Qingchuan Pavilion

"Scenic wonder of the Three Chu regions" (facing Yellow Crane Tower across the river, from Cui Hao's line "The sunlit river shows Hanyang's trees in clear view"); Yu-Ji Palace (commemorating Yu the Great's flood control) + Tiemen Pass (Three Kingdoms relic). Qingchuan Pavilion, facing Yellow Crane Tower across the river, takes its name from the poetry of Cui Hao's "The sunlit river shows Hanyang's trees in clear view"; together with Yellow Crane Tower and Guqin Terrace it is celebrated as a "scenic wonder of the Three Chu regions", the north-bank anchor of the tower-and-pavilion "facing each other across the Yangtze" layout. Beside the pavilion, Yu-Ji Palace is a Qing-dynasty shrine built in honor of Yu the Great's taming of the floods; legend has it that his dredging of the Yangtze and Han rivers left the "Yugong Rock" (Rock of Yu's Achievements) relic here; Tiemen Pass preserves the name of a Three Kingdoms-era military pass, its gate-tower-style building commanding the strategic crossing at Qingchuan. From the pavilion railing, the Yangtze River Bridge lies stretched before you and Yellow Crane Tower gazes back across the water—the classic "one river, two towers" composition, free of charge, makes this a choice that serves both photography and historical reflection.

Getting there: Hanyang bridgehead of the Yangtze River Bridge