Forest Park
(senlin gongyuan), one of the nine forest parks in the country, lies in Red Bridge Village Xing Dian Town, a northern suburb of the city. It is 7 km away from the urban district with a total area of 859 ha. Its surrounded on three sides by mountains while the other faces the river. The entire park is divided into five parts: Mid-Asian tropical evergreen broadleaf tree region, South-Asian tropical jungle region, Banyan tree region, region of wild fruit trees in hilly country and off-shore r wood region. It also includes a rare botanical garden and a rose & camellia garden. This park has been collecting and cultivating more than 2,500 kinds of plants from home and abroad, thus becoming a distinctive forest museum. The “Banyan King” of Fuzhou stands tall and upright on the bank of Bayi Reservoir in this park.
Gushan Mountain, the most famous sight in Fuzhou, is a classic scenic spot. It has been famous for sightseeing for over 1,000 years.. Yongquan Temple is its center with more than 100 sights scattered around it, among which main sights are Yongquan Temple, the Eighteen Sights of Damo and White Cloud Cave. Three routes can be taken to climb along the Gushan Mountain: the traditional one climbs along the ancient stone path from the foot of the mountain, approximately 3.5 km long, or take a bus directly to the gate of the Buddhist Temple(8 km long.; Visitors may also take the cable car from the foot of the mountain to the Eighteen Sights of Damo.
Yongquan Temple is located at the foot of the White Cloud Peak of Gushan Mountain, 455 m. above sea level. Built in the Five Dynasties (908), it comes first on the list of the five Buddhist temples in Fuzhou and still preserves large and middle-sized palaces and temple halls today. As an ancient Buddhist temple in a famous mountain, it is home to many places worth visiting. First, the conception of its construction is unique. By considering the entire mountain, it’s built in the chin of the peak where experts call the “Swallow Nest”. The temple seems to be hidden and visitors can not see it whether they are walking, taking a bus or a cable car. Even after entering the gate of the temple, they still can not see the large-scale Yongquan Temple.
The “pottery pagodas” refer to the pair of pottery pagodas standing before the temple on both sides. The pagodas were made in 1082 (the Song Dynasty) and are 7 meters high. They’re octagonal in style with nine stories. A total of 1038 statues of Buddha were molded in them, 72 of them are found on the eaves with 72 pottery bells hanging. This kind of creation is seldom seen in China and therefore, considered very valuable. They are the pride of the temple and protected as state treasures.
The Eighteen Sights of Damo is situated west of Yongquan Temple. It’s main landscape is the natural scenery. In the period of Emperor Dao Guang of the Qing Dynasty, Wei Jie, a poet, carved the eighteen sights in the crag outside the Damo Cave. These sights are based on the natural scenery and folk legend, such as Damo facing the wall, picture of Fuzhou (blessing and longevity) Quan, lion playing with ball, Nanji (an immortal) going up to Heaven and Fish light illuminating.
White Cloud Cave lies in the western part of Fengchishan Mountain, northwest of Gushan Mountain over 700m above sea level. The white clouds frequently float into the cave and people can not distinguish each other within a short distance. That’s why they call it “White Cloud Cave.” After the scholar Yu Dafu visited the cave, the rocks were odd and the path was dangerous. This isolated place had a well-deserved reputation. “Once you have been there, the experience will never be forgotten. It is wonderful because it dangerously steep”
Hot Spring Park is found in the southeast section of Wu Si Road, the hot spring zone, covering an area of 150 mu. Here you will find carpets of green grass, fresh flowers, fountains, zigzagging paths and verandas. Hot Spring Park is a european-style park and a nice place for recreation.
Fuzhou West Lake is located in the northwestern part of the city covering an area of 45 ha. In the third year of Emperor Tai Kang in Jin Dynasty (282AD), Governor Yan Gao channelled water here from the northwestern mountain areas to irrigate the fields. In the late Tang Dynasty, it was changed into a tourist area, thus the scenic spot of West Lake came into being and has remained a park ever since
You must visit the Panda Hall on your trip to Fuzhou West Lake, for it seems much more renowned than the latter. It’s located at the Dameng (Big Dream) foothills, southwest of West Lake and covers an area of 1.5 ha. The hall is well known for its successful rearing and breeding of pandas ranking first among the nation. The panda performa
nces are so interesting that it’s worth having a look. Under the trainer’s guidance, the charmingly naive pandas eat watermelon, feed dolls, ride bicycles and seesaws, play basketball and stand on a running ball,. all especially attractive to tourists with children.
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