Guizhou Tour 8---Mysterious Getu River Scenic Spot

Guizhou Tour 8---Mysterious Getu River Scenic Spot

Before going to Guizhou, I asked for travel routes on the Internet, and netizens unanimously recommended the Getu River Scenic Area. So I put it on my must-visit list. But what kind of scenic spot is here, and what to see, I have never had a bottom line in my mind. I searched a lot on the Internet, but still couldn't figure it out. But since everyone recommends it, you can't go wrong. We went to Ziyun from Anshun on August 5th.

Ziyun Getu River Chuandong Scenic Area is located in the southwest of Guizhou Province, 161 kilometers away from Guiyang City and 76 kilometers away from Anshun City, but there are nearly 20 kilometers away from Ziyun to reach the scenic spot. It was raining when we went, we set off at 7:30, and arrived at the Dahe Scenic Area at almost 10:00. There is no good development here, the entrance is very simple, and there is not even a toilet. You have to follow the field path to find the simplest toilet in the countryside. There is a lot of construction going on here, and it is said that a hotel will be built. In short, everything is still in a semi-primitive state. It is this state that leaves the natural and simple beauty of the Getu River.

The word "Getu" is Miao language, which translates as "Holy Land of Jumping Flowers". The scenic area includes Dachuandong Scenic Area, Dahe Scenic Area, Xiaochuandong Scenic Area, Yaoyan Scenic Area and many independent scenic spots. On December 31, 2005, it was approved as the sixth batch of national key scenic spots. There are various karst landforms in the scenic area. You can see deep canyons, complex and mysterious scenic caves, magical and huge underground river systems, and unique karst virgin forest landscapes. I bought a ticket for 40 yuan. Because of the rain and to save time, I also bought a battery ticket for 11 yuan to pull you to the pier. The boat ticket is 20 yuan, because it is not allocated to a tour guide, so I spent another 50 yuan to hire a tour guide. Everything is ready, we start to take a boat tour to the Dahe Scenic Area.

The boat goes upstream along the big river in the canyon, the water goes around the mountains, and the boat travels in the continuous peak forest. There are many strange peaks, steep rocks and waterfalls, houses covered by green bamboos, clear water flowing, light boats and fishing songs, and it has a beautiful scenery like a paradise. The drizzle was dripping and splashing flowers on the rolling river. According to the tour guide, due to the continuous heavy rain, the river swelled, making the water as muddy as the Yellow River. No wonder we walked all the way and saw many big trees soaked in water. It is said that once the rainy season is over, the water will be green and clear. However, the tour guide also said that it was because of the rising water that our boat was able to enter the Tianxing Cave to explore the mystery of the hanging coffin. It is called Dahe here, but the river is not big or long, so it got its name because there is a Dahe Miao Village here. Now people call it Getu River.

When the boat was sailing, I suddenly saw a solitary peak in front of me leaning, and one side was burning red cliff. The big river was sandwiched between the two peaks, and the river channel suddenly shrank. This is Jiashan, which is known as a line of sky, also known as Lover's Rock. Of course, it got its name because of this beautiful love legend. When I came to Guizhou, I found that although the land in Guizhou is not three feet flat, there are stone mountains like corn-bread everywhere, but because there is a lot of rain here, these corn-breads are all green. It is full of vegetation and big trees, which is really gratifying. We went upstream in the big river, and the banks were green on both sides. The most peculiar thing is that the clumps of green bamboos, like fishing rods, hang slightly into the water but do not fall over. The tour guide told us that its name is fishing bamboo. In Getu, bamboo is a plant that people depend on for survival. The local people "would rather eat without meat than live without bamboo". Wherever there are people, there must be bamboo. There are 32 kinds of bamboo in the world, and Getu has 15 kinds. Palm bamboo, fragrant bamboo, water bamboo, hemp bamboo, monstera, and phoenix bamboo can be seen everywhere. The most peculiar thing is that there is a square bamboo in Blind Valley, which is a strange bamboo that looks round but feels square. For the local Miao people, bamboo is not only closely related to their lives, but also sacred. If someone's child or pregnant woman has a disease that is difficult to cure, they can plant bamboo in front of and behind the house, and the illness of adults and children will really be cured. In addition to bamboo, there are many kinds of plants. Those plants called husband and wife trees and bitter flowers all have a sad and moving story. The soft and elegant daylilies, the golden Dendrobium hanging on the rocks (locally called Mabanghua), and the colorful hibiscus are all precious medicinal materials.

The boat continued upstream. It is the twists and turns of the clear water, the thousands of peaks and emerald greens, and the singing of birds in the empty valley, which makes people enchanted. The water in the Getu River is wonderful, not only because it is sunny and rainy for a long time, but also because it is interspersed in all kinds of karst dense forests. The kids are playing hide and seek with us. While walking, the boat came to a place surrounded by mountains on three sides. It seemed that there was no road ahead, but after turning around a mountain peak, there was a wide water surface, and a huge stone cave appeared in front of you. This is the Tianxing Cave with the mystery of ancient life. The Getu River also emerges from this cave, that is to say, before this, it has always been an underground river, and it can only see the sky after entering the Tianxing Cave. Entering the huge cave by boat, I saw the river flowing out from behind the rocks, making a huge roar. No one knows why Tianxing Cave got its name, but the hanging coffins on the rock walls are like the stars in the sky, leaving us much room for imagination and unsolved mysteries. The entrance of Tianxing cave is 110 meters high, and the stone mantle hangs on the cave wall. The boat enters the cave about 200 meters away. In the cool dry cave on the left, there are three natural steps on the rock wall, and more than one hundred wooden coffins made of thick beech are suspended. There is a huge rock in the middle of the steps that resembles the heads of ancient people, and some intact coffins are placed there.

Although it is not placed on such a high and dangerous cliff as the hanging coffins seen along the Three Gorges, it is still more than ten meters away from the swollen river. Although the cliff is uneven, it is difficult to climb, let alone carry such a heavy coffin. up. Who is the owner of these hanging coffins? Why do people here use hanging coffins to bury the dead? How was such a project completed in ancient times when productivity was extremely underdeveloped? All these are mysteries hidden in our hearts. Hanging coffin burial is a rather peculiar way of burial in ancient times. Hanging coffins have been found in many places in my country, such as Sichuan, Jiangxi, Guizhou, Taiwan and many other provinces. We have also seen hanging coffins placed on cliffs in the Three Gorges area. There are three kinds of suspension methods: one is the wooden pile type, where holes are drilled and piles are placed in the place where the cliff can be sheltered from the wind, and the coffin is placed on it; Natural cave style, using the natural cracks or caves in the rock wall to place the coffin inside. The Getu River area mainly falls into the latter two types.
　　In the remote and closed Getu River area, there are hanging coffins in many places where Miao villagers live together. According to reports, more than 240 coffins were found stored on the rocks of a cave in the middle reaches of the Getu River. I heard from a local Miao old man that the dead in one of the hanging coffins were their ancestors, who had passed away more than 80 years ago, and now they no longer use hanging coffins for burial. However, the Miao people in Taohua Village, Pingba County, Anshun City still use natural cave-style hanging coffins, and more than 600 coffins are stored in one cave. This should be the closest hanging coffin to modern times.

According to the tour guide, the origin of the custom of hanging coffins is that a long time ago, wars drove the ancestors of the Miao people here from the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River to the banks of the Getu River in Ziyun, Guizhou. So people here never forget to go back to their hometown. The patterns embroidered on the aprons of Miao women are the escape routes of their ancestors, but now no one can understand them. In Getu, although there are no hanging coffins anymore, there is a very interesting grand memorial ceremony in the funeral activities. The funeral people will kill a strong "war horse" to send the dead. This horse has four pieces. The necessary things, one is a saddle, the other is a sword, the third is a bow and arrow, and the fourth is a bamboo hat. Maybe the horse is going to bring the dead back to his hometown.
　　The tour guide also said that near the Getu River, there is a village with only two families called Jiaoganzhai. In Miao language, Jiaoganzhai is called "Buzaiwu", which means "I want to go home". This is the ancestors of the Miao family, in order to warn the descendants of Ye Luo to return to his roots, and vowed that as long as the foot pole is still there, he must fight back to his hometown and regain the lost ground. Therefore, after the death of the ancestors, they were not buried in the soil, but the descendants hung the corpses high in the cool, high-altitude caves and cliffs where birds and beasts could do nothing, and stored them temporarily. It is convenient for long-term preservation, waiting to "go home" one day. It is said that the ancestors of the Miao people came from the east, so the heads of the coffins all face east. According to reports, after the death of a Miao in Getu, the local people will sing the ancient Miao song "I Come from the East" to see him off. This may be why the locals went to such lengths to place their relatives on the high cliffs.
How the hanging coffin was placed has always been a mystery. Natural cave-like hanging coffins are less difficult to store. According to analysis, the coffins in the Getu River Scenic Area have big heads and small tails, and most of them are whole wood, fixed with buckles and tenons, which is convenient for disassembly and assembly. Those who have climbed to the cliff will choose the place to store the coffin, and after laying wooden stakes or digging a hole for the coffin, use vines or ropes to hang the coffin parts on the cliff one by one for assembly, and then hang the corpse. Put it in the coffin, cover it, and the hanging coffin burial is completed. But who's going to do the tough rock-climbing job? This answer was revealed later on by the rock climbing masters we saw in Yanwang Palace.

After coming out of Tianxing Cave, the boat went down the river. Originally, there were not many people here, and with the light rain, we were almost the only boat on the whole river, and the boat was leisurely, which made people immerse themselves in the original beauty of Getu. Afterwards, the boat docked at Dahe Miao Village, and we disembarked and entered the village. It may not be accurate to say that this is a paradise. But for many years their connection with the outside world was only a small boat. We walked up the stone steps and came to the village. After the rain, the sky cleared, and Dahe Miao Village, surrounded by mountains on three sides and facing water on the other, was a piece of fresh green. The natural ecological environment here is unique. There are strange peaks, river valleys, sandy bays, and bamboo forests surrounding villages and fields. The old and old stilted buildings made of wood, bamboo, and thatch are hung on the mountainside layer by layer. Children sell fresh corn and grilled fish to tourists. A small grilled fish costs 5 yuan, which is very expensive. It seems that this place has long been in line with the outside economy. Among the peaks behind Dahe Miao Village, there is a strange peak that rises abruptly, like a sword pointing directly at the sky, majestic and majestic. This is Miao Wangjian. According to legend, it is a sharp sword left by Xu Dao, the ancestor of the Miao nationality, who drove the mountains to fill the sea here. Tourists who come to Dahe Miao Village for sightseeing. I often admire the beauty of the Miao compatriots here in the "Peach Blossom Land". But the tour guide (her grandmother is from here, because they went out to go to school, they came back to be a tour guide, and the family moved outside.) told us that because the village is surrounded by steep peaks, there was no road in the mountains in the past, and the villagers lived in a closed environment. In the deep mountains, I went out to buy some salt and sell some mountain products, climbed rocks and climbed the rapids for three to five hours, and my hands and feet were often injured. Life was very difficult. There was a folk song circulating in the local area: the per capita land is divided into four, and the crops are eaten by wild monkeys; the poor mountains and bad water, hope for relief every day. Generally, people borrow from the previous year to eat and pay back the next year. For the extremely poor households, there is even a lack of food and clothing, and the children are hungry and crying, and the adults are noisy. A village often has to rely on relief to survive. Children have to walk for hours every day to go to school, which is a terrible paradise. After the tourism is launched, the cruise ship will always stop here. Tourists have accommodation, food, and watch performances by the Miao family. After the tourists have spent their money and played well, the Miao family will live a much better life. However, the life here is still closed. Due to the marriage of close relatives, the children are prone to congenital diseases such as cleft lip. I have seen such children here. Now the development of Miao Village is still in the initial stage, because the transportation is inconvenient and the tourist facilities are not complete, most of the people who come here are self-driving tourists, and there are also some backpackers. Many of the big travel agencies don't have lines here. It is precisely because of this that the Getu River maintains its original and natural beauty. I hope that the tourism development here will not destroy the beauty of this mysterious original ecology.

Macaques are also the masters here. Although it is raining, there are still a few monkeys jumping up and down, which is really cute, but tourists don't know that it is these monkeys that have become a local plague. In the Getu River area, the number of macaques reached more than 200. Every corn filling season, these macaques will spoil the crops. Now farmers also know that the macaque is a national second-class protected animal. Although they are furious at the "evil deeds" of the macaque, there is nothing they can do. In order to put an end to "human-monkey competition for food", the county decided to spend money to buy food to feed the monkeys. Therefore, the price paid by human beings in order to maintain the ecological balance is also considerable.
Located about 500 meters south of Dahe Miao Village, it is a natural lake created by karst landforms. It is named because the lake water changes colors with the seasons. Sometimes it is iron red, sometimes it is earthy yellow, and sometimes it is light green. Sometimes it is crystal clear. It is like a mirror reflected in the green bushes, as if it was given to the local Miao people by God, so it is also called "Tianci Lake". The lake is about 47 meters higher than Dahe Village, like a mirror embedded in a high mountain. There are 3 springs in the lake, and the lake water will not dry up during the dry season. In the wet season, the lake water will be discharged naturally by the water hole at one end of the lake, so the water will not overflow. The water quality here is very good, and the decontamination ability is strong. It is said that putting clothes in it and soaking a bag of cigarettes is as easy as washing them.

We didn't eat here, so we urged the tour guide to disembark and continue the tour. The boat continued down the river, and at the end of the water, Ertong Mountain stood in front of us. This mountain peak, which was cut in half by God, left three huge caves on the cliff. The bottom one is called Yanwang Palace, also called Dachuandong. There is a hole above the Dachuandong. This hole is very similar to the Tianmen Cave in Zhangjiajie. There is a smaller hole on the left side of the hole called the hidden coffin hole. I don't know if there is a hidden coffin.

Our boat gently rowed towards Yanwang Palace. According to the tour guide, this huge pierced arch is 116 meters high and 25 meters wide. When we look up, our boat is really small and pitiful. Entering the arch is the entrance of the Getu River to the Yanwang Palace. From here, the Getu River sneaked into the ground and disappeared mysteriously. Every year from Qingming to Chongyang in the lunar calendar, hundreds of thousands of swallows live in the cave. At dawn in the morning, tens of thousands of swallows flew out of the cave. They shuttled like arrows, covering the sky with darkness, which was very spectacular. But to see this spectacle, you must stay in Miao Village for one night, watching the swallows return to their nests at dusk and the swallows leaving their nests in the morning. We couldn't help it, so naturally we didn't have such a blessing, but we still saw a few little swallows flying outside the cave, which looked like little sparrows from a distance.

Rafting into the palace is an underground lake with a length of 277 meters. At the end of the lake is the Miao Hall with an area of ​​116,000 square meters. It is the second cave hall in the world and the largest in Asia, where thousands of cars can be parked. The huge collapsed cave roof forms a huge cave with a diameter of 200 meters and a depth of 370 meters. The light shines from the sloping cave entrance, shining on the green Getu River. The very poor Getu people discovered this cave in order to sell bat feces for money, and attracted a Chinese and French cave expedition team, finally ascertained the condition of the cave, unveiled its wonderful veil, and revealed it to the world. its true face. On the vertical and smooth 100-meter-high cave wall of Yanwang Palace, we saw two masters of the Miao nationality standing on the high cliff, and several people from the TV station also greeted us from a not too high place. . It is said that they are filming the rock-climbing stunt known locally as Spider-Man. So, who can climb the cliff?
　　The tour guide said that in history, some ancestors of the Miao nationality, like macaques in the mountains, could climb the cliffs on both sides of the Getu River and reach the dangerous caves and valleys that are rarely visited by people. Today, there are a few people here who have inherited rock climbing skills, they are Luo Fake and his three apprentices Huang Xiaobao, Wang Fengzhong and Wang Xiaoguo. The four masters and apprentices of Luo Fake were able to climb on the 100-meter-high cliff in the Getu River Scenic Area without any protective facilities. As long as there were places where they could step on and climb, they used bamboo poles and wooden sticks as auxiliary tools for rock climbing. It takes 5 minutes to climb to the 108-meter-high cliff, and after more than 4 minutes, you can return to the ground with bare hands. It is said that their ancestors practiced the kung fu of flying over eaves and walls for hanging coffins and caves, and it has been passed down to them for the seventh generation. According to reports, Luo Fake learned rock climbing with his father at the age of 12, and was the only one among the four brothers who learned it. Huang Xiaobao, Wang Fengzhong, and Wang Xiaoguo also started in elementary school, and one of them has a disabled leg. Although there are other children studying together, as the difficulty increases, only these few can persevere. This solved the mystery of who placed the hanging coffin. It is these rock climbing masters that make the hanging coffin burial here possible.

The water of the Getu River, which resounds through the cave hall, sneaks into the dark place of the 12-kilometer-long Yanwang Palace, and goes 7 kilometers along the river to reach the Miao Hall. However, due to the rush of water, we were unable to enter. Climbing up along the inclined path of Tongtian Cave, you can see the miraculous scenery of Yanwang Palace, Tongtian Cave, and Dachuan Cave with a total of blue sky and white clouds.

The tour guide told us that to go to the Blind Valley, we must hike up 2,000 steps, which is a comprehensive test of human strength and will. In Beijing, we also climbed the 2,300 steps of Fragrant Hills. But because after I came out, I had a few days of travel and I was quite tired. To be honest, I was not mentally prepared and did not eat. After thinking twice, I decided to give up. According to reports, after passing through the big hole and the square bamboo forest, you will reach a platform. In front of it is a strip-shaped depression, about 1 km long. This was formed after the roof collapsed in the early underground river. Geologically, it is called blind valley. The four walls are three to four hundred meters high cliffs. Blind Valley is a closed wild world, almost no one dares to venture down. Experts say that this is the best-preserved ancient river relic, and it is also a closed ecological environment and a rare virgin forest belt. This should be a good place that scientific research personnel, botanists, and adventure tourists dream of. Only those with good physical strength and sufficient preparation can appreciate the mysterious beauty.

This is the end of our itinerary, and aftertaste of the whole journey, it seems to have entered an ancient dream. Because it is impossible to see the whole picture of the Getu River Scenic Area when going back and forth on the same day. Because if you have the physical strength, you should also visit the Miao Village in Dongzhong, which remains from the prehistoric era. The uphill road to the Miao Village in Dongzhong is relatively difficult, and tourists with weak feet can only visit Dachuandong and Dahe scenic spots. Although we didn't go, we also inquired about it, so let us introduce what we know.

Drive about 40 kilometers from Ziyun County, and go up against the Getu River along the canyon facing the green mountains, and you will arrive at the Xiaochuandong at the exit of Fuliu. . There are upper, middle and lower caves above the outlet of the submerged flow, and the Miao village in the cave is in the high middle cave. To reach Zhongdong Miao Village, you must climb the mountain and pass through the lower cave. This is a cave hall full of fossils. Judging from the remains of the foundation in the cave, it seems that it was once a cave dwelling village. Climbing up the steep slope piled up by rocks due to surface collapse, it seems to be in a time tunnel of the progress of human civilization. People with good physical strength will have to walk for more than two hours, passing through the lush bamboo forest, a huge cave dome 50 meters high and 115 meters wide appears in front of them, and it is said to be 215 meters deep. At the entrance of the cave, there are three unroofed brick rooms, a small playground, a basketball hoop, and a raised national flag, which is the school in the cave. Near the entrance of the cave, there are dozens of dry-column bamboo buildings with wooden columns and no roofs, which look like a stage set (it looks more like a handmade model in the photo), and people perform the real "caveman" on this stage every day. Life. The golden toad-like stalactites on the side of the court are connected to the oasis that drips from the top of the cave all year round to form a pool, which supplies basic drinking water for humans and animals. According to reports, when you are outside the entrance of the cave, you can listen to the symphony of echoes from reading, talking, working, cocks and pigs, and pots and pans inside, just like playing an ancient ballad. Once in the hole, the echo disappears, and all kinds of sounds are clearly distinguishable. It is said that this acoustic phenomenon is related to the dense erosion "vortex" on the roof of the cave.

　　There are four Miao people with the surnames of Wang, Wu, Liang and Luo living in the cave. The houses are simply separated by bamboo fences. Unexpectedly, each house has a house number. Most of the people in the cave wear clothes made by themselves, and the women's clothes only have two simple laces. Although life is very hard, however, when you walk into the cave, the hospitable Miao family will deliver home-brewed grain wine. According to the custom, if you drink too much and lie down, the host will feel radiant. . After drinking, you can go in and out freely in their home, stroll around, watch them grind and mill, spin and weave, raise chickens, ducks, pigs, bees and birds, cook with bellows, and appreciate the authentic Daily life in the cave.

　　On the opposite hillside is an empty brick-concrete bungalow built by the government for them. It is said that they moved out after they moved out. Because they were not used to it, they moved back to the cave one after another. Although the cave is not afraid of wind and rain, it is warm in winter and cool in summer, and there are no mosquito bites, no one can understand why human beings have long since left cave life. Also built in holes. There are also students from the mountain village outside the cave studying in the school in the cave.

On the way back to Ziyun, we asked for a local chicken in a restaurant, which is freshly cooked, as long as it is boiled in clear water, the taste is extremely delicious. Put the soup on the induction cooker, and put fresh cabbage, tofu, mushrooms, etc. , Rice is also free to eat, the total price is 45 yuan, the four of us are full.

This time we only made the most preliminary understanding of the Getu River. We plan to go again in the future, because there are too many interesting places in Guizhou, and we cannot fully appreciate them once. What to see in Getu? In Getu, there are so wonderful mountains and waters. The endless river sometimes sinks into the ground, and then rises out of the ground again, leaving a legacy on the high green hills. amazing landscape. You can visit Chuanshang Cave and Blind Valley, the world's tallest ancient river relics, take a boat to enter the world's unparalleled Dachuan Cave, Yanwang Palace, and learn about the huge, deep and magnificent Shimiao Hall, the second largest cave hall in the world. The deepest karst shaft in China.... There are also tens of thousands of eagles and swallows flying in the Yanwang Palace in the morning and evening. Hundreds of Miao ancestors are buried in the hanging coffins in the Tianxing Cave. You can watch the beautiful canyon outside the cave, explore the rare animals and plants, appreciate the beautiful pastoral scenery, and appreciate the simple Miao style. If you have physical strength, go to the karst cave here, the mysterious Miao village called "Modern Caveman" and "The Last Cave-dwelling Tribe". All of these give people a dreamlike, mysterious and original beauty. Let’s travel to Getu River, but we must protect the beauty of the original ecology there, and leave a piece of pure land for future generations, and our children and grandchildren will be grateful to us.

hanging coffin