Guilin - Two Rivers and Four Lakes scenic area walk

 


Apart from its dramatic karst peaks, Guilin is famous for its lakes, rivers, and bridges, which give the city a picturesque charm. The Two Rivers and Four Lakes scenic area winds through the center of the city, lined with ancient-style bridges, pagodas, and tree-covered walkways. This water system includes the Li River (Lijiang), Peach Blossom River, and four connected lakes: Mulong Lake, Gui Lake, Rong Lake, and Shan Lake. Following are photos of a long walk that covered most of the Two Rivers and Four Lakes scenic area. See also: Guilin peaks and viewpoints and random photos.

Map of central Guilin with walking trail


It’s a long walk, but you can cover the entire Two Rivers and Four Lakes scenic area in one day. The route I followed isn’t a recommendation—it actually skips the Elephant Hill area, which I visited the day before. It’s just meant to show the order of the photos. You can skip some parts and include Elephant Hill instead. If you’re feeling energetic, you could climb the three hills along the way, but that makes for a pretty long and tiring day. It's better to visit all these places in 2-3 days. 

Original map - a photo of a tourist information board. 


Between two bridges along the Peach Blossom River (08). (I couldn't find the names of the bridges.) 








Shan Lake (01) and the Sun and Moon pagoda. You can go up to the top floor pagodas which are connected underground; in one case on foot, in the other by lift. 









































Walk along the Li River (09) with the Liberation Bridge and other sites along the way. 









Next to Diecai Hill (05), there is a short cave tunnel that leads to the Mulong Lake (04) area. But the entrance to this enclosed area is from the other side, so I had to make a big detour to get there. But it was a nice walk.















The entrance of the Mulong Lake area (04), with one of the peaks of Diecai Hill. You need a ticket to enter. It's a big area with a traditional village and pagoda. I skipped it, only had a distant view of it from Mulong Bridge. 






From Mulong Bridge to Gui Lake (03). 







Xiqing Bridge. 







Walk along the water. 








Baoxian Bridge. 


Walk along the water. 









Bigger bridge with traffic. I didn't find its name. 




Lize Bridge. 





Walk along the water. 






Yingbin Bridge. 







Walk along the water. 




Rongxi Bridge. 




Rong Lake (02). Walk along the water. 





Unnamed bridge. 



Walk along the water. 



Double boat lock. 









Walk along the water. 






Ancient Banyan Twin Bridges. 







Ancient Southern Gate. 





Beidou Bridge to the Mid-Lake Island. 















Glass Bridge. 




Walk along the water. 



Yang Bridge. 




Back at Shan Lake (01). 



Back at the unnamed bridge at Peach Blossom River (08) where the walk started. 






Riverside restaurant and bar on the ground floor of my hotel. 







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