One of the Greatest Chinese Ancient Bridges

You can choose to walk or take sightseeing bus to Yuzui( fish’s mouth), like a big fish lying in the Minjiang River, it was designed to divide the Ming River into two parts. The western part is called Outer River, which is used to drain off the floodwaters. The eastern part is called Inner River, which is used in irrigation.

Fish Mounth - A Brilliant Diversion Project

Dujiangyan Irrigation System Travel Tips

1.Best Season to Visit Dujiangyan

The best time to go is from April to October. During this time, the weather is very cool and the trees are lush and green. Dujiangyan is a famous summer resort, and when Chengdu is suffered from the summer heat, Dujiangyan’s temperature is still around 22℃. Besides, in summer, travelers can experience the Beer Carnival from May to October. While from Tomb Sweeping Day to National Day, travelers can see dance and song show in the morning, which tells the story of Li Bing - the builder of Dujiangyan Irrigation System.

Dance Show near Dujiangyan Irrigation System

2. Dress Advice for Dujiangyan Tour

The annual average temperature of Dujiangyan is about 15℃, and the average temperature in July is about 24℃. If you visit it in summer, you need to prepare one long sleeve to resist the cold in the morning and night. Average temperature for January is about 5℃, and normal warm clothes will do.