Hongfeng Lake (hóng fēng hú 红枫湖) is located in the outskirt of Qingzhen County (qīng zhèn xiàn 清镇县), 33 kilometers from Guiyang City (guì yáng shì 贵阳市). The lake covers a total of 240 square kilometers, with the water area of 57.2 square kilometers, and holds 600 million cubic meters of waters. It is the largest man-made lake in Guizhou Plateau. According to the statistics, Hongfeng Lake is 12 times larger than the Ming Tombs' Reservoir (shí sān líng shuǐ kù 十三陵水库) in Beijing (běi jīng 北京), and is as large as 6 West Lake (xī hú 西湖) in Hangzhou (háng zhōu 杭州).

Around the lake there planted more than one hundred maple trees. In late fall, the red maple leaves reflect in the water and it seems that even the lake is red. However, some people believe that the lake is named after its shape of being like a maple of leaf falling down on the ground.

The Hongfeng Lake can be divided into 4 parts, namely, the Middle Lake (zhōng hú 中湖), the South Lake (nán hú 南湖), the North Lake (běi hú 北湖) and the Rear Lake (hòu hú 后湖). The North Lake is famous for the islands, among which the most famous are the Bird Island, Snake Island, and Turtle Island, which are named after their shape. The South Lake is famous for the caves, which is unique combined with its surrounding karst landscape. The Middle Lake is located between the North Lake and the South Lake. And it is famous for the picturesque peaks and rocks. The Rear Lake is famous for its bays. Tourist can take a little boat and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the sunset, which will make you feel that you are in the south region of the Yangtze River.

There are some ethnic villages with interesting examples of village architecture in the scenic area, including DiaoJiaolou (diào jiǎo lóu 吊脚楼), flagstone house (shí bǎn fáng 石板房), drum tower (gǔ lóu 鼓楼) and a roofed bridge (fēng yǔ qiáo 风雨桥). In accordance with village custom, you will get a warm welcome. You may taste many special ethnic foods and snacks there too. It will be such an interesting experience that they may be reluctant to leave.

Hongfeng Lake
Location: Qingzhen County, 33 kilomters from Guiyang
Admission fee: RMB 40 (March 1 – October 31)
                       RMB 30 (November 1 – February 27)
Opening hours: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Transportation:
1. You can take a tourist bus at the Hebin Park in Guiyang city, and it will take you 20 minutes to get Hongfeng Lake.
2. or you can take buses at the Bus Station on Yan’an West Road (yán ān xī lù 延安西路) and Shanlin Road (shān lín lù 山林路) to Qingzhen, and then take a tourist bus to get there.