九鼎龙潭

This guide to the twin spring-fed basins at Shuhe, outside Lijiang, opens with a puzzle: why has nobody dared drop a fishing line into either pool for as long as anyone remembers. It tells the local story of a single reckless afternoon, when the sky over Shuhe supposedly turned black the moment a hook touched the water, and traces how the fish here came to be called shen yu, or divine fish. Along the way you'll learn this spring feeds every canal in the old town, and that on a still day Jade Dragon Snow Mountain lies reflected flat and perfect across the water. Listen for the old cracked stele beside the pool, its origin long since forgotten.