Elephant Trunk Hill

Shuiyue Cave (Moon over the Water Cave)

The Water Moon Cave could catch your eyes firstly; it's about 17 meters long, 12 meters high and 9.5 meters wide. It’s located between the elephant trunk and its body space a round cave which resembles a full moon drifting on the water, thus the name. When in a full moon night, the water waves and the moon glitters form a fantastic scene which has been highly honored by poets, painters over history. This phenomenon is unique.

In and out of the cave there are many carvings and inscriptions, dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) .They are poems and written records of visitors’ thoughts upon visiting this beautiful site. The most well known is a poem by Lu You, one of the four great poets of the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279).

Ancient scholar praised it as a strange illusion with poem:
"There is a moon at the bottom of the water;
on the water the moon floats.
Water is flowing away but the moon stays;
when the moon is gone the water still remain."
Visitors can boat through the cave to the river. Another cave regarded as the eyes of the elephant lies in the hillside. It provides tourists an ideal position to enjoy the panoramic view of Guilin.

Elephant Eye Cave

Climbing through the snaking stone path highway up to the hill, visitors will see another cave going through the hill, the Elephant Eye Cave. With a height of around 2 meters, the cave spans 5 to 10 meters in width, about 52 meters in length. it’s so called for the cave located right at the site for eyes. A look through the cave affords a good view of the surroundings. and you could enjoy the panoramic view of Guilin City.

Puxian Pagoda

On the top of the hill stands the 46-foot (14 meter) high Puxian Pagoda, erected during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and shaped as the handle of the dagger with which the elephant was killed. It is a two-storey pagoda surrounded by green trees. The north seat of the second floor is inlaid with an image of Bodhisattva Puxian. The pagoda looks like a precious vase on the back of an elephant seen from distance and many beautiful legends about the pagoda with good wishes are said among people. As the symbol of Guilin, Elephant Trunk Hill is the main scenic spot of the Elephant Trunk Hill Park, which also includes Yunfeng Monastery (a building with ancient style), Aiqing Dao (Love Island) and so on.

Love Island

There is an island out in the Li River called Love Island. Visitors can cross a stone bridge carved with elephants to get to it. It is a beautiful little island covered with bamboo groves and dedicated to lovers. It has many winding paths, and many stone statues dedicated to love have been erected in it. It is a neat place to relax, and spend some time with that special someone.) and so on.