Dalong Cave Scenic Area is located at the northwest of Shanglin County on the eastern foot of Daming Mountain. Dalong Cave Scenic Area is composed of Dalong Lake and Dalong Cave. It is a National 4A Class Scenic Area.
Main attractions at Dalong Cave Scenic Area
Dalong Lake, also called Dalongdong Reservoir, is a man-made alpine plain lake formed by the storing groundwater. It was constructed from 1958 to 1960. The rain collection area is 245 square kilometers and the reservoir covers nearly 8.05 square kilometers. Dalongdong Reservoir is the only natural reservoir in China without a dam. Instead it is surrounded by piles of rocks on the borders. It is one of the top ten lava reservoirs in China. The total storage capacity is 151 million cubic meters.
The shape of the reservoir is irregular, which is 13 kilometers long and 1 kilometer wide. There are 7 springs in the lake, among which the largest one is adjacent to Shanglin Village. According to the villagers, during the rainy season, the spring water reaches more than one meter higher. Around the lake, the steep peaks are clustered, with different shapes, looking like lions, carps, and elephants from a distance. The mountains are reflected on the water, beautiful and elegant.
The mountain by the lake is like an old man, known as "Jiang Taigong Mountain". The circular mountain in the center of the lake is known as "Lantern Mountain". The small island in the lake is known as "Carp Mountain". The three "mountains" form interesting and grand landscape. The altitude of other mountains near the lake is between 400-500 meters.
Dalong Cave is a typical karst cave adjacent to the reservoir. The total length of the cave reaches 4-5 kilometers. There are 12 viewing halls in the cave including the Shishi Hall. The hall is eight stories high and can accommodate thousands of people at the same time. There are many stalactites in the cave with different shapes such as lion, sheep, horse, dianthus, and so on. On a dangerous cliff in the cave, there is a round and deep cave with a width of more than 20 meters. Sometimes, there is a pleasant sound of music coming out from the cave; sometimes loud noises from the cave like the waves and thunders could be heard.