Daotang River

From Riyue mountain to Daotanghe Town, 40 km ahead, Daotanghe is a seasonal river originated from Riyue mountain, relying on snowmelt and rain. Since ancient times, it has been said that "one river flows eastward", but Daotanghe is a river that "all rivers flow eastward, only I flow westward". Autumn is the rainy season in Daotang river area. A heavy rain over Riyue mountain will turn Daotang River into a flash flood. The inverted River in summer has no broad river surface, it is only a small stream flowing with shallow water. On the Bank of the Daotang River, there is a small town named after the Daotang River, which is the junction of the Qinghai Tibet highway and the Qingkang highway. It runs westward to Tibet and southward to Sichuan. Zhang Qianqian, a folk singer, has a song called "Daotang River", which sings the sadness and loneliness in the vast land.

Daotang River

Daotang river is located in Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai Province, with an altitude of about 3300 meters and a total length of about 40 kilometers. It flows from east to west and flows into Qinghai Lake. It is different from most rivers from west to East, so it is called Daotang river.

Daotang river originates from Chahan grassland at the West foot of the sun and moon. It is the smallest branch in the water system of Qinghai Lake. The river is winding and clear. It looks like a bright ribbon falling on the grassland.

Overview of rivers

Daotanghe river is located in Daotanghe town on the west side of Riyue mountain in Qinghai Province. It starts from Riyue mountain in the East and ends at Qinghai Lake in the West. It flows quietly, quietly and gently, winding for more than 40 kilometers. It's like a rainbow in the rain, like a flowing Star River in the night sky, clear and indifferent, transparent and crystal clear, trickling and long. This is the inverted River, a river flowing from east to west.

There is a sun moon mountain on the boundary line between the Loess Plateau and the Qinghai Tibet Plateau. Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty and the Tubo Zanpu Songzanganbu got married. It was from this that she entered Tibet through the Tangfan ancient road to the south, passing through the Daotang River, which "all rivers in the world flow eastward, only this river flows westward".

Historical legend

People have different opinions about the legend of Daotang river.

Separated by a mountain and to the east of Riyue mountain, it has been said for thousands of years that Li Shimin, the king of Tang Dynasty, married the beautiful young Princess Wencheng to Songzanganbu of Tubo in order to communicate the relationship between Tibetan and Han nationalities and promote cultural exchanges. On her way to Tibet, when she arrived at Riyue mountain, she did not see Chang'an. She looked at the desolation in the West. She thought about her hometown and her parents. She was in mourning and moved westward with tears. The tears of the princess merged into this river.

To the west of Riyue mountain, there is another myth among Tibetans: the Dragon King sent his four sons and daughters to build four rivers, north, South, East and West. The youngest daughter needed 108 rivers to build the West Sea. She found 107 rivers, but the last one could not be found. The clever and cunning little dragon girl brought a river from the sun moon mountain upside down, which is the Daotang river. The third way is that the river was changed by the Dragon King

There is no need to examine which legend is more authoritative and which myth is closer to the orthodox. Every legend adds a mystery to it. And finally one day, when you come to it with the passion of exploration and search, you can clearly hear a sigh, a whisper, a gentle whisper, which seems to have thousands of tenderness. Then you will realize: This is a river of women.

Cause of backflow

Daotang river originates from Chahan grassland at the West foot of the sun and moon, with an altitude of about 3300 meters and a total length of more than 40 kilometers. It flows from east to west into Erhai (commonly known as Xiaohu) of Qinghai Lake, so it is called Daotang river. In Tibetan, "Rou Mo Yong" means a place to be admired. It is the smallest branch in the water system of Qinghai Lake. The river is not only winding, but also clear.

In fact, Daotang river used to flow eastward. It flowed into the Yellow River together with Buha River and luohantang river. Later, due to the change of the earth's crust and the uplift of Riyue mountain, it turned its head and flowed westward into Qinghai Lake, becoming a Daotang river.

Main tour items

The sun moon mountain was named Chiling in the early Tang Dynasty. Located in the southwest of Huangyuan county and the southeast of Qinghai Lake, it is not only the junction of Huangyuan and Gonghe counties, but also the boundary between agricultural and pastoral areas in Qinghai. With an altitude of 3520 meters, it is the only place for tourists to enter the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, so it is called "Xihai screen" and "grassland gateway".

On the mountain pass, there is a stone tablet with the word "sun and Moon Mountain". On the top of the mountain, there are two pavilions, the sun Pavilion and the moon Pavilion. At the foot of the south of the mountain, there is a unique inverted river. Standing on the top of the mountain, looking to the East, it is full of idyllic style; looking to the west, Qinghai Lake is rippling with blue waves, and the mountains in the heart of the sea are bright and moving, which is quite different from the idyllic beauty. Therefore, visitors say: "climbing the sun moon mountain is another heavy day.".

Traffic information

Generally, the shuttle bus only passes through Riyue mountain and does not stop, but you can have a simple look inside the bus. The buses to Qinghai Lake, Hatu, Wulan and other places all pass through here. If you charter a car, you can stop here and take photos. You can charter a car from Xining to visit Qinghai Lake for about 2-3 days. Each car costs about 400-500 yuan per day.

Address: North of Daotanghe Town, Gonghe County, Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province (southeast of Qinghai Lake, south of Riyue mountain)

Longitude: 100.977377

Latitude: 36.398733

Traffic information: self driving or chartered, starting in Xining, about 2 hours to arrive

Ticket information: 40 yuan / person

Opening hours: 8:00-17:00

Chinese PinYin : Dao Tang He