Jingpo Lake Introduction

In Chinese, Jingpo hu approximately translates as "Mirror Lake", and on first sight of this sprawling waterway the calmness of its surface is striking. This is one of Dongbei's (northeastern China's) prettiest sights. People come here from all around China to take to the waters in boats (or swimming trunks), following the river down its length, past many small islets, along lushly wooded slopes, fishing or being guided.

The place is also well known for its peace and quiet, and the volcanic geography that is great for trekking in and over. The Chinese of Jingpo are fond of quoting the phrase that this lake is the "West Lake of the north", a reference to the famous Hangzhou scenic spot, and it is for this natural beauty that the lake and its surrounds are popular.

The Jingpo Lake came into being some 10,000 years ago when major volcanic eruption in the region led to blocking of the course of the Mudanjiang River. A part of the impressive scenery that these eruptions spawned was the flooding of the valley and the lake thus formed was, and is, the largest volcanic barrier lake in China. Of more recent influence on the scenery here, the man-made dam that was built at the northern end of the lake has led to the most impressive sight on the river, the Diaoshuilou Waterfall.

The lake itself is located 100km southwest of Mudanjiang and 350km east of Harbin. It is a huge, sprawling beast of a thing that winds with the course of the old river, 45km long and, at its maximum, 6km wide. Today the lake attracts thousands of visitors a year, mostly Chinese and Russian, visiting in the summer months. When many of China's cities are suffering from unbearable heat, Jingbo Lake becomes a haven of modest temperatures. This is a recent tourism district and the affects of this are yet to be truly realised. Hotels are sprouting up where once there was stark natural beauty, litter is scattered where once there were leaf filled paths, and the mirror calm of the lake waters is regularly interrupted by the puttering tour boats. The place thankfully is not yet truly overcrowded, and it is still fairly easy for even the least active traveler to find a bit of seclusion to catch those carp or climb the long dead volcanoes.