Shanhaiguan Pass
Shanhai Pass is the east start point of the Great Wall, which extends 26 km within the territory of Shanhai Guan city. With the Great Wall as the central line, Shanhai Pass Tourist Scenic Area is mainly composed of the scenic spots of“Old Dragon Head”, Jiaoshan Great Wall, the First Pass Under Heaven, the Longevity Mountain, Yansai Lake, and Shanhai Pass Great Wall Museum. It is a famous tourist resort which has combined the beautiful sceneries of mountains, seas, pass, walls, lakes, cavities, temples as well as joss houses.
Shanhai Pass possesses a steep and precipitous terrain, since ancient times, there has always been such high recognition that “the only entrance to Beijing and Shengjing (Shenyang), the First Pass of the Great Wall”. In ancient times it was a military fortress of strategic importance with complete defense system. It is the unification of all the great achievements of the Great Wall, whihc possesses not only the grand forts and vital communication centers, but also the famous scenic spot for the appreciation of great seas---the Old Dragon Head; it not only has the Jiaoshan Great Wall crossing over the ranges of hills of Yanshan Mountain, but also Meng Jiangnu Temple which contains rich folk tales. The Ming Great Wall traverses the vast blue sea and gold sand from east to west, and runs through the ranges of hills of Yanshan mountain from north to south; while Shanhai Pass takes hold of the steep passes of the mountain, and grabs the vital communication centers on the land, making it a strong and powerful barrier for the capital area and the throat of the west part of Liao Dynasty. In spite of 600 years’ weathering, it still keeps its original grandness and majesty.
There are a great number of cultural relics inside and outside of the Shanhai Guan city, such as the autographs of emperor Kangxi and Qianlong on the Old Dragon Head Chenghai Pavilion, the Great Wall cultural relics displayed in Shanhai Pass Great Wall Museum, which is the embodiment of grandness of the Great Wall with a history of 2,000 years and extends for more than 100,000 li.
The Longevity Mountain within Shanhai Pass scenic spot enjoys charming and gentle natural views with clear and winding waters. All the architectures, sculptures and calligraphies among the mountain reflect a uniform theme of longevity, including the original handwritings of famous calligraphers and the grottoes of the highly skilled doctors; Yansai lake unites to a greater extent the steepness of the Three Gorges and the grace of the Guilin Scenery; the 18 famous scenes sprinkle on the lake area, together with clear waters, birds’ sweets songs as well as the steep and precipitous cliffs, they have formed a unique natural landscape.
