[2025 Bazhong Attraction] Travel Guide for Nankan Grottoes (Updated Jan)

Explore Nankan Mountain 🌄 Discover the fairyland-like scenery 😍 A hidden gem in Sichuan! 💕 Hey guys 👋 Did you know? There is a super beautiful place in Nanjiang - Nankan Mountain 🤩 It is hidden in the mountains, unknown to the public, but the scenery is absolutely stunning. You must visit it at least once! 📸 🎫Tickets: Free~~ ⏰Recommended visit time: One day is enough 🕙 Set off in the morning and return in the evening, just in time to watch the sunset! ☀️🌅 Transportation: Driving or taking a bus is convenient 😉 🏞Recommended route: Climb up the mountain slowly along the mountain road, and you will see beautiful scenery all the way. You can enjoy the scenery of Nankan Mountain from different angles 🌲✨ When you finally reach the top of the mountain, you will find a wide platform where you can overlook the surrounding mountains and large fields. It's so spectacular! 👍 ⚠️Friendly reminder: Be sure to pay attention to safety when climbing the mountain. Wear comfortable shoes, bring water and snacks, and keep your strength! 😌 In addition, protecting the environment is also very important. Do not litter. Keep the environment clean and tidy to make our beautiful home more charming! 💖

The Nan Kan Grottoes, also known as the Nan Kan Cliff Carvings, are located in the belly of Nan Kan Slope, about 1 km south of Bazhou District, Bazhong City, Sichuan Province. They are the largest and best-preserved grottoes in Bazhong and are excellent representatives of ancient grotto art and the crystallization of ancient Bazhou culture. The Nan Kan Grottoes were first carved in the Sui Dynasty and flourished in the Tang Dynasty. They have a history of more than 1,300 years. People used to call them Nan Kan Temple. In the third year of Qianyuan of Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty, they were named Guangfu Temple. In 1988, they were announced by the State Council as a national key cultural relics protection unit. In 2001, the Shuining Temple Grottoes, the West Kan Grottoes, and the North Kan Grottoes in Bazhou District, Bazhong City were merged into the Nan Kan Grottoes, all of which were recognized by the State Council as the fifth batch of national key cultural relics protection units. Cultural relics protection unit. There are 176 niches and more than 2,700 statues in the Nan Kan Grottoes. The statues are mainly Buddhist, with generally strong bodies, full faces, rich clothes, various postures, chic and elegant expressions, and mostly use high relief carving techniques. The clothing patterns and tassels use smooth and brisk intaglio lines, and the knife skills are sophisticated. The Nan Kan Grottoes have rich content and elegant style, with distinctive artistic style and characteristics, and are the main physical historical materials for studying China's Sui and Tang cliff carvings. ⏳Tour time: Buy tickets to visit, the ticket price is CNY 40, and the tour time is 30 minutes to 1 hour.

According to the writing rules of popular articles, I should call it "Black Wukong" or "Shanxi Pingti", but after really understanding its history, I found that each has its own merits and cannot be said to replace each other. The former director of the Dunhuang Academy, Duan Wenjie, praised: "Bazhong Grottoes, the national treasure, the Tang Dynasty colored sculptures, the first in the country". - This is the Nanxiang Cliff Carvings located in the southern suburbs of Bazhou City, Bazhong City, with a total of 176 caves and more than 2,700 large and small statues. Nanxiang Mountain is slightly north-south, and most of the uneven caves are densely covered with hundreds of meters long and tens of meters high stone walls, forming a visually stunning spectacle. - A few caves are distributed in the mountain gate stone, cloud screen stone and Guanyin Rock at the north end of Shenxian Slope. A few caves were carved in the Sui Dynasty, and there were statues in the early Tang Dynasty. Most of the statues were in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, and some were excavated during the Republic of China. - The layered caves and the Buddha-inlaid grottoes will fade with the baptism of time, but most of the statues are still well preserved. Perhaps this is also the benefit of being niche.

The Nankan Grottoes are located in the Nankan Scenic Area, No. 44, Nankan Road, Bazhou District, Bazhong City, Sichuan Province. There are dozens of cliff carvings on the cliffs of Nankanpo Mountain, which are hundreds of feet long and more than a hundred feet high. The carvings were first created during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and as the temple continued to be built, a large group of grottoes was formed. - Address: No. 38, Nankan Road, Bazhou District, Bazhong City, Sichuan Province - Opening hours: 08:00-17:00 all year round - Ticket price: CNY 40 - Scenic spot features: - Long history: The Nankan Grottoes were first carved in the Sui Dynasty and flourished in the Tang Dynasty. They have a history of more than 1,300 years and are representative of Buddhist art during the peak period of grotto art in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. - Large scale: There are currently 176 niches and more than 2,700 statues, one pagoda, 17 statue steles, one "petition" stele by Yan Wu (the shepherd of Bazhou in the Tang Dynasty), 35 inscriptions, and 51 poems and essays. - High artistic value: The Nankan statues are religious art mainly based on Buddhism. The statues mainly include the "Dharmakaya Buddha", "Three Lives Buddha", "Sakyamuni Buddha", "Hariti Buddha", "Seven Buddhas", "Thousand Buddhas", "Amitabha Buddha", "Two-headed Buddha", "Guanyin Bodhisattva", "Cintamanicakra Guanyin", "Vaisravana", "Eight Dharma Protectors", etc. Most of the statues are works from the Tang Dynasty, Song Dynasty, and modern times. The Nankan Grottoes have a unique style and high artistic value. - Rich cultural connotations: The Nankan Grottoes are not only a treasure of Buddhist art, but also a historical witness of ancient Bazhong culture. The inscriptions, poems, and essays in the grottoes reflect the social, economic, and cultural conditions at that time and have important historical research value. - Transportation guide: - Self-driving: Depart from Bazhong City and drive along Nankan Road for about 2 km to reach the Nankan Grottoes. - Bus: Take bus No. 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 21, or 25 in Bazhong City, get off at "Nankanpo" station, and walk to the Nankan Grottoes.

🌈 Nuoshui River Karst Cave The beauty of the stalactites in Nuoshui River is the best in my heart. It is said that there is an ancient stage built during the Qing Dynasty inside the cave, those who are interested should go and discover it. The scenic area has many walking steps, not suitable for baby strollers!! The cave is wet and slippery, anti-slip shoes are a must!! 🌸 Nan Kan Cliff Carvings The Nan Kan grottoes in BaZhong are very close to the Thousand Buddha Cliff grottoes in Guangyuan, but because one is located on the Jinniu Path (Thousand Buddha Cliff also has the Jinniu ancient path to visit) and the other on the Micang Path, they have different routes and styles. The existing Nan Kan grottoes are very small, it is said that the original scale was very large, winding along the river for 3 kilometers, with more than 500 carved niches and over 25,000 Buddha statues. For various reasons, only this wall remains now, which makes one sigh. The guide said that the colors of the Nan Kan grottoes have not been restored, if it's true as the guide says, you will definitely marvel at the preservation of the colors of the grottoes here! 🌈 BaZhong, Dongcheng Street, Yuwang Palace Alley, Qiu Fatty Intestine This shop can be called a grand carnival of pig innards. Operating time: 30 years Average customer price: 50 yuan ☁️ The biggest feature: Of course, it's all kinds of fatty intestines. Just by looking at the pictures, it is already hard to distinguish which region of Sichuan this dish is from, achieving a great unification. BaZhong is not a city famous for its food, and tourism in Sichuan also seems rather poor. Whether you are going to visit the Guangwushan Mountain or to learn in the old red revolutionary base areas, this fly restaurant, which ranks high in BaZhong, is worth checking in. It's not very easy to find, located in a deep alley where cars can't enter.

🌈 Nankang Grottoes, I always heard the older generation talk about going to Bazhong to attend the market and climb Nankang Slope, which is the sentiment of the older generation here. I also visited here more than ten years ago, and I remember there was a small zoo at that time. This time, it feels like a lot has changed. The ticket is 40 yuan per person, which is only for the grottoes. Many niches are from the Tang Dynasty, which are indeed quite nice, but charging 40 is a bit expensive. Within a radius of 50 meters from the grottoes, there is the Medicine King Hall, Ebony Well, and Stele Forest (which can hardly be called a forest), and you can see it all at a glance. After leaving the grottoes, there is a pavilion up the hill, I suddenly forgot the name, you can take the elevator directly to the top floor, overlooking the entire Bazhong city. After the visit, I walked around nearby and saw children reading the text on the monument, and suddenly remembered what I saw online before, 'To talk about Bazhong, one should not mockingly talk about its sweet potato porridge. Bazhong has the largest Red Army martyrs' cemetery in China, as well as countless delicious foods and sceneries.' 🌸 Enyang Ancient Town, among the ancient towns in Sichuan I've visited recently, Enyang Ancient Town indeed has a lot of delicious food, mainly concentrated in spicy hot pot, fermented glutinous rice with ice, fried small fish, etc., and they also sell the sugar flowers from my childhood. Because I ate too much at noon, I didn't eat much of the snacks. I wandered around for a long time without getting hungry, and there was a light show in the evening, which I watched for a while, and it was not inferior to Nanqiao. ☀️ Dry-fried Intestines Crispy and fragrant with a hint of bean sprouts, it's really too delicious, it's the best fried intestines I've ever had, it's really amazing! ☁️ Braised Intestines Not greasy at all, the potatoes inside are also super flavorful. It changed my previous opinion of never eating braised intestines. ✨ Crispy Pancake Double-Cooked Pork Although this restaurant is known for intestines, we really like double-cooked pork, so we ordered one to try. It's the first time I've had crispy pancake stir-fried with double-cooked pork, and it's really amazing, crispy and fragrant, and the garlic sprouts and fermented black beans are super appetizing with rice! 💫 The rice is also worth mentioning, it's the kind of loose and fluffy rice we really like, and there are even green beans on top, the barrel rice is very fragrant. It's no wonder it's the top-ranked Sichuan cuisine locally! Not a single dish was a disappointment! The owner is very honest, saying that two dishes would be enough for us because the portions are large, which is true, but we wanted to try more so we ordered three dishes, and the owner even gave us a side dish to relieve the greasiness, which was also delicious. I may not go back to Chengdu, but for the sake of this restaurant in Bazhong and the experience of staying in the hotel last night, we all agree that we will definitely come back to Bazhong! Restaurant Name: Qiu's Intestines Address: 2nd Floor, Walmart on Binhe Yipan, Bazhong

The cliff carvings of Nank'an in Bazhong are located in the belly of Huacheng Mountain, which began in the Northern and Southern Dynasties during the Liang and Wei periods, continued to be carved in the Sui Dynasty, flourished in the Tang Dynasty, and after successive dynasties of augmentation, have gradually formed the grotto group we see today, resplendent and exquisite, lined up in close succession. It was first called Nank'an Temple, also known as Guangfu Temple. Guangfu Temple was decreed in the second year of Qianyuan of Emperor Suzong of Tang (759 AD). The carvings are mainly distributed around Yunping Stone, Shanmen Stone, and the area of the Great Buddha Cave, with large and small niches dense like a honeycomb. There are currently 176 niches with more than 2000 statues. In addition, there are over 200 inscriptions of poems and texts.

✅✅ The heyday of Bazhong in the Tang Dynasty, ranked first in the nation for colored sculptures ✅✅ The pinnacle of Chinese grotto art during the Sui and Tang dynasties ✅✅ The essence of ancient Ba culture ♻️♻️ Nankan Grottoes, an outstanding representative of ancient Chinese grotto art, are located above the ancient Micang Trail on Nankan Slope, two kilometers south of the southern suburbs of Bazhong City in Sichuan Province, known as the 'hometown of grottoes' in China. The grotto sculptures began in the Sui Dynasty and flourished in the Tang Dynasty, with a history of more than 1,400 years. ♻️♻️ The majority of the grotto sculptures are concentrated on the cliff walls of the mountain belly, densely packed like a beehive, with layers interwoven, Buddhas inlaid in abundance, exquisitely crafted, with various postures, elegant expressions, and lifelike. ‼️‼️ What is most breathtaking is that so many Buddha statues have been exposed to the mountain for years without any protective measures, yet the colors remain as bright as yesterday after thousands of years, which shows the maturity and excellence of the painting art during the Sui and Tang periods. It is undoubtedly an understatement and a grievance to call it a miniature version of the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang. ✅✅ Masterpieces include: 1️⃣ The rarely seen double-headed auspicious Buddha 2️⃣ The six-armed wish-fulfilling wheel Avalokitesvara 3️⃣ The male-bodied Avalokitesvara 4️⃣ The charming Avalokitesvara 5️⃣ Vairocana Buddha 6️⃣ Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva 7️⃣ The transformation of the Western Pure Land 8️⃣ The Dhāraṇī Sūtra Pillar 9️⃣ Vaiśravaṇa Heavenly King 🔟 Hariti Buddha 🚙🚙 Transportation: Public transportation is inconvenient, it is recommended to drive by oneself~ 💰💰 Ticket price: 40 yuan

Nanxunpo, also known as Nanxun Mountain Scenic Area, is located not far from the urban area of Bazhong City, Sichuan Province. It is famous for its well-preserved cliff statues, as well as attractions such as Nanxun Park and Beilin. It is also a red tourist destination. The Mo Cliff statue is mainly based on Buddha statues, and it is also a symbol of Confucianism and Taoism. It was created in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and the subsequent generations are constantly engraved. The existing complete Buddha statues are 122 and more than 1,800. It is a national key cultural relics protection unit. In addition to the Buddha image, there are also 25 monuments in history, hundreds of poems on the wall, and it is worth going. However, the previous ticket 20 here, now doubled, my friend in Bazhong knows that I am going to give me a subsidy, a good friend of China

Bazhong Nanxun Scenic Area is located on the Nanzhao Mountain, 2 km south of the city of Bazhou District. The scenic area includes the Nanzhao Moyan Statue, Nanxun Park and the General Beilin Forest. The core of the Nanxunpo scenic spot is the cliff-like statue that originally originated in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. After thousands of years, it still maintains bright colors and vivid shapes, which is an outstanding achievement of Chinese traditional culture and art.