China boasts numerous landscapes bearing the name ‘West Lake’, and apart from the world-renowned Hangzhou West Lake, Huizhou West Lake stands out as a prime example among them. Densely wooded, Huizhou West Lake inherits the unique natural landscape characteristics of Lingnan, presenting a more refreshing, straightforward, and elegant image compared to the misty Jiangnan impression of Hangzhou West Lake, hence the saying ‘Heavily painted Hangzhou, lightly made-up Huizhou’.
The scenery of Huizhou West Lake is composed of ‘five lakes, six bridges, and eight scenic spots’. The five lakes refer to the five lake areas that form West Lake, namely Ling Lake, Alligator Lake, Ping Lake, Feng Lake, and Nan Lake, which take at least half a day to explore. Ping Lake is the largest among the five, with most of the main core scenic spots concentrated in this area. Surrounding the north of Ping Lake is Pinghu Dam, along which one can visit Fengzhu Garden and Yuanmiao Temple. Fengzhu Garden is particularly suitable for summer visits as the lotus flowers are stunning. The areas of Xiajiao East Road and Xiajiao Middle Road to the north of Ping Lake are older residential areas of Huizhou, where green trees provide shade and residents leisurely spend time by the lake. It resembles a park but is quite large, with many tourists and a small hill related to Tao Yuanming. The section from Yuanmiao Temple to Xiajiao is especially beautiful. The iconic building of West Lake, Sishou Pagoda, is located on the west side of Ping Lake, referred to as the ‘jade tower’ in the famous ‘Jade Tower Ripples’ scene of the eight views. Su Shi, during his residence in Huizhou, vividly depicted the lake and pagoda in his well-known poem ‘River Moon’: ‘At the first watch, the mountain vomits the moon, the jade tower lies in ripples, just like on West Lake, looking from outside Yongjin Gate. ‘ The scene of ‘Jade Tower Ripples’ has been passed down to this day. On the west side of Ping Lake lies Gushan, with a memorial hall for Su Shi built on it, which is referred to as ‘Gushan Su’s Traces’ in the eight scenic spots. At the foot of Gushan, there is a section of Jiuqu Bridge connecting to Dian Cui Zhou, where there is a Liudan Pavilion, symbolizing the intention to leave a loyal heart to shine through history. Together, they form the ‘Loyal Heart Dian Cui’ scene. To the north of Dian Cui Zhou, there is a small bridge leading to Fanghua Zhou and Lotus Pavilion, where many photography enthusiasts gather in the summer to capture the lotus pond scenery. There are five boat docks within the scenic area, near the east gate, Jiuqu Bridge, and Fanghua Zhou, where one can rent boats to tour the lake. The lake is large enough to offer both rowing boats and electric boats, with prices approximately ranging from 30-40 yuan per hour for rowing boats and 60 yuan for half an hour for electric boats, subject to the scenic area’s pricing. If renting an electric boat, remember to choose one with sufficient power. Rowing at dusk to watch the setting sun is quite beautiful! After touring West Lake, the pedestrian street of Huizhou is directly opposite the main gate, and it’s worth a visit. Open all year round from 08:00 to 21:00.Must Read
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