National Parks of ChinaOverview
| Designation | National Park of China (fifth batch) |
| Province | Guizhou |
| Location | Border of Nayong and Dafang counties, Guizhou |
| Latitude, longitude | 27.2, 105.4 Google Maps |
| Highlights | Gorge, karst, underground river |
| Area | 150 km² |
| Nearby cities | Guizhou, Guiyang, Chongqing, Chengdu, Kunming |
| Nearby sites | Zhijin Cave, Huangguoshu Waterfall, Chishui, Dragon Palace Caves, Red Maple Lake, Shihai Dongxiang (Stone Sea and Caves), Shunan Bamboo Sea |
| Themes | Underground rivers, Caves, Rivers, Canyons |
About
Jiudongtian lies on the border of Nayong and Dafang counties, Guizhou, 23 km long and 150 km² in area, combining gorge, karst and underground river.
The Liuchong River flows east through the two counties, forming the Zongxi River area upstream and Jiudongtian downstream. Here the river dives underground as the Guazhong underground river, about 7 km long. Along the ridge of the Wumeng Mountains above it are nine huge skylights; boating through, the sky appears and vanishes, hence the name “nine cave skies”. The nine caves are strung like beads, about 80 m high on average and 100 m at most, the water 50 m at its widest and 10 m at its narrowest.
The Guazhong underground hydro station was built inside the great natural cave at the outlet of the river’s second underground section: 4 × 400 kW from April 1984 and 2 × 500 kW from November 1994, with powerhouse, waterworks and switchgear all inside the cave.