Black Dragon Pool

Chinese name: 黑龙潭公园（Hei Long Tan Gong Yuan）
Location: Gucheng District, Lijiang city, Yunnan Province
Ticket: Free
Estimated time of tour: 2-3hours
Recommended time of visit: all year round
Nearby attractions: Lijiang Old Town, Baisha Old Town, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Lashi Lake, Blue Moon Valley, etc.

Heilongtan is also named Yuquan park(jade spring park) or Yuquan dragon’s temple. It was first built in 1737 during Qing dynasty, under the reign of Emperor Qianlong. It was rebuilt in late 1800s. The Black Dragon Pool is like an ancient architecture museum. Some of the famous buildings found here were actually collected from other places.

It sits at the foot of Xiangshan (Elephant hill) at the elevation of 2500m. It is about 1km away from Lijiang old town following the Yu river (jade river)

● Dragon pool

There are two separate pools in the park, one deep and the other shallow. The deep one is Black Dragon Pool, also known as Qingshuitan (clear water pool) . The pool is a rounded and is about 15 meters deep, covering an area of 600 square meters. Clear spring gushed from the bottom of the pool. It’s a perfect place to appreciate the inverted image of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in a windless day. Shallow pool is located in the northeast of the deep pool. The color of the water presents yellowish,hence the name Murky Pool. The Murky Pool covers an area of 2600 square meters and 0.5 meters deep. Just a few step away, the water in Black Dragon Pool is totally different from the Murky Pool. The color difference accidentally present a Yin-yang Taiji diagram in Taoism.

● Deyue Tower

This 20m high , 3 storey tower was first built in 1876 during the reign of Guangxu Emperor, Qing dynasty. It was destructed in a fire in 1961. The one we see today was rebuilt in 1963.