Li River, Guilin

A river winding between karst peaks, a landscape so famous it appears on China's 20-yuan note.

The scenery is so famous that it appears on China's 20-yuan banknote. The river is part of the larger Xijiang River system, in the basin of the Pearl River. Cruises on the Li attract millions of visitors a year, and the most popular boat trip, from Guilin to Yangshuo, is about 83 kilometers long.

Why are the hills so strange?

The area around Guilin is made of thick layers of limestone, about 2,600 meters of rock from very old geological periods. Rain and water slowly dissolve limestone, which creates a type of landscape called karst. Two types of karst are found here. In one, groups of hills share a common base. In the other, single tower-like peaks stand apart. Hundreds of caves are also hidden in this terrain, and 23 have passages longer than a kilometer.

Rivers, boats and birds

The Li descends gently from about 141 meters above sea level at Guilin to 103 meters at Yangshuo, so the water flows slowly. Long ago it was linked by an ancient canal, the Lingqu, to the Xiang River, which flows north to the Yangtze. That made the Li and Gui rivers an important waterway between the Yangtze valley and the Pearl delta. Today cormorant fishing, where trained birds catch fish, is often connected with the Lijiang.

On the globe

The model shows a river winding between tall karst peaks. Look for the tower-like green hills along the water.